Slovenian Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks scored 73 points in Atlanta (148-143 victory), becoming on Friday the fourth player with the highest score in a single game in NBA history.
The NBA continues to be very, very hot this week: after the 70 points of Joel Embiid (Philadelphia) and the 62 points of Karl-Anthony Towns (Minnesota) on Monday, Luka Doncic (73 points) and Devin Booker (62 points with Phoenix ) blew up the counters again on Friday.
In the race for the prestigious title of MVP, the Slovenian Luka Doncic, just selected Thursday for his 5e All-Star Game, left his mark with a rare offensive performance (73 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists), surely the “best” of his career, he admitted.
Only the legend Wilt Chamberlain (with a record of 100 points in 1962), Kobe Bryant (81 points in 2006) – who died four years ago to the day – and David Thompson (73 points in 1978), had already done at least as well as Doncic in history.
“Extra special”
During an offensive festival, Doncic shot 25 out of 33 including 8 out of 13 from distance and made 15 out of 16 free throws, in 44 minutes on the Hawks floor.
“We’ve had trouble lately (three defeats in a row). The goal was just to win. I pushed, no matter what the opposing defense offered me. In the second half they were defending with two players against me, so I tried to make (his teammates) play,” reacted the Slovenian magician, formidable shooter and ferryman.
At 24, the Slovenian has established himself as one of the best NBA players, where he arrived in 2018 (No. 3 in the draft), after dominating the courts in Europe with the Real Madrid jersey while he was not yet an adult.
He already held the record for points in a Dallas Mavericks game with 60 points in December 2022.
Mavs coach Jason Kidd hailed an “extra special” night from a player who is already “special” on a regular basis.
“What he does on the pitch no one else can do. His ability to take shots, to create them, to find outstanding teammates, he did all that at a very high level this evening. He’s the game plan. »
Friday, Doncic is not the only one to have blazed: the American Devin Booker scored 62 points for the Phoenix Suns, but lost against the Indiana Pacers (133-131) of Pascal Siakam (31 points).
The Suns saw a 17-point lead disappear, with Indiana tying the score with less than a minute to play before taking the lead on an Obi Toppin slide.
Booker had already scored 52 points against New Orleans this month. He stayed away from his record 70 points scored against Boston in 2017.
” Enjoy “
The Milwaukee Bucks lost to Cleveland (112-100) and confirmed the upcoming arrival of experienced coach Doc Rivers, in place of Adrian Griffin, fired at the start of the week despite the 2e place in the East of his team.
In San Antonio, a cheerful audience was able to enjoy a 4e home victory this season, the 9e in total, against Portland (116-100).
Victor Wembanyama, author of a few aerial dunks and a spectacular block, made the crowd roar with 23 points, 12 rebounds and 4 assists. His teammate Jeremy Sochan finished top scorer with 31 points.
“We haven’t gotten used to losing, every match is a fight, it’s nice to see the fruit of our efforts at least on one evening. You have to take advantage of it and on the contrary get used to this feeling of victory. We have to enjoy it intensely, from tomorrow (Saturday) we will be focused on the next match,” commented Wembanyama.
“Wemby” must face another French giant at home on Saturday, Minnesota pivot Rudy Gobert.