Luka Doncic was met with a chorus of cheers when he strolled onto the court at American Airlines Center to do his pregame shooting routine.
“We love you Luka,” the fans chanted. “We love you.”
Doncic smiled and waved toward the crowd. He had spent six-plus seasons playing for the Mavericks, a place he thought he would call home for his entire career as the face of the franchise.
But a stunning, three-team trade last year sent Doncic to the Lakers.
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Doncic returned to Dallas for the second time since the trade, leading the Lakers to a 116-110 comeback win on cold and icy Saturday night.
Doncic was magnificent with 33 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds as he improved to 4-0 against his former team.
The Lakers led by 14 points at one point before going down by 15 in the fourth quarter. They made a stirring comeback behind the three-point shooting of Rui Hachimura and the hustle and determination from LeBron James and Marcus Smart.
Hachimura, who had 17 points and eight rebounds, made a three-pointer while being fouled late in the fourth quarter, yelling after the play. He made the free throw and then made another three-pointer to put the Lakers ahead 108-106, a lead they wouldn’t lose.
Smart and James then each tipped in missed shots and Doncic made two free throws and another basket to put the game away.
James finished with 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Smart had 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists.
“Sure, the significance of this probably will be there for the rest of his career,” said Lakers coach JJ Redick about Doncic playing in Dallas. “This is where it started for him. It’s where he made his first Finals’ appearance. So, the significance for our team is there and it certainly is there for him.”
When Doncic drilled a three-pointer over Brandon Williams in the first quarter, it gave him 1,500 career threes, making him the youngest player in NBA history to accomplish the feat.
Mavericks fans saw Doncic achieve a lot during his time in Dallas, even leading the team to the NBA Finals in 2024. But have Mavericks fans started to move on?
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“Luka’s moved on. And we’ve moved on,” Dallas coach Jason Kidd said. “He’s playing extremely well. He’s leading the league in scoring (33.4 points per game). He has his team in the hunt. For that, we wish him the best. That’s the business of basketball, you’ve got to move forward.”
The Lakers built a 55-41 lead in the second quarter before settling into a 13-point lead at the half.
But they were outscored 35-14 in the third and went down 87-79 entering the fourth before outscoring Dallas 37-23 in the fourth quarter to win.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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