Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic played in front of the Dallas Mavericks crowd for the first time since he was traded on Wednesday. Doncic led the Lakers to a 112-97 win over his former team and finished with 45 points, eight rebounds, six assists and four steals. The five-time All-Star was expected to have a grand scoring night as he had 31 points in the first half.
Doncic was on fire throughout the entire night and made 57.1 percent of his shots from the field. He also had a reliable stroke from deep, an area where he’s struggled since his return from the calf injury he had in the middle of the 2024-25 NBA season. The Slovenian star shot 7-for-10 from deep against the defense of the Mavericks.
“Everybody told me, the way I reacted to the [tribute] video,” Doncic said after the victory. “All these fans, I really appreciate it. All the teammates I had, everybody had my back.
“I’m just happy. I love the fans, I love this city but it’s time to move on.”
Before the game, the Mavericks presented a tribute video for their former franchise star, which moved him to tears. He couldn’t explain the emotions he had while he watched the video from the bench.
“So many emotions, can’t even expain it. Brought tears to my eyes. Like I said, I came as a young kid here at 18 and I didn’t know what to expect of the NBA and they made me feel at home. It’s just a lot of great memories.”
"So many emotions."
– @luka7doncic on playing in Dallas for the first time with the Lakers pic.twitter.com/QZva9WiPei
— NBA (@NBA) April 10, 2025
Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers will play their second-to-the-last game on Friday against the Houston Rockets.
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James was ready to support Doncic in his return to Dallas
Coming into the game, the Los Angeles Lakers had a tough 136-120 loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday. The team wanted to get back to their winning ways, especially with Doncic’s return to Dallas. Additionally, Los Angeles wanted to complete the second game of their back-to-back with a win.
LeBron James, who helped with 27 points and seven rebounds on 55 percent from the field, spoke about wanting to get the win for his co-star after the game.
“We knew the the environment we’re getting ourselves into, we know how emotionally draining, how emotionally fulfilling it’s going to be for Luka,” James said.
“For us to be here tonight and support him and his moment, it’s big time for us.”
"We really wanted this one, not only for Luka but for us as a team."
LBJ (27 pts, 7 reb, 3 ast) talks with @LakersReporter after tonight's 112-97 win in Dallas over the Mavericks. #LakeShow pic.twitter.com/LoNmKQAGij
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) April 10, 2025
James also faced big man Anthony Davis, his former teammate with the Los Angeles Lakers. Davis finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Mavericks.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
