Gregg Popovich Calls Luka Doncic 'One Hell of a Basketball Player and Person'

San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich offered lofty praise for Dallas Mavericks rookie Luka Doncic on Wednesday, per Mavs play-by-play announcer Mark Followill:

The 19-year-old Doncic averaged 20.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists entering his game against San Antonio on Wednesday. He's also helped engineer a significant year-to-year turnaround in Dallas, as the 20-23 Mavs only need five more wins to beat their victory total from last season.

Fans have taken a liking to Doncic as well, as the ex-Real Madrid star has the fourth-most All-Star votes in the league.

You don't have to go far to find people breaking down Doncic's accolades, and that fact rings more true of late.

Remarkably, the Mavs' point forward has averaged 28.0 points, 6.8 rebounds and 6.0 assists in the four games leading into Wednesday. Per NBA.com, Doncic also joined some impressive company recently:

Justin Kubatko of StatMuse provided an eye-popping stat as well:

And Zach Lowe of ESPN pointed out how clutch Doncic is in tight games:

The list of Doncic facts is endless, but earning praise from Popovich is a high honor for someone who doesn't turn 20 years old until February 28. A five-time NBA champion, Popovich has seen a litany of NBA legends up close. He coached the Spurs at the tail end of Michael Jordan's career with the Bulls and is still leading San Antonio in his 23rd season.

The Spurs and Mavs face each other twice more, including a matchup in the regular-season finale.