Luka Doncic Leads Mavericks Past Zion Williamson, Lonzo Ball, Pelicans
Luka Doncic and Zion Williamson may be the future of the NBA, but the former has the bragging rights at the current moment.
Doncic's Dallas Mavericks completed their four-game regular-season sweep of Williamson's New Orleans Pelicans with a thrilling 127-123 overtime victory Wednesday at American Airlines Center. Doncic, Kristaps Porzingis and Seth Curry spearheaded the effort, helping their team improve to 38-25 on the season after it went only 1-2 in its previous three games.
Meanwhile, New Orleans is running out of time for a playoff charge. It is now 26-36 overall following its third straight loss.
Notable Player Stats
- DAL G Luka Doncic: 30 points, 17 rebounds, 10 assists and seven turnovers
- DAL F Kristaps Porzingis: 34 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks
- DAL G Seth Curry: 21 points, four assists and six made three-pointers
- NO F Zion Williamson: 21 points and six rebounds
- NO F Brandon Ingram: 27 points, five rebounds and four assists
- NO G Lonzo Ball: 25 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and seven made three-pointers
Luka Outshines Zion in Star-Studded Clash
Just ask LeBron James how exciting Wednesday's showdown between Doncic and Williamson was on paper.
"The league is in great hands with a guy like Zion, Ja Morant, Luka Doncic, Trae Young, Jayson Tatum and the list goes on and one," he said after leading the Los Angeles Lakers to a win over the Pelicans on Sunday.
It is hard to argue with that assessment given the talent on the floor.
Doncic is the reigning Rookie of the Year and has elevated his game even more in 2019-20 as a triple-double threat every time he steps on the floor. He is 21 years old but already in complete control seemingly every game and unleashed his usual array of step-back threes, effective drives and perfectly placed passes before taking over in the extra period.
His Wednesday counterpart is a walking highlight reel at 19 years old with the ability to fly through the air for gravity-defying dunks, but Dallas threw size at him with Porzingis and Maxi Kleber and put his streak of 12 games in a row with at least 20 points in serious jeopardy.
Williamson extended that streak to 13 in overtime, but it was the Luka show with the game on the line.
Doncic glided through the defense to find a wide-open Curry for a corner three to go ahead in the final minute of regulation, although Nicolo Melli helped counter that with a three that forced extra time with seven seconds remaining.
All Luka did was rip off a stretch in the final 70 seconds of overtime that included a filthy step-back three, an assist on a Porzingis dunk, some razzle-dazzle to blow past Jrue Holiday to set up Kleber for a corner three and the offensive rebound tip-out to keep the possession alive after the big man missed.
It was basketball brilliance at its finest and underscored his potential to take over in crunch time in the playoff games yet to come.
Pelicans Lose Key Ground Yet Again
The other primary storyline outside of the individual battle was New Orleans' fledgling playoff hopes.
It entered play a distant 12th in the Western Conference and 4.5 games behind the eighth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies, meaning there is plenty of work to do if fans are going to be treated to a first-round showdown featuring James, Anthony Davis, Williamson, Brandon Ingram and Holiday.
The Pelicans have just 20 games remaining on their schedule, which made Wednesday's contest all the more important.
It appeared as if they would escape with a win with Lonzo Ball drilling outside shots, Ingram using his length to score over defenders and Williamson finally finding the scoring touch late, but an inability to stop Doncic at the end and Porzingis throughout proved costly.
It also didn't help that Ingram fouled out in overtime, and the Pelicans' playoff hopes are quickly fading.
What's Next?
Both teams are home Friday when the Pelicans host the Miami Heat and the Mavericks face the Memphis Grizzlies.
