Luka Doncic has historic night as Mavericks dominate Pelicans

The Dallas Mavericks had unperformed expectations this season, and fans have been waiting for that game where superstar Luka Doncic goes off and leaves the opposition in the dust. They got it on Dec. 1 as the 22-year-old had a 22-point double-double in the first half, and he led the Mavs to a dominating 139-107 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on the road.

Doncic was out there having fun and putting on a show on Wednesday night. There were bullet passes, incredible shooting, and plenty of highlights. The Mavs hit 68.3 percent of their 83 field goals and made fans quickly forget about their shooting woes against the Cavaliers on Monday night.

For the second straight game, Luka made some history. He passed Dirk Nowitzki for a franchise-record against the Cavaliers, and he added his name to the record books again in New Orleans. Here is a closer look at his performance, and what it means heading into Friday’s rematch.

Luka Doncic has historic night as Mavericks dominate Pelicans

Luka became just the third player since 2018-2019 to have multiple 20-point 10-assist games in a half on Dec. 1, according to Mavs PR. Damian Lillard and Trae Young are the others to accomplish the incredible feat.

Doncic also set a season-high by producing a plus-29 in his 27 minutes of action in New Orleans. It was just the eighth time the Mavericks superstar had a positive plus/minus this season.

Luka finished with 28 points, 14 assists, four rebounds, and one steal as he shot 11 of 16 from the field in the dominating win. The lone blemish was Doncic’s eight turnovers, but it was an otherwise flawless performance. Expect the 22-year-old to put on another show against the Pelicans on Dec. 3 in Dallas.

The Mavericks switched up the starting five on Wednesday night with Reggie Bullock replacing Tim Hardaway Jr. and Dwight Powell returning at the center position. The results were positive as the Mavs did not trail after the opening minutes in New Orleans. The two teams rematch on Friday night, and fans should expect Dallas to run back that starting five against the Pelicans.

Luka was far from the only standout on Wednesday night. Kristaps Porzingis had a 20-point double-double with two blocks in 28 minutes of action. Jalen Brunson dropped 17 points on seven of nine shooting from the field, and Tim Hardaway Jr. had 16 on six of nine off the bench. It was the Dallas Mavericks' best game of the season and an impressive performance in New Orleans.