Luka returns to Dallas and beats the Mavericks again
DALLAS—Luka Doncic walked toward the wrong locker at halftime before a quick U-turn by the Lakers star in his second trip to Dallas since the shocking trade that sent him to Los Angeles almost a year ago.
Hey, at least he wasn’t weeping on the bench before the game against the Mavericks, or still trying to process the emotions and everything that was new in the wake of the middle-of-the-night deal.
A big fourth-quarter rally by the Lakers in a 116-110 victory over Dallas on Saturday night was a nice bonus for Doncic, who took another step toward the rest of his career with a visit to his first NBA city that wasn’t nearly as emotional as his return last April.
“There’s still emotions, trust me,” the NBA’s scoring leader said after going for 33 points and 11 assists and beating Dallas for the fourth time in four tries. “But a little bit better, a little bit easier for me. It’s unbelievable. I’ve still got a lot of fans here, players, some other people. I’m happy to be back.”
Doncic has tried to be clear that he’s moving on and maybe Mavericks fans are getting there as well
Changing chants
The game lacked “Fire Nico” chants—the ones fans used briefly after general manager Nico Harrison was let go by Dallas in November following a slow start, with lingering resentment from many for a trade that is easily viewed as a setback for the franchise.
The centerpiece for Dallas in the deal was Anthony Davis, the oft-injured big man who has missed more games than he’s played since joining the Mavericks.
When Doncic visited a year ago, about two months after the early February trade, the Dallas crowd was likely to launch into “Fire Nico” chants, which were still happening early this season.
For the Slovenian star’s second visit, the most noticeable chants were a couple of “M-V-P” renditions when he was shooting free throws (he made 14 of 15).
“The significance of this probably will be there for the rest of his career,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said before the game. “This is where it started for him. It’s where he made his first Finals appearance. It’s where he was drafted. The significance for our team is there and it’s certainly there for him.”
LeBron James and Rui Hachimura were the biggest catalysts for the rally from 15 points down in the final seven minutes.
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