Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Dončić erupted for 60 points on Thursday against the Miami Heat in South Beach. It was really impressive considering the Lakers were on the second night of a back-to-back and Dončić was questionable to play.
While he was at the free-throw line with 14.8 seconds remaining in regulation and needing to make one out of two to reach 60 points, Dončić received “MVP” chants from the Miami crowd. The six-time All-Star really appreciated the gesture and got “goosebumps.”
“It was pretty impressive, especially an away game in Miami,” Dončić said, via ESPN. “You hear the whole crowd chanting, ‘MVP,’ that’s what I think every player wants to hear. … I got a lot of goosebumps, so it was pretty special.”
Dončić played 38 minutes against the Heat. He finished with 60 points and seven rebounds while shooting 18-of-30 from the field, 9-of-17 from 3 and 15-of-19 from the free-throw line. The future Hall of Famer has now scored 100 points over his last two games. Dončić put up 40 points on Wednesday against the Houston Rockets.
When the final buzzer sounded, Dončić was mobbed by his teammates, who circled him to celebrate his incredible 60-point game.
“I mean, that’s what it’s all about,” Dončić said. “You see everybody celebrating on the bench … it shows that we care a lot about each other. And that’s what great teams do. Just makes my heart happy seeing them celebrate my 60-point game.”
Dončić leads the NBA in points per game this season. He’s averaging 33.4 points per contest and has the Lakers in third place in the rugged Western Conference standings.
Los Angeles looks like a championship contender with Dončić, LeBron James and Austin Reaves leading the way. Lakers head coach JJ Redick, who played with Dončić on the Dallas Mavericks, believes Dončić “should be in the MVP conversation.”
“He’s playing as well as anyone in basketball,” Redick said. “He’s really elevated his play at a really important time for our team. He’s elevated the play of his teammates. I think there’s a trust level that we all have — coaches, teammates — with him closing games for us. He’s been fantastic, and I think he’s one of the best and should be in the MVP conversation. Hopefully people will start talking about that because he’s having as good a season as anyone.”
The Lakers have 12 games left in the regular season. It will be fascinating to see how Dončić and Co. finish the campaign.
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