Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic recorded 45 points, 11 rebounds, 14 assists and five steals in the team’s Thursday night win over the Utah Jazz. With that, he became the fourth player in Lakers franchise history to record a 40-point triple-double, joining Elgin Baylor, Magic Johnson and Jerry West.
Doncic’s 40-point triple-double is the first by a Laker in over 40 years as Johnson was the last to accomplish this feat, doing so on March 28, 1981. He also achieved this against the Jazz.
Doncic did not just land in the Lakers history books with this performance. He became the fourth player in NBA history to record 10 40-point triple-doubles in his career. James Harden, Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook are the other three, all of whom are perhaps the three players most synonymous with the triple-double.
The Lakers star is truly the first player in the franchise’s modern era to achieve the incredible statistical feat. It being 44 years since the last one shows just how rare an accomplishment it is, even if players like Westbrook and Harden made it feel more achievable with their prime runs.
Luka is already rocketing his way up the all-time Lakers rankings, as he joined that exclusive list in what was his 48th regular season game as a member of the franchise.
Baylor, West and Johnson are considered three of the greatest 5-7 players to ever play for the franchise, and all have their jerseys hanging in the rafters. Perhaps Doncic joining that exclusive club shows he is on that same path.
Luka Doncic named to Emirates NBA Cup All-Tournament Team
With Luka Doncic leading the way, the Lakers went undefeated in group play of the Emirates NBA Cup. And even though the run ended in the quarterfinals with a loss to the San Antonio Spurs, who made it all the way to the championship game, the tournament overall was an outstanding showcase for Doncic.
It seemed as if Luka just stepped things up even more when it was a Cup game and his performance did not go unnoticed.
The NBA announced the All-Tournament Team for the 2025 Emirates NBA Cup and Doncic was named to it alongside Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns of the New York Knicks, De’Aaron Fox of the Spurs and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In five Cup games, Doncic averaged 36.2 points, 7.6 rebounds and 10.0 assists while shooting 48.7% from the field and 44.2% from 3-point range. The Lakers superstar scored at least 35 points in four of those five contests, with two of those being 40-point games, and reached double-digit assists in three. Overall, Doncic ranked second in the Emirates NBA Cup in scoring and tied for fourth in assists.
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