Everyone knew that Wednesday night would be emotional for Luka Doncic. The Los Angeles Lakers were in Dallas to visit the Mavericks, Doncic’s first trio by to American Airlines Center since being blindsided by a blockbuster trade at the beginning of February. Head coach JJ Redick was a part of a full team effort to support Doncic through the homecoming.
But after the tribute video that brought Doncic to tears, it seemed he didn’t need much supporting, or that the Lakers’ support carried him through an incredible showing. Luka finished with 45 points, eight rebounds, six assists and four steals on 16-for-28 from the field and 7-of-10 from beyond the arc.
He was astounding in an important Lakers victory that clinched a top-six seed and brought them to within one win of securing the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference.
After the game, Redick detailed all of the emotions and the subsequent performance from Doncic in his return to Dallas, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“The moment, which began with a tribute video and him sitting by himself and getting to actually live that and live in the moment and allowing himself to be vulnerable and his teammates supported him, some of his teammates got emotional, some of the coaches got emotional, it was a beautiful moment. I thought the video was great, but I think just his ability to then go perform, lights turn on, he’s teary eyed still as we walk out on the court for the tip ball. To have the emotional resolve to then go put on that kind of performance, it’s super-human. And I think all his teammates know that too because I think all his teammates can empathize with what he just went through over the last couple months and maybe some anticipation, maybe some dread, but certainly a ton of emotions about tonight. And then he went and did that. It’s big time. He led us… Our guys certainly had Luka’s back, and he had his teammates’ backs for sure.”
Taking a wider view on the night, Redick sees the team supporting Luka through his return as the kind of moment that bonds a team as they head on a quest for an NBA championship.
“It can bring you together, it can bring you closer. You never know. The NBA is a fickle thing. Greg (St. Jean) and I were talking as that moment was happening, both kind of fighting back some emotions. Greg said to me, ‘This is gonna be awesome for our group.’ To go through this with him, and for him to go through this with them. Does that mean we’re gonna win an NBA Championship or get to the Conference Finals? I don’t know. But it was an awesome moment for everyone.”
The Lakers secured a full week off before the start of the postseason, and now have a chance to secure home-court in at least the first round with another win. And while Doncic’s return to Dallas was the central storyline, the way the team rallied around him as he poured on the points shows a bigger story of a team ready to fight together in the Playoffs.
Luka Doncic says it’s time to move on from Dallas
After the emotional night, Luka Doncic was appreciative of the love he received from the Mavericks faithful. But he also concluded that he is moving forward to the next chapter of his career with the Lakers and leaving the past in the past.
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