By: Brandon Carr
Luka Doncic has been one of the biggest stories in the NBA this season. He is one of the best players in the NBA and he is only 20 years old. NBA hall of famer Jerry West made a statement regarding Luka Doncic’s future. “[Luka] will be the best player Dallas has ever had. I have great respect for Nowitzki, but Dirk is not him.” (The Dallas Morning News). I agree with Jerry West’s statement. Here is why…..
NUMBERS DON’T LIE
As of today (January 8th 2020), Luka Doncic is currently averaging 29.7 PPG (3rd), 9.7 RPG (17th) and 8.9 APG (3rd). He also leads the NBA in triple-doubles with 11 on the season. These are staggering numbers for a 20 year old kid playing in the NBA. LeBron James when he was 20 years old averaged 27.2 PPG (3rd), 7.4 RPG (28th), and 7.2 APG (6th). Luka Doncic clearly as of right now, had the better numbers than what LeBron James did at 20 years old; even with LeBron playing more minutes per game than Luka is.
Dirk Nowitzki has never averaged as many points as Luka is right now in his entire career in a season. The most Nowitzki has ever averaged in a season was 26.6 PPG. Luka Doncic is the more complete all around offensive player than Nowitzki, but Nowitzki is still the better shooter from three than Luka. Right now, Luka is shooting 33.1% from three point range and Dirk in his career shot 38% from three point range. Luka is still only 20 years old so his shooting percentages can improve if he keeps working on his shot.
All of Luka’s numbers can improve as he will only get better. Think about how far Giannis Antetokounmpo has come in his career. His numbers only have gotten better every single season of his career. Luka is one of the most talented players in the NBA and his monster numbers will only get better.
The only knock on Luka is his defense. Luka’s defensive win share is ranked 158th in the NBA with a 0.076 rating. The reason behind this low number is the offensive workload that Luka Doncic has to put in night in and night out. This number can improve if he doesn’t have to carry as much of a workload each night. A scout from an eastern conference team said this about Luka’s defense, “He’s not a bad defender,” the East scout said. “He’s smart. He knows where to be. I wouldn’t call him a liability. You can’t ruthlessly attack him. His defense is good in a team setting. It’s just a matter of if he can get to the point where he’s a little more switchable and a little more able to guard in isolated scenarios one-on-one.” (Yahoo! Sports). Luka’s basketball IQ is among the best in the NBA and his defense can improve. Dirk was a good defender in his time in the NBA, Luka can improve his to get to that point.
EXPERIENCE
I understand what Dirk Nowitzki has done for the city of Dallas. He won them an NBA championship in 2011 and played 21 seasons in the NBA and has more experience than Luka Doncic. But I believe that Luka has the ability to win a championship for this Mavericks organization; just like Dirk did for them.
Luka has been playing professional basketball since he was 16 years old. Two years after making his debut for the Real Madrid basketball club, he led his team to a EuroLeague championship at 18 years old. He also won the EuroLeague MVP and the Final Four MVP that historic year. He already knows what it takes to win a championship in a professional setting and that mindset carries over wherever you go. Now the Mavericks obviously need to surround Luka with pieces he can accomplish this with. Kristaps Porzingis I believe is a good second option to pair with Luka and this team can continue to add more pieces to the puzzle. I believe if general manager Donnie Nelson can do this, Dallas will be a threat in the western conference for years to come.
I understand that Luka has not played in an NBA playoff game in his career, but the Mavericks are currently the 6th seed in the western conference and they will more than likely have a playoff matchup in the spring. Luka again has an advantage over a lot of current NBA players and that is already having that experience of winning a championship in a professional league. I am confident he can play at a high level in the playoffs.
CONCLUSION
Dirk Nowitzki is one of the greatest power forwards to ever play in the NBA. He revolutionized the game by being one of if not the greatest stretch big man in NBA history. He has meant everything to the city of Dallas and the Mavericks organization. I am not taking anything away from the greatness of Dirk Nowitzki and I don’t even know if Luka can live up to the impact Dirk has made. However, Luka Doncic I am confident in saying, will be a better and more accomplished player than Dirk ever was in his career.
Luka’s sheer talent and ability are far better than what Dirk ever had in his career and if Luka continues to get better and his numbers go up, he will pass Dirk in a lot of statistical categories. Luka would be the MVP front runner if Giannis Antetokounmpo and James Harden were not in the NBA. But again Luka is only 20 years old and has years to win that award and other awards in his NBA career.
For now, we can marvel and watch one of the best young players the NBA has ever seen do his thing on the court. 10 years from now, we could be having a different conversation about Luka Doncic in his place in NBA lore.
References:
https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/doncilu01.html
https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nowitdi01.html
https://sports.yahoo.com/heres-how-luka-doncic-can-get-even-better-155529782.html
Brandon's Breakdowns 