DALLAS (105.3 The Fan) - Luka Doncic's second NBA season was one for the record books. After finishing the 2018-19 season with just 33 wins, the 21-year-old led the Dallas Mavericks back to the playoffs for the first time since the 2015-16 season, and helped take the heavily-favored Los Angeles Clippers to the brink in round one.
Despite the season delay due to COVID-19, as well as the immense challenges he and his team faced along the way, Doncic's performance for the season still stands as one of the best in NBA history for a second-year player.
Doncic was recognized for that performance on Friday, when the league's final MVP voting was released, where he finished in fourth place behind the likes of Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James, and James Harden, each of whom are universally recognized as three of the games top tier players.
For the year, Dončić finished with 28.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and 8.8 assists in 61 games, making him just the third player in NBA history to average at least 28-9-8 for a full season along with Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook. He also finished with a league-high 17 triple-doubles, becoming the youngest player in NBA history to do so.
Doncic was also named First-Team All-NBA on Wednesday, becoming the first Maverick to make an All-NBA team since Dirk Nowitzki did it during the 2011-2012 season. He is also just the third Maverick in franchise history to receive All-NBA honors, with Nowitzki being named 12 times, and Steve Nash being named twice.
