Dallas Mavericks rookie phenom Luka Doncic didn't win anything in the events he participated in at the All-Star Weekend, but he is taking it all in stride.
Luka Doncic lost as part of Team World in the Rising Stars game and reached only the final four of the Skills Challenge, getting knocked out by Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (who would lose to Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum in the finals).
Doncic talked about his participation in the Skills Challenge, and the Mavs star admitted that he simply didn't care about winning and instead enjoyed the festivities and his match-up with Trae Young.
“I just didn't care about winning,” Doncic said, per Dwain Price of Mavs.com. “I was just having fun out there. It's always fun to play that type of game against [Young]. Normal games, too, with our kind of history.”
That “history,” of course, could go down in lore as a pretty big moment, especially if both Doncic and Young continue the pace that they've been on.
The Hawks drafted Doncic third overall in the 2018 draft while Young was selected by Mavs with the fifth pick. However, they were swapped during draft day in a deal that netted Atlanta an additional first-round pick.
In his rookie year, Doncic has become the overwhelming odds-on favorite to claim the NBA Rookie of the Year Award while averaging 20.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game. Meanwhile, Young has certainly held his own as he has been handed the keys to the Atlanta offense, averaging 16.9 points and 7.6 assists per game.
The two teams split their pair of regular-season match-ups during the first half, meaning that the next time Doncic and Young square off will come during the 2019-20 season. Until then, Young will hold the Skills Challenge bragging rights.
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