Dallas Mavericks phenom Luka Doncic felt the love from NBA fans after becoming the leading vote-getter in the first returns of the 2020 NBA All-Star Game fan balloting, which saw him get 599 votes more than Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, the reigning MVP of the league.

The Mavs star earned a total of 1,073,957 votes through the first week, while The Greek Freak mustered 1,073,358. The only other player to top a million votes was LeBron James.

Doncic appreciates the support:

“It was amazing,” Luka Doncic told Dwain Price of Mavs.com. “I can’t thank the fans enough, everybody who voted for me. I appreciate everybody. It’s like a dream come true.”

Head coach Rick Carlisle was happy to see how the fans have embraced a player who was unbeknownst to most of them before he was drafted by the Mavs after a trade with the Atlanta Hawks.

Two of the top three vote-getters are international players, a sign that the league has greatly evolved from the time late commissioner David Stern took over in 1984, something Carlisle was sure to point out:

“It’s amazing the way the league has evolved,” said Carlisle. “Over the years, there have been more and more of these guys that are big in the NBA. We’ll see where the voting goes, but it’s very exciting.”

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Chris Paul in normal clothes on left. Mavericks' Luka Doncic shooting a basketball on right.

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Mavericks' Luka Doncic, Mavericks' Kyrie Irving both in front. Shaquille O'Neal, Charles Barkley, and Brian Windhorst in background with eyes popping out looking at Luka and Kyrie.

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Luka Doncic's teammates were right behind him, not surprised but glad their young star is getting the recognition they deem he deserves:

“Not really crazy, because he has the hype around him,” said teammate Maxi Kleber, another international talent, hailing from Germany. “He deserves this.

“But to be first, yes, that’s crazy. But he deserves it. He’s playing out of this world. Just like today. If he doesn’t make those big threes he shot today, we’re in trouble. He makes those big plays every night. And if you make those big plays, you deserve to be No. 1 in the All-Star voting.

“Don’t sleep on the Europeans.”

Luka Doncic is averaging 29.1 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 8.9 assists this season and is among the potential finalists for the Most Valuable Player award.