Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic has arguably been the NBA's top rookie this season. Despite Dallas' disappointing season, however, all eyes have been on the Slovenian wonderboy.
But Doncic isn't quite embracing that attention, according to Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle.
Carlisle on the attention Luka gets from fans: "I haven’t seen and I wasn’t with Cleveland when LeBron James was drafted. I don’t know what it was like when the bus would pull up at 2 in the morning. But this has been a zoo. But he's not looking for the attention." pic.twitter.com/WxHBy1yjO5
— Dwain Price (@DwainPrice) February 26, 2019
Carlisle compares the hype around Doncic to that of LeBron James's outstanding rookie season. James broke into the league with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2003-4 season, posting averages of 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game while shooting 41.7 percent. Despite a disappointing year for the Cavs, James easily won the Rookie of the Year award.
One could argue that Luka Doncic has been even better than James. Entering Monday's game, the 19-year-old is averaging 20.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5.6 assists while shooting 43.0 percent .
The Mavs acquired Doncic with a draft-day deal with the Atlanta Hawks, sending Trae Young and a first-rounder in the process.
Even with their star rookie, Dallas has struggled this season and is looking towards the 2019-20 campaign when they will have a chance to see Doncic pair up with newly acquire forward Kristaps Porzingis.
The team is 26-33 on the season, putting them 13th in the loaded Western Conference. They are also five games back of the eighth and final playoff spot.
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