Carmelo Anthony had another impressive showing for the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday, as the veteran logged 22 points (on 8-of-16 from the field, 5-of-6 from the line), a three-pointer, and five rebounds against the Dallas Mavericks. Anthony has been a breath of fresh air for the Blazers since he joined the squad a couple of months ago, and one particular individual who has taken notice of the 10-time All-Star's outstanding play is no less than Mavs rising star Luka Doncic. Having had the chance to go face-to-face against Anthony, Doncic admitted that he took pleasure in seeing Melo in action.

While Anthony indeed had another noteworthy effort, there's no denying that Luka Doncic once again emerged as the headline-grabber of the evening. The reigning Rookie of the Year torched Melo and the Blazers for a game-high 35 points on 11 of-23 shooting, along with a career-best eight 3-pointers, eight rebounds, seven assists, and a steal in 34 minutes of action.

Doncic's amazing performance allowed the Mavs to hold off a formidable challenge from the Blazers, as Dallas took the tightly-contested home victory, 120-112.

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Doncic started his second season in the league on fire, and he has been red hot ever since. Currently, the 20-year-old is averaging 28.9 points (on 46.7 percent shooting), 9.7 rebounds, 9.0 assists, and 1.1 steals, while also connecting on 3.0 3-pointers per ballgame.

Those are some MVP-caliber numbers right there, which is why Doncic has emerged as one of the early-season favorites for the coveted trophy. There's still a long way to go, and so much will still happen between now and June, but there's no denying that Doncic should remain in the MVP conversation until then.