Luka Doncic saw Gregg Popovich's joke about holding him under 50 points in the Dallas Mavericks-San Antonio Spurs game on Friday, so did it motivate him to score another 50-piece?
According to Doncic himself, that is not the case as he was solely focused on helping the Mavs take the win and extend their win streak, via Callie Caplan of the Dallas Morning News. However, he did love the fact that he scored 51 points in the contest, which is his third 50-point game in their last five outings.
“No, I just wanted to get a win,” Doncic said when asked if he's extra pleased about his scoring explosion following Coach Pop's guarantee. “But 51’s not bad.”




Luka Doncic has every reason to be happy about his latest scoring explosion, though. Not only did the Mavs win 126-125, but the Slovenian star also made history as the only player ever to compile a 225-50-50 line in a five game span.
The Mavs also improved to 21-16 on the season, allowing them to climb to the fourth seed in the West after being a mid-tier team early in December. There were legitimate concerns about Dallas' ability to contend in the West considering the supporting cast around Luka, but Doncic has shown everyone that he can carry the team and threaten the other title contenders.
Of course the big question is whether Doncic can maintain his current level of production, but if there's one thing other teams should have learned from Gregg Popovich, it's to not make any guarantee agaisnt Luka–joke or not.