Luka Doncic's 25th birthday: 25 things you might not have known about Mavs superstar
Luka Doncic is the face of the Dallas Mavericks, which looks to be the case for years to come. Since arriving in the NBA in 2018, he instantly made a name for himself, with his reputation only continuing to grow. On Wednesday, the Mavericks superstar celebrates his 25th birthday in his sixth season in the league.
Throughout his young professional basketball career, Doncic has already accomplished a lot and is on pace to add more to his resume. Considered to be one of the NBA's most skilled players, he has set a great example of how far international players have come.
Doncic is averaging 34.5 points (49.4% shooting, including 38.4% from 3-point range), 9.6 assists and 8.8 rebounds per game this season.
Luka Doncic's 25th birthday: 25 things you might not have been familiar with about the Mavs superstar
#25, He is the youngest player ever to debut for Olimpija Ljubljana
In the team's 79-70 win against Krka Novo Mesto, Luka Doncic scored two points coming off the bench, becoming the youngest player ever to debut for the Olimpija Ljubljana.
#24, Luka is the youngest EuroLeague MVP in History
Doncic was only 19 years of age when he secured his EuroLeague MVP trophy as the youngest basketball to ever do it in history. In that year, he put up 16.0 ppg and 4.3 apg.
#23, He is the youngest player in NBA history to win the Rookie of the Year Award
When he won the 2019 NBA Rookie of the Year Award, he was only 20 years old. He averaged 21.2 ppg, 7.8 rpg and 6.0 apg.
#22, He holds the record for most points in an NBA playoff debut
On Aug. 17, 2020, in a first-round playoff matchup against the LA Clippers, Luka Doncic scored the most points in an NBA postseason debut. He dropped 42 points (13-of-21 shooting, including 2-of-6 from 3-point range), nine assists and seven rebounds.
#21, He is the fastest Dallas Mavericks player to reach 5,000 points
In his 194th game played as a member of the Dallas Mavericks, he became the fastest one to do it in the franchise's history. Considering the number of greats to have put on the Mavericks jersey, such as Dirk Nowitzki, Luka Doncic has also confidently put his name there.
#20 Youngest player in NBA history with a 30-point, 20-rebound triple-double
Doncic's incredible 30-point, 20-rebound and 10 assists triple-double on Aug. 4, 2019, is an incredible stat line in and of itself. What made it more incredible is that he did it as the youngest player in NBA history to accomplish such a feat.
#19, Luka has the most career triple-doubles for the Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks superstar has 68 triple-doubles, with 65 coming from the regular season.
#18, The youngest European player to start in an All-Star Game
Luka Doncic's first NBA All-Star Game was in 2020 when he was only 20. During that season, he put up 28.8 ppg, 9.4 rpg and 8.8 apg.
#17, Tied for the fourth-highest-scoring game in history
In a 148-143 win against the Atlanta Hawks on Jan. 26, 2024, Doncic dropped an electric 73-point performance while also notching 10 rebounds and seven assists. He tied David Thompson for the fourth-most points scored in NBA history.
#16, Most-efficient 70-point game (FG% and TS%)
His 73-point outing against the Hawks this season was an incredible feat to witness as he did it efficiently. Doncic shot 75.8%, including 61.5% from 3-point range.
#15, Mavericks' record for most points in a game
Doncic holds the Dallas Mavericks' record for most points in a game with his performance against the Atlanta Hawks this season. Interestingly, he also holds the second and third place of the record before Dirk Nowitzki comes in fourth place with a 53-point outing against the Houston Rockets on Dec. 2, 2004.
#14, Second to Michael Jordan with the highest game score
Doncic scored a game score of 64.0 during his 73-point performance against the Atlanta Hawks this season, making it the second-highest game score in league history after Michael Jordan. Jordan had a game score of 64.6 on March 28, 1990, when he dropped 69 points against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
#13 Most consecutive games with 20 points, five assists and five rebounds, topping Michael Jordan
On Nov. 1, 2019, Luka Doncic started his feat by topping Michael Jordan for consecutive 20 points, five assists and five rebounds performances. He is now 20 games in with no signs of slowing down.
#12, Only three players in the last 50 years have recorded 5-plus 50-point games in their first five seasons
In the league's history, Luka Doncic has joined the incredible company of Michael Jordan and LeBron James as the three players to have secured five-plus 50-point games in their first five seasons. This is a record that is one of the toughest to be a part of over the last 50 years.
#11, Luka Doncic is the first player in NBA history to total +225 points, 50+ rebounds, and 50+ assists over a five-game span
Counting all of the games Doncic was on a heater with his shotmaking and the triple-doubles accumulated, he has become the first player in league history with 225 points, 50 rebounds and 50 assists over just a five-game span.
#10, One of two players to record a 40-point triple-double before turning 21
Before he turned 21 years of age, Luka Doncic dropped 42 points (14-of-27 shooting, including 5-of-13 from 3-point range), 12 assists and 11 rebounds against the San Antonio Spurs on Nov. 18, 2019.
#9, Luka Doncic is multi-lingual
Aside from his incredible basketball accomplishments, Luka Doncic is also multilingual. He knows how to speak Slovenian, English, Spanish and Serbian.
#8, Luka has a strong bond with Goran Dragic
With Doncic and Dragic being both from Slovenia, the bond between the two was automatic as the former Phoenix Suns guard served as a mentor to the Mavericks star.
#7, Featured on the cover of NBA2K22
Doncic became the cover athlete of the popular basketball videogame NBA2K22, alongside WNBA legend Candace Parker. The 75th Anniversary edition of the videogame featured NBA legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Dirk Nowitzki with Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant.
#6, Doncic is part of Jordan Brand
Featured alongside the likes of NBA stars such as Jayson Tatum and Zion Williamson, Doncic is part of an elite company representing Jordan Brand. Back in 2019, he signed a five-year $75 million endorsement agreement. The Jordan Luka 1 was released in September 2022.
#5, Two-time ACB Best Young Player
In his 2017 and 2018 seasons playing in the Liga ACB, Luka Doncic secured two ACB Best Young Player awards. He averaged 7.8 ppg in the 2017 season and 12.8 ppg in the 2018 season
#4, Doncic first began playing organized basketball when he was only seven
Being just seven years old, Luka Doncic joined the elementary basketball team of Mirana Jarca at Ljubljana. The basketball roots can be stemmed from his father, Sasa Doncic, as his passion and confidence only continued to grow from that point.
#3, Youngest player in NBA history to hit a playoff game-winner
During Game 4 of the 2020 first-round series against the LA Clippers, Doncic launched a buzzer-beater game-winner to tie the series at 2-2. He became the youngest player in NBA history to hit a playoff game-winner at 21 years of age.
#2, Luka Doncic's father also played professional basketball
The Mavericks star's father, Sasa Doncic, also played professional basketball at the EuroLeague, where he played for 17 years.
#1, Luka Doncic was originally supposed to be the face of the Atlanta Hawks
During the 2018 NBA draft, Doncic was selected third overall by the Atlanta Hawks but was traded to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Trae Young, who was drafted fifth. It remains an interesting discussion on how the two stars' careers would have panned out if the trade never happened.