"He's gonna go down as the greatest foreign-born player in the history of the game" - Former NBA champion reserves high praise for Luka Doncic, believes he was "thrown into fire early"
Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic has quickly blossomed into one of the top players in the NBA. While playing overseas, Doncic looked like a dominant force with the potential to be an elite player at the NBA level.
There was still plenty of doubt. Doncic's lack of athleticism was a concern. There is also a history of highly touted European players who have failed to live up to their potential in the NBA.
The 23-year-old has been nothing short of dominant since he came into the league. It's been remarkable to see what Doncic has done in such a young career. During his tenure with the Dallas Mavericks, Doncic has developed into one of the league's best offensive players. He's also shown he can perform in the playoffs.
Doncic's play has gotten the attention of former NBA veteran Matt Barnes, who has admired the player Luka has become. Speaking on a recent episode of the "Club Shay Shay" podcast, Barnes went into depth about why he believes Doncic is so special.
Barnes believes that Doncic being "thrown into the fire" at such a young age did wonders for him. He thinks Doncic will go down as "the greatest foreign-born player" ever.
"He's special. He's a Unicorn, you know? I mean, he's gonna go down as the greatest foreign-born player in the history of the game. And I think that you know he was playing against grown men at a young age. Luka's parents threw him in the fire early."
"He's playing against men that are smoking cigarettes at halftime at like 12-13 years old. So he's been in the wars, in the battles. He knows how to play against people. So when he got to the NBA, there was nothing new to him. You know, to me, I think he was the most NBA-ready offensive player we've ever seen."
Luka Doncic looks to make noise with Dallas Mavericks in 2022-23
There's no denying that Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic is on the path towards greatness. He is trending towards becoming one of the all-time greats. To reach that status, he will have to start collecting some of the top accolades in the NBA. This includes winning championships, MVP Awards and scoring titles.
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Doncic and the Mavericks finally achieved playoff success last season. They made it to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2011 after upsetting the Phoenix Suns.
Doncic averaged 28.4 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 8.7 assists in 65 games last season.
The Mavericks open their 2022-23 season against the Suns on October 19.