Luka Doncic opens up on how much he misses Boban Marjanovic: "Hopefully soon we are together again"
Luka Doncic misses his former teammate Boban Marjanovic. Doncic admitted as much when the Houston Rockets, Marjanovic's new NBA team, visited Dallas on Wednesday night. The Mavericks played out a tribute video for Marjanovic, who spent three seasons (2019-2022) with the team, during the game. When asked about his feelings towards Marjanovic, Luka Doncic replied:
"I miss him so much here. Heβs a great guy, we were at dinner yesterday. We miss him here, I miss him so much. Hopefully soon we are together again."
Marjanovic was traded by the Dallas Mavericks on Jun. 24 along with Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss and Wendell Moore Jr. to the Houston Rockets for Christian Wood.
"I miss him so much here. Heβs a great guy, we were at dinner yesterday. We miss him here, I miss him so much. Hopefully soon we are together again."
Luka Doncic on Boban Marjanovic
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Marjanovic has always been a fan favorite and is known for getting along well with his teammates. In the little time that he spent with the LA Clippers (between Jan. 2018 and Feb. 2019), he forged a close friendship with Tobias Harris (now with Philadelphia). Luka Doncic's words for Marjanovic come from a similar place.
Dallas Mavericks lose to Houston Rockets without Luka Doncic
The Mavericks could not put it past the Houston Rockets with Luka Doncic sitting out the game. The Rockets earned just their third win of the season with the 101-92 scoreline.
Doncic was rested for the game after playing 40 minutes against the LA Clippers on Tuesday night. The Dallas superstar played 22 minutes in the second half alone. Doncic put up 35 points (50.0% field-goal shooting), 11 rebounds, five assists and three steals in the win against the Clippers.
Doncic's effort came after the Mavericks almost blew a 25-point lead against the visiting Clippers. The three-time All-Star also nailed a crucial 3-pointer in the final 30 seconds of the 103-101 victory over LA.
The 2019 Rookie of the Year has been on an absolute tear to begin the 2022-23 campaign. He is averaging a league-best 34.4 ppg while also tallying 8.8 rpg and 7.8 apg. Doncic is averaging career-best numbers for field-goal shooting (49.7%) and steals per game (2.1).
The blistering start by Doncic has led many analysts to shower high praise on Doncic. Just last week, Chris Broussard, speaking on First Things First, said that Doncic is on track to have a better career than Kevin Durant. He said:
"He's [Doncic] better than Kevin Durant [now]. ... I don't think people will debate that, maybe some will coz Giannis is the best player in the world. Luka is second-best player in the world. Luka is a better all-around player."
Broussard's reasoning for Doncic finishing ahead of Durant was simple. He explained his rationale:
"KD [Kevin Durant] is a better defender but it's not like KD was an all-league-type defender, right. He [Kevin Durant] is obviously a better shooter. I don't know that he's a better scorer. I mean they both average β Luka is at about 26.7 [ppg] for his career. KD is at 27.2 [ppg], shoots it a little more efficiently. [But] Luka is going to go up.
"Luka is just a better passer, controls the game more than KD does, a better rebounder. Look, obviously KD has the titles, but KD has never led his own team to a championship. I think Luka will β multiple times."