LeBron James and Luka Doncic faced off last night as the Mavericks narrowly beat the Lakers after avoiding a fourth-quarter collapse courtesy of a Kyrie Irving three. LeBron and Luka stuffed the stat sheets, with James later being asked about where he thinks Doncic could go in his career in terms of the success he has.

“Wherever he wants to. It’s up to him. It’s without question: It’s up to him.’ We know what he’s capable of doing on the floor, so it’s up to him.”

Doncic had 30 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists in a game the box score loved, but viewers had a different tale. Doncic struggled with his shot for most of the game, going ice-cold in the fourth quarter during the Mavericks’ eight-minute run of making no field goals. Nonetheless, he clinched the game-clinching assist when he made a split-second read to pass to an open Irving when Austin Reaves overcommitted on a Doncic drive.

James ended the matchup with 26 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists, scoring 16 points in the fourth quarter as the Lakers outscored the Mavericks 30-13, but it still wasn’t enough to overturn the 20-point deficit they entered the final 12 minutes with. James’ fourth-quarter dominance was undone by a bad decision in the final minute, as he abandoned a mismatch on Kyrie to pass the ball to Anthony Davis while he was being doubled under the basket.

LeBron James Called Luka Doncic His Favorite Player In The NBA

Out of all the young players in the NBA, LeBron hasn’t shown love to anyone like he’s done for Luka. The players are often compared due to the fast start both made in their careers, with Luka showing similar gifts to James with his IQ and playmaking. James reportedly tried signing Doncic to Team LeBron in Nike before losing the Slovenian guard to Jordan Brand, so he’s had his eye on Doncic for years.

In 2022, LeBron declared that Doncic was his favorite player in the NBA through a tweet.

He’s also elaborated on why he rates Doncic’s game so highly, complimenting his vision and ability to control the game while being a 6’7″ point guard.

“His size. I mean, he’s gigantic. A 6-8 point guard. He’s 225 pounds. He has the ball on a string. And more importantly, his vision.”

Doncic likely earned James’ respect during their matchups early during Doncic’s breakout sophomore season in 2019-20. The Lakers started that season 23-4, with one of the four losses coming against the Mavericks. They also beat Dallas in one game in an OT thriller, as the surging Mavs were being catapulted by Doncic’s early greatness.

Luka made his first All-NBA First Team appearance that season and finished fourth in MVP voting, despite Dallas’ being a six-seed. LeBron finished as the runner-up to eventual MVP winner Giannis Antetokounmpo. These matchups ended with LeBron showing love to Luka, and they’ve rarely disappointed in head-to-head games.