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Luka Doncic may be, with the exception of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the most decisive player of the remaining players in the NBA Conference Finals. The Slovenian, after having a formidable regular season with averages of 33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds and 9.8 assists, has shown that he still had one more gear for the playoffs for the title with similar averages (28.3+9.3+9) and being decisive in the outcome of the games of his Mavericks.
He is a differential player and he is proving it in the Playoffs, the stage where great players are consecrated as stars. Doncic has been taking that step forward since his NBA debut. In those six seasons, the Dallas Mavericks only made the playoffs four times, and no one shone brighter than him on his team.
On the trail of the best ever
In the 43 Playoff games he has played (three times against Clippers and once against Suns, Jazz, Warriors, Thunder and Wolves), he has scored 31.1 points, 9.3 rebounds and 8.3 assists.
Numbers within the reach of very few. In fact, only one, the greatest of all time. Only Michael Jordan has a higher average of points in the history of the NBA Playoffs, with 33.4 in 179 games, in which he also averaged 6.4 rebounds and 5.7 assists.
To highlight Doncic's fantastic offensive production, it is enough to point out that he is ahead of NBA legends such as Allen Iverson (19.7), Kevin Durant (29.3), Jerry West (29.1) or LeBron James (28.4), who follow him in this ranking. And well ahead of others like Elgin Baylor (27), Stephen Curry (27), Giannis Antetokounmpo (26.6), Hakeem Olajuwon (25.9) or the legendary Kobe Bryant (25.6), who ranks 25th on the list.
Luka, a self-confessed admirer of Jordan
Doncic, at least in terms of scoring in the Playoffs, follows in the footsteps of Michael Jordan, who had the greatness of maintaining that average for 179 games. And to have contributed with it to win six rings for the Bulls. The Slovenian is a self-confessed admirer of the best in history and always refers to him as the best of all time (GOAT).
At the 2022 All Star Michael approached Luka, hugged him warmly and showed his respect and appreciation. Doncic still gets emotional remembering that moment: "I met him at my first All Star. I think he was celebrating something, I don't know, because I was nervous. I didn't know what to say.
Jordan signed Luka to his 'family' in 2019
And that was already part of his 'family' since three years earlier, when he signed for Jordan Brand, the clothing and sneakers brand of the myth, which announced in December 2019 the addition of Doncic to the group of players who wear his apparel.
The sports firm made the agreement public with a video posted on social networks in which the Mavericks player enters the locker room tunnel. "It's true. Welcome to the family," it reads.