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Luka Doncic Named NBA’s Western Conference Player of the Month

Luka Doncic Named NBA's Western Conference Player of the Month
Dallas Mavericks forward Luka Doncic (77) smiles after hitting a 3-pointer during the first quarter of the team’s NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Clippers. | Image by LM Otero, AP Photo

Dallas Mavericks All-Star Luka Doncic has been named the Western Conference’s Player of the Month for February. 

It marks the second time the 23-year-old has won the monthly award in his four-year career. He was also the Player of the Month for November 2019. 

Luka Doncic joins Dirk Nowitzki as the only Mavericks player to win the award more than once. Nowitzki won the award six times in his 21-season career. However, the last time he won was in April 2009. Dallas waited more than a decade until another player-of-the-month winner was on the team.  

Doncic was magnificent in February, after a relatively slow start to the season by his standards. He led Dallas to a 7-3 record in the month while averaging 34.7 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 8.8 assists per game. In February, Luka Doncic made 45.7% of his total shot attempts, including 41.2% of three-pointers. 

He scored 30 or more points in seven out of ten games. The highlight of Luka Doncic’s month was his 51-point performance in a 112-105 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on February 10, which is his new career-high. He had 45 points against the same Clippers team two days later while also adding 15 rebounds and eight assists. However, that game ended in a 99-97 loss for the Mavericks. The two explosive scoring performances are the most combined points scored in back-to-back games in Mavericks history.

Those two games against the Clippers were also part of a five-game stretch from February 8-17, when he broke his record for most points scored over five games in franchise history. Doncic previously held the record at 186 points, but his new record is 199 points. For that stretch of superb performances, Luka Doncic was named the Western Conference Player of the Week for February 7-13. 

Doncic helped the Mavericks tally some impressive wins in February. The team defeated title contenders Philadelphia, Miami, and Golden State. 

However, Luka Doncic had competition in the Western Conference for the month. Memphis Grizzlies star guard Ja Morant, who started over Doncic in February’s All-Star Game, also had an excellent month. Morant averaged 33.9 points, 5.9 assists, 5.6 rebounds per game in February and capped the month with a 52-point performance. Memphis (43-20) went 8-2 in February and is the current third-place team in the Western Conference. 

Dallas (37-25) is currently in fifth place in the Western Conference.

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