Luka Doncic has surpassed many incredible statistical feats, but has he already become the best player in Dallas Mavericks franchise history?
His coach thinks so.
“He’s better than Dirk. He’s in the atmosphere of MJ, the best to ever do it, LeBron, Kobe,” Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd said during an interview on The Downbeat on 97.1 The Freak with Danny Balis, Mike Sirois, and Kevin “KT” Turner. “Just to appreciate what this young man is doing at the age of 24 is something that Dallas has never seen. He is better than Dirk. He does things that Dirk could never do. Now it’s the opportunity of getting the right people around him to, ultimately, win a championship.”
Dirk Nowitzki spent all 21 seasons of his NBA career in Dallas, leading the Mavericks to two NBA Finals appearances and a championship in 2011, a team that Kidd was a part of. He also is the only player in franchise history to win an MVP award. There’s even a statue of him sitting outside of American Airlines Center.
Doncic, in his sixth NBA season, led the Mavs to the Western Conference finals in 2022, but has never made it to an NBA Finals. However, he has already surpassed Nowitzki in some statistical categories.
Doncic already has the most triple-doubles (65) and 40-point games (38) in franchise history. He also owns the two highest scoring games in Mavericks history with his historical 73-point effort last week and the 60 he had against the New York Knicks over a year ago. Nowitzki’s career high is 53 points, which ties Doncic for the third-highest scoring game in franchise history.
However, the Mavs haven’t had much postseason success with Doncic. His playoff scoring average of 32.5 points pre game is second only to Michael Jordan’s 33.4, but he has advanced past the first round only once.
Doncic and the Mavs missed the postseason last season, but Kidd is still comfortable ranking him above Nowitzki and in the same class as Jordan.
“MJ didn’t make it [to the NBA Finals] until his 30s. This young man is 24 and is breaking all the records that sit in front of him and he’s a winner,” Kidd said. “His ultimate goal is to win a championship and he will get there and not just win one. He will win multiple when it’s all said and done.”
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