Luka Doncic scores 46 points in Lakers’ win over Bulls, nearly 1 year after being traded
Nearly a year after the shocking trade that sent him to the Los Angeles Lakers, Luka Doncic reminded the NBA how crazy it was for the Dallas Mavericks to release him.
Doncic scored 46 points with 11 rebounds and seven assists in the Lakers’ 129-118 win over the Chicago Bulls at United Center on Monday night. It was his eighth 40-point attempt of the season.
Announcement
According to the NBA, Doncic’s performance placed him with Kobe Bryant as the only players in Lakers team history to score 45 or more points, 10 or more assists and five or more 3-pointers in a single game.
[Subscribe to Yahoo Sports NBA on YouTube]
The scoring explosion began with 14 points in the first quarter. After a quiet second, Doncic exploded for 19 points in the third quarter. And he added 13 more during the final 12 minutes of the Lakers’ victory. Doncic shot 15 of 25 from the floor, also making 8 of 14 3-pointers.
After the game, Doncic said he wanted to be aggressive in looking for his shot. He joked that JJ Redick would be upset about how many shots he took after being reminded that the Lakers coach told him to share the ball more.
“I think I was just being aggressive, see what the defense gives you,” Doncic told reporters. “I said, JJ will probably get mad that I took 25 shots. He’ll tell me to pass more… just kidding.”
Announcement
LeBron James added 24 points with 5 rebounds and 3 assists, while Rui Hachimura scored 23 points off the bench. The Lakers improved to 28-17 with the win, just a half-game behind the Western Conference’s fifth-place Houston Rockets.
This story will be updated.