Luka Doncic scored 42 points Monday as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Miami Heat 138-117. It was his fourth 40-plus-point game in his past five outings, and it raised his league-leading scoring average to 38.8 points per game.
Miami star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who averages the fourth-most points in the league this season at 28.4, nearly 10 fewer than Doncic, praised his performance. “Obviously, he’s one of the best scorers to play this game, if not the best,” Antetokounmpo said after the Lakers improved to 6-2 with the win over the struggling Heat (2-5).
A reporter interrupted Antetokounmpo’s answer, asking for more context on the two-time MVP’s claim. “Not right now,” Antetokounmpo replied. “Not right now. Of all time. I feel like some people are scared to say that, but he’s got to be up there.”
Coming from a player with nearly 22,000 career points who ranks No. 41 on the all-time scoring list, just behind Larry Bird, the endorsement carries weight. Doncic’s numbers also make a strong case.
The numbers behind the claim
Doncic’s career scoring average of 29.32 points ranks behind only Michael Jordan (30.12) and Wilt Chamberlain (30.07). His career playoff scoring average of 30.9 points exceeds his regular-season mark.
Against Miami, Doncic logged his fifth straight game with 20-plus first-half points, the first Lakers player to do so since Kobe Bryant in 2007. The 27-year-old is also on pace to win his second straight scoring title and the third of his career.
Over his past five games, Doncic has averaged 43.4 points while shooting 53.2% overall, 44.7% from 3-point range and 89.1% from the free-throw line.
A hot hand and a dangerous offense
Teammate Quentin Grimes described the streak. “It just feels almost anything he shoots, whether it’s a circus shot or regular step-back 3, or it’s a tough floater, it just seems like everything he’s shooting is going to go in,” Grimes said. “… I don’t think I’ve ever been on the court when everything somebody shoots, you think it’s going in. So, kind of crazy little heater he’s on for sure.”
Doncic also added 13 assists and handled Miami’s double teams with ease. The Heat blitzed him in seven possessions when he used an on-ball screen, and the Lakers scored on six of those trips.
Lakers coach JJ Redick pointed to the team’s ball movement. “It’s a really good offense that we’re playing right now,” Redick said. He noted the Lakers’ 39 assists were the most they have recorded since he took over as coach in 2024-25. “And a lot of that, of course, is Doncic and what he’s able to do and bend the defense. And his shotmaking creates a lot of problems and then he can make every pass.”
Doncic deflected credit for his own play and focused on the team’s progress. Two weeks into the season, the Lakers moved up to No. 4 in the Western Conference standings after going 2-0 in back-to-back games against Miami and the Toronto Raptors. “Obviously when we win, it feels way better,” Doncic said. “But obviously, it feels good.”