The Phoenix Suns utilized double teams against Luka Doncic, yet the Dallas star adeptly took advantage of the situation, crafting effortless baskets.
It was even more challenging for the Suns when they opted for one-on-one coverage against Doncic.
Luka Doncic scored 50 points, surpassing 10,000 for his career, and contributed 15 assists, propelling the Dallas Mavericks to a 128-114 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Monday night.
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd commented: "He’s one of the best in the world. As I’ve always said, we can’t take him for granted. When he’s feeling it, you’re just trying to get him the ball as much as possible."
This strategy paid off against the Suns, as Doncic capitalized on their defensive choices.
Doncic concluded Christmas Day with an outstanding performance, making 8 of 16 three-pointers and all 12 of his free throws. He achieved the milestone of 10,000 career points in the first quarter, reaching it in 358 career games, the seventh fastest in NBA history.
The rest of the Mavericks stepped up when Doncic passed out of double teams.
Dereck Lively II contributed 20 points and 10 rebounds after missing four games with an ankle sprain, and Tim Hardaway Jr. added 18 points in Dallas' ninth consecutive game without Kyrie Irving (heel).
After allowing Phoenix to take the lead, Dallas embarked on a 17-4 run midway through the fourth quarter, securing the win.
"That was a tough road game, and outside of the 10K and 50 points, we won the game, so I’m really happy," Doncic said.
The Mavericks focused on limiting the effectiveness of Devin Booker and Kevin Durant, holding them to a combined 25 shots.
With Phoenix's two stars surrounded by defenders all night, Chimezie Metu and Grayson Allen provided a lift off the bench, which has been a weak spot at times this season.
Allen scored 19 of his 32 points in the third quarter, helping the Suns rally from a 15-point deficit, and went 8 of 17 from 3. Metu had 23 points and a career-high 19 rebounds with big man Jusuf Nurkic missing his second straight game due to personal reasons.
The Suns have lost nine of 11.
"We weren’t stopping them in the fourth, so we were taking the ball in the basket," Suns coach Frank Vogel said. "Double-teaming Luka, they were hurting us, and when we weren’t doubling, he was hurting us as well, and I think that took us out of our rhythm offensively some."
Doncic had a 39-point triple-double in a win over San Antonio in his last game and got off to a sizzling start in the desert.
He welcomed Lively back by setting him up with two easy baskets at the rim. Doncic started looking for his shot after that, scoring 17 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the first quarter to give the Mavericks a 36-24 lead.
Doncic returned in the second quarter to hit a step-back 3-pointer and found Derrick Jones Jr. for a soaring alley-oop. Doncic had 24 points and eight assists to give Dallas a 64-54 halftime lead.
The Suns were disjointed offensively most of the first half, missing 13 straight shots starting late in the first quarter. Phoenix kept Dallas within reach behind Metu's 13 points by getting to the line, hitting 12 of 14 free throws in the first half.
"I trust the players on this team," said Booker, who had 20 points and 10 assists. "I’m throwing it to them every time, but the first half we were just missing them."
The Suns had better ball movement to open the third quarter, using penetration to get open looks while cutting Dallas' lead to 75-71. Phoenix took the lead on Allen's 3-pointer, and things got testy late in the third quarter when Dallas' Grant Williams pulled Booker by his jersey.
The Mavericks used their big run to go up eight and stretched it to 14 on Doncic's runner in the closing seconds to push him to 50 points, capping his special Christmas night.