Even though Luka Doncic isn’t one of the finalists for this year’s NBA regular-season MVP award, he still had himself an excellent season, even though it was cut a bit short by the hamstring strain he suffered on April 2 against the Oklahoma City Thunder. He averaged 33.5 points on a solid 47.6% field-goal shooting, 7.7 rebounds, 8.3 assists and 1.6 steals a game, and he displayed improved conditioning and defense throughout the campaign.
He won Western Conference Player of the Month honors for January and March, and during March in particular, he was in the type of zone few players have ever been in for a sustained period of time. Doncic’s outstanding play allowed the Los Angeles Lakers to win 16 of 18 games leading up to that April 2 blowout loss against the Thunder, and as a result, they finished fourth in the West.
Doncic isn’t close to returning from his injury, but he was awarded a trophy for winning the second scoring title of his career, as well as one for earning the Western Conference Player of the Month award for March.
Although the Slovenian topped out at 64 regular-season games, an Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge appeal to the NBA’s 65-game minimum for being eligible for end-of-season awards was approved. There seems to be a very good chance he will be named to one of the three All-NBA teams after he got All-NBA First Team nods five times in a row from 2020 to 2024.
For now, Doncic will have to continue to sit and watch his teammates battle the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs. On Tuesday, Los Angeles took a 2-0 series lead with a 101-94 victory, and its defense has so far allowed it to overcome the absences of Doncic and Reaves.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Luka Doncic receives trophy for winning NBA scoring title
Reporting by Robert Marvi, LeBron Wire / LeBron Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
