Installment #20 in Monolisticle's Ongoing Campaign Against the "Internet of Endless Listicles."
Had it only been Luka Doncic’s performance simply by itself (a 43-point, 17-rebound, 13-assist triple-double), his effort in Game 4 of the NBA Playoffs against the Los Angeles Clippers would still have been very, very, very special.
Going only by stats alone, that level of triple-double is a feat that no other NBA player has ever achieved in a playoff game. Not Jordan. Not Magic. Not LeBron. Not Oscar. Not Chamberlain. Not Shaq. Not Curry. Not Barkley. Not Kareem. No one. But the greatness of Doncic's achievement is much more than just the performance itself. It was the context of the achievement. Because the context speaks to not only the greatness of the player, but the character of the man.
Not only was it a 43-point, 17-rebound, 13-assist triple-double performance, it was a series-tying 43-point, 17-rebound, 13-assist triple-double performance. And not only was it a 43-point, 17-rebound, 13-assist triple-double series-tying performance, it was achieved against the #2-seeded team in the NBA led by last year’s NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard and NBA All-Star Paul George. And without his fellow All-Star teammate Kristaps Porzingis who was out with a knee injury.
And after being down by 21 points in the second quarter.
And doing it in overtime at the buzzer.
And despite having a severe ankle sprain that Doncic sustained in his previous game that everyone was certain would prevent him from playing in this game at all, much less putting on the future Hall of Fame-caliber display that he did.
That's all.
Oh, and he did it at the age of 21.
It was a truly special shot among many truly special shots in Doncic’s very short but illustrious career, and a shot that Doncic has made many times before.
But never in this context. And when it comes to judging greatness in the NBA, context is everything. It's one thing to make an extremely difficult shot such as that one during a regular season game. But to make it when he did, and how he did, and despite all the things that were against him doing it—the pressure, the spotlight, the scrutiny—that’s what validates greatness.
Luka’s comparisons to Hall of Famers like Magic and Bird and Jordan no longer seem like hyperbole or wishful thinking or spoken in the context of "future potential," but in present reality. And if so, it’s not just because he has achieved similar stats, it’s because he has similar mettle.
What made Magic and Bird and Jordan and Robertson and Shaq and Barkley and Kobe great beyond the stats was work ethic, ability to rise to a moment, to play through pain, to play selflessly, unrelenting competitiveness, and to give everything every second of every game. Every second. No taking games off. No taking plays off. Ever. Ever. Ever.
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That said, true all-time greatness is, of course, earned over time. Throughout an entire career. And Luka’s career has only just started, which will, in the end, be one of the proof points of his greatness—that he did at 21 years of age (achieving a 43-point, 17-rebound, 13-assist playoff game) what no other player has ever done even in his prime.
So while I respect Shaquille O'Neal's opinion on "Inside the NBA" that when it comes to Doncic's achievement that we should all "bring it down a notch," I'm not willing to do that. Especially when you look around the NBA and see young players who have extraordinary athletic talent and skills, but who fall short on the character required for true greatness. I won't mention names. We all know who they are.
All that aside, Luka Doncic is just plain fun to watch. Not only for his skills and court awareness, but for his genuine love for the game, and the obvious joy with which he plays the game, and celebrates great plays. With Doncic, there is no "playing it cool." His uninhibited celebrations are the stuff of internet memes. And I hope that never changes.
And lastly, it was simply a thrilling game to watch. It was the kind of game all NBA fans have been waiting for, and hoping for, and suffering through a long basketball drought for. Both teams played well, had superb moments, and made clutch shot after clutch shot. Kawhi Leonard and Lou Williams were magnificent for the Clippers. It could have gone either way, which is what made it so captivating.
It’s been a long time since I jumped out of my seat during a game and cheered—cheered as loudly in my own living room as I ever have in an arena. And I needed that.
We all did.
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