Luka Doncic had a memorable night in Dallas. He was brought to tears by a tribute video before the Los Angeles Lakers took on the Mavericks, and then he went out and scored 45 points in a Lakers win that saw the home crowd cheer for their former player and chant to fire the general manager who traded him.
With the 45-point performance, Doncic joined very elite company. He and Wilt Chamberlain are the only players in NBA history to score 45 points both for and against the same team in the same season.
Luka scored 45 for the Mavericks in a win over the Golden State Warriors in December. Then he was traded in February. Tonight he made history.
That's a great stat from the broadcast: Luka the only player besides Wilt to score 45 points both for and against the same team in the same season. Bonkers.
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) April 10, 2025
Wilt & Luka. pic.twitter.com/wjspKQTNMe
— Alejandro Gaitán | @alejandroggo.bsky.social (@alejandroggo) April 10, 2025
If you were curious, Wilt Chamberlain scored 63 points for the San Francisco Warriors against the Philadelphia 76ers in November of the 1964-1965 season. Then he got traded to the 76ers midway through the season and scored 48 points in a win over the Cincinnati Royals in March. While he scored 45 or more 12 times in 38 games for the Warriors, that was the only time that season he scored 45 or more in 35 games with the Sixers.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Luka Doncic Joined Wilt Chamberlain As the Only Players to Ever Do This in One Season.
