Luka Doncic was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks (pick acquired from Atlanta Hawks). Before coming to the NBA, Doncic played professionally with Real Madrid for three years. His professional experience was invaluable and prepared him well for the NBA. Doncic even went on record to say that “it’s easier to score in the NBA.” It’s hard to argue against that, as Doncic averaged a career-high 32.4 points per game last season.
Top 25 NBA Players Under 25: No. 1 – Luka Doncic
Style of Play
Last season with the Mavericks, Doncic averaged 32.4 points, 8.6 rebounds, 8.0 assists, and 1.4 steals. In addition to his career high in points, it was Doncic’s best season in terms of steals and field goal percentage. Doncic recorded 50/34/74 shooting splits. Some of this is due to playing alongside Kyrie Irving.
Doncic is able to focus more energy on the defensive end. He isn’t relied on to be the offensive initiator of every single possession like he was in past years. In addition, Doncic’s efficiency also rose because he can have easier looks in terms of not having to force as many shots and also have a more open paint, as Irving helps space the floor and draw attention away.
Positional Size
The Slovenian guard is 6-foot-7, 230 pounds. He does an excellent job of utilizing his positional size and strength to get to his spots on the court. He’s a great finisher who also possesses elite court vision. If you guard him in single coverage, Doncic utilizes his size and positional mismatch to convert with ease. If you help, he’s one of the best in the league at anticipating where the open man will be and reading the gaps in defenses.
While Doncic averaged 32.4 points per game, what truly makes him a top-tier superstar is his well-rounded game that impacts winning in multiple aspects. He is a forward who plays point guard, meaning he can rebound at an extremely high level.
Doncic is moderately athletic by NBA superstar standards. But he is a true hooper in the sense of someone who has a great skill set and feel for the game. He’s amongst the league’s best in pick-and-roll situations and will capitalize on the mismatch opportunities with the best of them.
In other words, Doncic’s rare combination of size, skill set, and basketball IQ put him in the category of an elite NBA player at age 24.
Accolades
Doncic is 24 but already has an entire list of accolades to his resume. A large part of this is that he’s been playing professionally since 2015 with Real Madrid overseas. Doncic is already a four-time NBA All-Star, making it every season since 2020. He’s also made the All-NBA First Team every season since 2020. A exceptionally impressive feat.
Unsurprisingly, the Mavericks point guard won NBA Rookie of the Year in 2019. He was dominant on day one coming into the league. His positional size and feel for the game were immediately evident. It was also apparent that Doncic had previous professional experience and was more NBA-ready than the other rookies entering the league.
Doncic has way too many overseas accolades to mention. The most notable ones are from 2018 when Doncic won the EuroLeague championship and was named EuroLeague MVP that same season.
Last Word on Luka Doncic
The Mavericks have done a better job getting pieces around Doncic to help. However, it’s an incredibly loaded Western Conference with multiple teams with championship aspirations. These teams include the Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, and defending champion Denver Nuggets.
Doncic is already an elite superstar who gives the Mavericks a puncher’s chance against any team in a seven-game series. The best example was when the four-seeded Mavericks defeated the one-seeded Suns in the West Semifinals in 2022.
The scary thought for the league is that we still haven’t seen Doncic’s best season yet. He can win multiple MVPs to add to his already impressive resume.
As a result, Doncic rounds out the rankings as the top player under 25.
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