Mavericks HC Jason Kidd has big praise for Luka Doncic
Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic is still one month away from turning 25, yet already has a Rookie of the Year award and is coasting towards his fifth straight All-Star honor and All-NBA recognition.
On the heels of Doncic's historic 73-point outburst against the Atlanta Hawks on Friday, Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd made multiple shocking claims regarding the former No. 3 overall pick's stardom.
Kidd not only said that Doncic is already "better than" Dallas Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki, but he said that the youngster is starting to approach the level of all-time greatness typically reserved for LeBron James, Michael Jordan and others.
Hearing the Hall of Fame point guard say twice that Doncic is "better than Dirk" could ruffle some feathers in "Big D." Kidd also said that Doncic will win multiple NBA titles, a prediction he made with confidence.
One thing that fans should remember about Kidd before ripping him for his comments is that there are few people around the league who have been as close both to Doncic and Nowitzki over the last decade and a half.
The five-time assists champion spent a second stint with the Mavericks for four-plus seasons towards the end of his playing career from 2007-12. Kidd got an up-close look at the 2023 Hall of Fame inductee's greatness during the run, as Nowitzki made five of his All-Star teams in the stretch and led the franchise to their first NBA Finals crown in 2011.
The German was named Finals MVP that spring after averaging 26.0 points and 9.7 rebounds per contest in the six-game series upset over the Miami Heat and their big three of King James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
After his legendary career as a floor general, Kidd started as a head coach in 2013. He's now in his third season with the Mavericks and has seen Doncic ascend to a perennial MVP candidate.
The Slovenian has played in 40 of the team's 47 games this season and is posting his best numbers yet. Doncic enters play Tuesday leading the NBA in minutes per contest (career high 37.5) and is on pace to shatter his best marks in scoring (34.7) and assists (9.6) as well.
Doncic is also averaging 8.6 rebounds, is matching his previous high mark of 1.4 steals and 0.6 blocks per game and his 37.5% on three-pointers and 78.0% from the free throw line are the highest of his career too.
In likely much too early in most fans' minds to put Doncic in the same conversation as Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Michael Jordan.
In terms of the Doncic-Nowitzki comparison, the two are clearly different players, but fans should at least be able to admit that the former can do a lot of things that the former MVP couldn't.
In terms of overall accomplishments though, Kidd should at least wait until Doncic wins an NBA title to put him in the same class as No. 41.
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