Kyrie Irving proved that help for Luka Doncic is here in win over 76ers

Only eight games into his stint as a Dallas Maverick, Kyrie Irving is already proving that help for star Luka Doncic has finally arrived. 

In the Mavericks' 133-126 win over the Philadelphia 76ers Thursday night, Irving posted 40 points, the most ever by a teammate of Doncic, per Statmuse. 

Irving and Doncic combined for an incredible 82 points against the shell-shocked Sixers. Doncic led the way with a game-high 42, shooting 13-of-22 from the field and 7-of-13 from beyond the arc, adding 12 assists and four rebounds. Meanwhile, Irving finished with 40 points, going 15-of-22 from the field and 6-of-8 from three, with six assists, four rebounds and three steals. 

According to ESPN Stats and Info, Irving and Doncic are the first pair of Mavericks teammates in the franchise's history to each score 40 or more points in a game. 

Following his big night, Irving seemed pleased to see things finally come together alongside Doncic. 

"Luka was ready for the party. I was ready for the party tonight," Irving said via Dorothy J. Gentry. "It was one of those games where we had some special performances, and it was great that the work translated cause it could've gone either way." 

After seven games with the Mavericks, Irving averaged 24.7 points, 6.9 assists, and 5.1 rebounds. While Irving's play was solid, he and Doncic weren't quite in sync yet. But that all changed Thursday night, and Sixers' head coach Doc Rivers noticed. 

"It's almost like the Olympic team in some ways," Rivers said via the Mavericks website. "If you watched them in the last Olympics, the first four games everyone was trying not to shoot, and then they kind of fell into place and figured it out. That's what will happen here. It just takes time." 

The Mavs improved to 33-31 following Thursday's win over Philly. Dallas remains in a battle for a top-six seed in the Western Conference, tied with the Golden State Warriors (32-30) and Los Angeles Clippers (33-31) with a .516 win percentage. Right now, the Mavericks occupy the sixth seed in the West, just below the fifth-place Warriors.