Luka Doncic Stats Tonight: How did Mavericks superstar perform in his return from injury against Blazers? (Dec. 1)

After sitting out the last five games due to a wrist injury, Luka Doncic was back in the Dallas Mavericks' lineup on Sunday night. The Mavericks are on the road against the Portland Trail Blazers at the Moda Center. Was "Luka Magic" effective tonight in Portland?

Doncic dropped a near triple-double of 36 points, seven rebounds and 13 assists in the Mavericks' 137-131 win over the Blazers. Dallas has now won four in a row and improved to 13-8 for the season. Doncic started slow before finding his shot in the second quarter.

Spencer Dinwiddie stepped up in the second half, finishing with 20 points off the bench. Kyrie Irving missed the game with a minor injury, so Doncic needed all the help he could get. Quentin Grimes had 28 points, while Daniel Gafford added 19 points.

Here are Luka Doncic's stats for the game:

Players

PTS

REB

AST

STL

BLK

TO

PF

MIN

FG

3PT

FT

+/-

Luka Doncic

36

7

13

3

0

3

2

36:17

15-24

4-10

2-4

+1

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How did Luka Doncic perform against the Portland Trail Blazers?

Luka Doncic was part of the starting lineup along with Jaden Hardy, Quentin Grimes, PJ Washington and Daniel Gafford. Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson and Naji Marshall were all out due to injury. It has been a rough start for the Dallas Mavericks this season, but mainly because of their health.

In the first quarter, the Slovenian superstar finished with five points, two rebounds and three assists. He shot 2-for-7 from the field, which wasn't a surprise considering he doesn't have his rhythm yet after missing the last five games.

However, it didn't take long for Doncic to get his shot going as he exploded for 15 points in the second quarter. He was nearly unstoppable as almost put up a triple-double at halftime after a subpar first period. The Mavericks were leading 61-58 at the half.

It was also Doncic's 50th game with at least 20-5-5 in a half, which is the most in the NBA since the 1996-97 season. He's ahead of a guy by the name of LeBron James, who has 45 in his career.

In the third quarter, Luka Doncic got his double-double by scoring 10 points and dishing out three assists. The Dallas Mavericks took control of the third quarter early before the Portland Trail Blazers stormed back midway through the period to keep the game close.

The Blazers made things interesting in the fourth quarter despite losing Anferee Simons early after he picked up his sixth foul. Doncic was relatively quiet in the final period with just six points. It was Quentin Grimes, PJ Washington, Spencer Dinwiddie and Daniel Gafford, who made the final nails in the Blazers' coffin in the final two minutes of the game.

Dallas will try to extend their winning streak Tuesday at home against the Memphis Grizzlies. It's a must-win game for the Mavs if they want to have a chance to advance to the knockout round of the 2024 Emirates NBA Cup.