Reliving Every Luka Doncic vs. LeBron James Matchup Ahead of Mavs-Lakers Christmas Day

The Los Angeles Lakers might not be very good this season, but LeBron James still is individually, and he holds a 6-2 record over Luka Doncic. The Dallas Mavericks can't afford to take their Christmas Day matchup at American Airlines Center lightly.

Dalton Trigg | Dec 24, 2022

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The Dallas Mavericks (17-16) are preparing to take on the Los Angeles Lakers (13-19) on Sunday in what will be their first Christmas Day game at American Airlines Center in 11 years.

Despite the Lakers' lousy record, aging superstar LeBron James is still very good individually, as he's averaging 27.4 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.7 assists while shooting 49.3 percent in his 20th season. Not only that, but James also holds a 6-2 career record over Luka Doncic.

As we've witnessed a handful of times already this season, it doesn't matter what an opposing team's record is or how banged up the roster might be – they'll still have a chance to win if the Mavs aren't on their A-game. Dallas is coming off a 112-106 win over the 9-23 Houston Rockets ... and it took a 50-point explosion from Doncic to make sure a win was secured. The Lakers are coming off a 134-130 loss to the 9-24 Charolette Hornets despite James' game-high 34 points.

Ahead of the Mavs' Christmas Day matchup against the Lakers, let's take a look at how every other Luka vs. LeBron matchup has gone over the last five years:

Oct. 31, 2018

Lakers – 114, Mavs – 113

James: 29 points, five rebounds, six assists, three steals

Doncic: 14 points, five rebounds, seven assists, one steal

Nov. 30, 2018

Lakers – 114, Mavs – 103

James: 28 points, five rebounds, four assists, one block

Doncic: six points, six rebounds, five assists, three steals, two blocks

Nov. 1, 2019

Lakers – 119, Mavs 110 in overtime

James: 39 points, 12 rebounds, 16 assists, four steals, one block

Doncic: 31 points, 13 rebounds, 15 assists, one block

Dec. 1, 2019

Mavs – 114, Lakers – 100

Doncic: 27 points, nine rebounds, 10 assists, three steals

James: 25 points, nine rebounds, eight assists, four steals

Dec. 29, 2019

Lakers – 108, Mavs – 95

James: 13 points, six rebounds, 13 assists, two steals

Doncic: 19 points, four rebounds, seven assists, two steals

Jan. 10, 2020

Lakers – 129, Mavs – 114

James: 35 points, 16 rebounds, seven assists, one steal

Doncic: 25 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists

Dec. 25, 2020

Lakers – 138, Mavs 115

James: 22 points, seven rebounds, 10 assists, one steal

Doncic: 27 points, four rebounds, seven assists, one block

March 1, 2022

Mavs – 109, Lakers – 104

Doncic: 25 points, eight rebounds, five assists, two blocks, one steal

James: 26 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, one steal

Although Doncic hasn't been able beat James' Lakers often in his career, the circumstances are much different this time around. Doncic is on an MVP pace, as he's averaging 32.8 points, 8.3 rebounds and 8.7 assists while shooting 49.7 percent overall, including 35.2 percent from deep. And although James has but up good numbers this season, the Lakers have a bottom-five defense over the last month.

Regardless of the outcome, NBA fans everywhere should be in for a treat on Sunday. The Mavs and Lakers tip off at AAC at 1:30 p.m. central time on ABC/ESPN.

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Published Dec 24, 2022

DALTON TRIGG

Dalton Trigg is the Editor-In-Chief for Dallas Basketball, as well as the Executive Editor overseeing Inside The Rockets, Inside The Spurs, All Knicks, and The Magic Insider. He is the founder and host for the Mavs Step Back Podcast, which is a proud part of the Blue Wire podcast network. Trigg graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi’s College of Business and Economic Development with a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship in 2016. After spending a few years with multiple Dallas Mavericks-related blogs, including SB Nation’s Mavs Moneyball, Trigg joined DallasBasketball.com as a staff writer in 2018 and never looked back. At the start of 2022, he was promoted to the EIC title he holds now. Through the years, Trigg has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, Mavs GM Nico Harrison, now-retired legend Dirk Nowitzki and many other current/former players and team staffers. Many of those interviews and other articles by Trigg have been aggregated by other well-known sports media websites, such as Yahoo Sports, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report and others. You can find Trigg on all major social media channels, but his most prevalent platform is on Twitter. Whether it’s posting links to his DBcom work, live-tweeting Mavs games or merely giving his opinions on things going on with Dallas and the rest of the NBA, the daily content never stops rolling. For any inquiries, please email Dalton@MavsStepBack.com.