Mavs' Luka Doncic Passes James Harden on NBA's All-Time 30-Point Triple-Double List; Lakers' LeBron Next

After missing one game to a quad strain injury, Luka Doncic came back to help push the Dallas Mavericks past the San Antonio Spurs while also making some NBA history in the process.

Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic had to miss Friday's game against the Houston Rockets due to a quad strain, but he returned on Saturday's second night of a back-of-back and put on a show in a blowout win over the San Antonio Spurs. In just 32 minutes through three quarters, Doncic put up 39 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists while shooting 13-27 from the field and 5-10 from 3-point range.

It was Doncic's 62nd career triple-double overall and 36th 30-point triple-double, which moved him past Los Angeles Clippers star James Harden on the NBA's all-time 30-point triple-double list for fourth place. The only players ahead of Doncic on that list now are LeBron James (37), Russell Westbrook (48) and Oscar Robertson (106).

Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

"I mean, obviously a lot," said Doncic when asked about how much it means to him being one 30-point triple-double behind the league's all-time leading scorer. "We all know who [LeBron] is, what he's doing in his 21st year in the NBA, which is unbelievable. So it means a lot."

Doncic is now averaging 32.9 points, 8.6 rebounds and 9.1 assists through 27 games, and he's helped navigate the Mavs through an unfortunate amount of injuries en route to a 17-12 record. The four-time All-NBA First Teamer is in the thick of the league's MVP race, and how the Mavs performed on Friday without him vs. how they played Saturday with him is something that should be a big part of his campaign pitch.

Spurs' Gregg Popovich Speaks on How Mavs' Luka Doncic 'Destroys' Defenses

“77 [Luka Doncic] … That’s how good he is," head coach Jason Kidd said when asked about the night-to-night difference with and without Doncic. "Not just Luka [Doncic], but [Dante] Exum I thought, them having the energy and then taking control of the game. I thought the group, again, played well. We shot the ball a lot better than we did last night. But a great character win, too, because we could have felt sorry for ourselves about our performance last night, but we turned the page. Much-needed win before we go to Phoenix for Christmas.”

Now, Doncic will turn his attention to Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and the Phoenix Suns on Christmas Day, where he'll only need 11 points to become the fastest player in league history to reach 10,000 career points.