SAN FRANCISCO – Andrew Wiggins knows what’s next on his game-night menu, the individual coming to Chase Center on Tuesday night with the intent of beating the Warriors, spoiling his dinner and maybe shooting a hole through his low-key All-Star campaign.
No specific name is needed or mentioned. But the visiting team is the Dallas Mavericks, which clarifies Wiggins’ assignment: Luka Doncić.
“Yeah,” Wiggins says, with a smile that implies he’s looking forward to the matchup.
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SIGN UP HERE “Ah, man. Special. Special player,” he adds. “One of the young stars in the league. ... I’m just going to go in there and I’m going to make it hard for him. Do my job. Do all I can to help the team win.”
Luka doesn’t turn 23 until Feb. 28, but the native of Slovenia already is an established star with superstar potential. The 6-foot-7, 230-pound combo guard is averaging 25.2 points, 8.8 rebounds and 8.7 assists per game. His passing skill has shades of Dallas coach Jason Kidd, and his shooting ability is, at its best, a notch below that of Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki.
Imagine, if you will, Nuggets big man Nikola Jokić, the reigning MVP, downsized to play the perimeter. That’s Luka, passing and scoring with equal aplomb.
“That’s what makes him so hard (to defend),” Wiggins says. “He can do both at a high level. All I can do is try and make it hard. And, hopefully, my length, and picking him up full court and doing all I can will help.”
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Doncić became the team leader while winning the Rookie of the Year award (2018-19), grabbing the torch from Dirk and has become the centerpiece of everything the Mavericks do on offense.
“Similar to James Harden, in terms of floor spacing, ability to shoot a step-back 3, incredible size and strength,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr says. “On his downhill runs and in pick-and-roll, he just barrels to the basket. And then, like James, he’s a great passer with the ability to pass over the top of the defense to any of the four guys who are on the floor with him. It’s a huge challenge trying to guard Luka.”
That’s why the job goes to Wiggins. He has defended point guards (Ja Morant, Darius Garland), shooting guards (Donovan Mitchell, Devin Booker) and combo forwards (LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo).
Luka is all of the above.
So, Wiggins has to prepare for the full complement of his skills. He did a reasonably solid job on Doncić – 26 points, 7-of-18 shooting, including 2-of-8 from deep, eight assists, seven rebounds – when the Warriors faced the Mavericks on Jan. 5 in Dallas.
Over his last six games, though, Luka is averaging 29.6 points, 11.0 rebounds and 8.2 assists. The Mavs won five of those games. If he is contained, the Dallas offense is appreciably less lethal.
“I feel like I’ve seen a lot of him these past couple years,” Wiggins says. “So, I’m kind of familiar. But he’s a tough guard regardless. He’s good at everything. I’ve just got to lock in and make it hard for him.”
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Doncić is among four players in NBA history with seven or more games of at least 30 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds. The others are Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson and Russell Westbrook – each of whom owns at least one MVP award.
Luka doesn’t yet have that piece of hardware, but he is a two-time All-Star. Wiggins hopes to achieve that status this season.
For now, he’ll be satisfied with a victory on Tuesday.