Luka Dončić Takes the Mantle of Best in the World

The title of Best Basketball Player in the World is subjective. You can have your own opinion decided by whatever you want — metrics, eye test, whatever. It's not something that can be objectively true or false.

But right now, in the wake of Luka Dončić's 36-point, 10-rebound, five-assist performance in Game 5 as the Mavericks advanced to their third NBA Finals in franchise history, it's time to accept that at age 25, Dončić is now the best player in the world by consensus.

If the Mavericks win the Finals against the Celtics, it's easy to crown Dončić as the best in the world. He'll be the Finals MVP at age 25, one of the youngest in league history. If they lose to the Celtics, then Dončić still gets the mantle because there is a consensus that Jayson Tatum is not a top-five player in the league and doesn't fill the box score or control the game like Dončić.

Much of this has been pre-ordained. Dončić was a EuroLeague MVP in his teens, and despite the idiocy surrounding the teams that passed over him in the draft, most people agreed he was the best prospect. He made the playoffs and battled with Kawhi Leonard early on, then made a run to the Western Conference Finals at age 23, knocking off the team with the best record on their home floor in a demoralizing Game 7 for Phoenix. (That loss must have had Suns fans looking at Wolves fans Thursday and saying, "First time?")

Dončić has been the preseason MVP favorite for the last three seasons. Everyone was waiting for him to get there. The trade for Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington (of all people) opened up an incredible run that has resulted in Dončić's first Finals appearance.

Nikola Jokić will have better numbers, Anthony Edwards may have more charisma, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid will have backers — but Dončić has the combination of production and winning. He made it further than all those players, and Tatum can't be the guy. That might not be fair, but it's true.

Dončić has the kinds of performances you want to see, like the 20 points he put in the first quarter of Game 5 to put the game away in the first five minutes. He leads the NBA all-time in points per game after a playoff loss, an incomprehensible stat at his age and given this is only his second deep playoff run.

He has now been an underdog in eight of his nine career playoff series. The one he was favored in, he won 4-2 (Round 1 in 2024 vs. the Clippers). The Mavericks are now 22-20 straight up in the seven series they were underdogs in with Dončić.

Dončić's impact stats haven't really reflected his box score production, causing debates about them. I've wondered why his team doesn't win by more when he's on the floor. Dončić even had the worst on-court net rating of any Maverick in this series where he's dominated. But the results are now indisputable. At some point all the numbers and metrics and complaints to the officials don't matter.

It's Dončić's world now.

There will be talk of the lanky teenager in San Antonio and how the future is his. But he'll have to wait his turn.

Luka Dončić is the Best Basketball Player in the World.