Luka Doncic Is Not Satisfied With His Hot Start to the Season

Guard Luka Doncic has scored at least 37 points in six straight games, and the Los Angeles Lakers have climbed to 7-2 and first in the Pacific Division behind him.

Even so, Doncic is not ready to call this the best basketball of his life.

The latest example came on Wednesday night in Sacramento, where Doncic scored 40 points with nine rebounds and seven assists in a 116-103 win over the Kings.

He shot 11-of-23 from the field, made six of his 13 threes and hit 12 of his 13 free throws, and guard Austin Reaves added 21 points and center Walker Kessler chipped in 15 points and eight rebounds.

After the game, Doncic was asked how this run compares to the rest of his career.

He said he has had some good stretches before, and in a clip posted by Spectrum SportsNet after the win, he admitted the current one stands out.

He said "this could be one of the highest ones," but he made sure to add that there is still work to do.

He also took the blame for his first quarter in that same clip, saying he came out a little sloppy and needed to be more aggressive and more focused after that.

I love hearing that from a player who scored 40 points and still wanted to talk about what he did wrong.

The numbers back up what Lakers coach JJ Redick said after the game, when he called this probably the hottest stretch he can remember from Doncic, next to last March.

Doncic scored 52 points against the Jazz on Oct. 25 and followed that with 41, 37, 45, 42 and 40 in his next five games, according to ESPN.

He is now averaging 38.5 points, 8.1 rebounds and 8.0 assists through eight games, after missing one game earlier in the season.

ESPN also reported that he is the first player in NBA history to record six straight games with at least 35 points, five rebounds, five assists and five made threes.

The 52-point night in Utah started it, and Redick had plenty of praise for that game too.

What makes this run even better is that the wins are coming with it, as the Lakers have won three in a row and the supporting cast has done its part too, with guard Quentin Grimes praising Doncic after his 42-point game against Miami earlier this week.

Los Angeles hosts the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday in what should be a good test. Portland sits at 6-1 and beat the Lakers 136-129 back on Oct. 27, which was one of only two losses on the Lakers' record so far.

I like that Doncic is not getting comfortable, because a player this hot could easily ride the praise, and he is talking about first quarters and focus instead.

If he keeps that mindset, the Lakers have a real shot to stay near the top of the West all season, because nobody in the league has been harder to stop right now.