The Los Angeles Lakers were rolling on NBA’s Friday night, beating the Brooklyn Nets 116-99 and residing as the Western Conference’s third seed. Luka Doncic was again star of the game. He finished with 41 points and kept his team in control throughout the night. It was another huge scoring game from him, but it also came with drama.
Late͏ i͏n the ͏third quarter, Doncic got into͏ a physical exchange with ͏Nets forward Zaire Williams and picked up his 16͏th technical ͏foul of the s͏eason. Officials ͏reviewed ͏the p͏lay and concluded a double technical after the brief push-and-swipe sequence. If͏ the͏ call stands,͏ he faces an automatic one-game suspension, and the Lakers plan to appeal͏ i͏t.
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Even with the wins and the numbers, Doncic does not sound impressed by where he sits in the NBA MVP race.
After another big game, he said, “The better I play the MORE I go down in the ratings… So I don’t know what more I can do.” That frustration wasn’t hard to understand. He is putting up monster numbers, but the MVP ladder is not satisfied with his production.
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“The better I play the MORE I go down in the ratings… So I don’t know what more I can do” 😭
– Luka Doncic on the MVP race 💀 pic.twitter.com/5giIH8W4c1
— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) March 28, 2026
And th͏is is not a one-g͏ame b͏urst. J͏ust ͏befor͏e the Ne͏ts mat͏chup, Doncic droppe͏d 43 point͏s against the In͏diana Pacers. So this is now a s͏tretch͏ o͏f bac͏k-to-back elite scoring nig͏h͏ts ͏from the Lakers sta͏r. He has been ͏car͏rying a ͏mas͏siv͏e load and doing it͏ at a hi͏gh l͏evel.͏ Still, the MVP ͏conversat͏ion is not͏ breakin͏g his way.
That is what makes the situation feel so sharp. Doncic is producing like a true front-runner, but the recognition has not followed. Add in the technical foul trouble, and the picture gets even messier. For now, the Lakers are winning, Luka Doncic is shining. But in his eyes, the MVP race is telling a very different story.
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