"He didn't talk much:": Luka Doncic sidesplittingly roasts Dirk Nowitzki's performance on Mavericks' broadcast

Its all love between Luka Doncic and former Dallas Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki. Doncic's 41-point explosion, coupled with nine rebounds and nine assists, saw Dallas notch up a 121-115 win against the Houston Rockets on Tuesday at the American Airlines Center. Adding to the occasion was Nowitzki calling the In-Season Tournament game from the sidelines. The German big led the Mavericks to their only NBA championship in 2011, and now the onus has been on Doncic to repeat the feat.

And in a show of good humor, Doncic trolled the former superstar when asked about his thoughts on Nowitzki's analysis:

"I don't know. He didn't talk much."

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But it wasn't before the 45-year-old had his take on Doncic's shotmaking. He put the Slovenian on the same line as Brad Davis for his absurd shooting:

“He’s probably the best horse player I’ve ever seen. Outside of Brad Davis… Luka has got to best horse player I’ve ever seen. He is making some straight gar-bagé,” he said.

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Apart from Doncic, Kyrie Irving was the next best player to watch out for with 27 points, two rebounds and five assists. For the Rockets, Alperen Sengun finished with 31 points, nine rebounds and six assists.

Luka Doncic has been a force for the Dallas Mavericks

Like last year, Luka Doncic was off to a scorching start for the Dallas Mavericks. In the 17 games played so far, he's averaged 31.1 points, 8.0 rebounds and 7.9 assists. His last five games have seen him average 32.2 points, 8.6 rebounds and 7.4 assists. The last five matchups he's part of have also seen him notch up three 30+ point performances and one 40+ point game.

Earlier this week, the 24-year-old also leapfrogged Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid for second place in the NBA's MVP ladder. His run has seen the Mavericks at 2-2 in the West Group B in the In-Season Tournament. The regular season standings see them third with an 11-6 record.

The Mavericks started off with a bang but ended with a whimper last season, failing to make the playoffs despite trading for Kyrie Irving ahead of the deadline. While the latter has been a perfect foil for Luka Doncic, the team's defense was lackluster costing them a postseason berth.

This season the franchise is in a win-now mode and the Doncic-Irving chemistry has worked out well for Dallas. Only time will tell if they can convert the regular season success into their second NBA title.