'Special' Luka Doncic makes NBA history in remarkable Mavericks win over Knicks

Slovenian posts historic 60-point triple double as Dallas beat New York 126-121 after overtime

Luka Doncic celebrates scoring the game-tying basket for the Dallas Mavericks against the New York Knicks. AP

Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic rewrote the NBA record books on Tuesday night with a stunning 60-point triple-double to lead his team to a remarkable 126-121 overtime win against the New York Knicks.

Doncic added 21 rebounds and 10 assists, becoming the first player in NBA history with a triple-double featuring at least 60 points and 20 rebounds.

The 23-year-old Slovenian is just the second player, after James Harden, to score 60 points in a triple-double, with Harden scoring 60 points with 10 rebounds and 11 assists in a game for Houston in 2018.

"He's special," Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said of Doncic, who also had two steals and a blocked shot in the contest. "For a player to do something that's never been done before — it's hard to do. There's been some great players before him."

Doncic posted his career-high in rebounds and notched his seventh triple-double of the season to help Dallas rally for the win.

The Knicks, led by 33 points from Quentin Grimes, were up by nine with 33.9 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, but Dallas out-scored them 12-3 to close the period.

Doncic tied it up with one second remaining, coming up with the rebound of his own intentionally missed free throw and rising through a crowd of players to drain a game-tying jump shot.

"I think it was just kind of lucky," the 23-year-old said. "I just threw it up."

Doncic scored seven of the Mavericks' 11 points in overtime as they sealed the win, and departed the court to a massive ovation from the Dallas crowd.

"I'm tired as hell," Doncic said as he was corralled for an on-court television interview.

In a week when the Mavericks unveiled a statue for Dirk Nowitzki - perhaps the team's greatest ever player and undoubtedly one of the finest European players to play in the NBA - it was fitting that his heir apparent made history with the German watching on from inside the American Airlines Center.

"We are watching greatness @luka7doncic, I've never seen anything like that ever," tweeted Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.