In last nights game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Chicago Bulls, guard Luka Dončić had exchange with Bulls forward Matas Buzelis that anger Dončić, motivating him to have a 51 point night

In the Los Angeles Lakers 142-130 victory over the Chicago Bulls, their fourth straight win, guard Luka Dončić exploded for a Lakers career high 51 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists while going 17/31 from the field and 9/14 from 3.

After going 4/11 from the field with 12 points in the first quarter, Dončić took his performance to the next level, shooting 5/6 from the field with 12 points in the second quarter, then had 17 points in the third quarter and capped off his night with 10 points in the fourth.

“He’s playing as well as anybody in the NBA right now,” Lakers Head Coach JJ Redick said. “It’s probably not being talked about enough.”

🚨 LUKA ERUPTS FOR 51 POINTS 🚨

51 PTS
10 REB
9 AST
3 STL
9 3PM

He joins Kobe Bryant and Austin Reaves as the only players in Lakers franchise history to record 50+ PTS, 10+ REB, 5+ AST, and 5+ 3PM in a regular season game. pic.twitter.com/DTC6f5NHYN

— NBA (@NBA) March 13, 2026

The reason Dončić took off in the second quarter could be that he and Bulls forward Matas Buzelis had an exchange that got under Dončić’s skin. Postgame, Dončić didn’t elaborate on what was said, but he took offense to it.

“I’m not gonna say what he said, but if I said that, I would definitely get a tech,” Dončić said.

Buzelis, a 21-year-old in his second year in the NBA, was also asked about the exchange between the two and also didn’t elaborate on what was said, but did say Dončić had said something to him first.

“I’d rather not say what I said,” Buzelis said. “But he said something to me first. That’s why I had to respond. I’m not going to say what he said either. But I feel like I responded to what he said.”

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After the exchange, Dončić would gesture towards Buzelis after every shot he made.

After last night’s performance, Dončić is now averaging a league-leading 32.9 PPG, 7.9 RPG and 8.5 APG, and climbed back up to fourth in the NBA’s MVP rankings.

“I don’t even know what to say, honestly,” Buzelis said. “He started killing, obviously, when I started talking to him. I don’t back down from anybody, no matter who you are. I took on the challenge. I didn’t execute.”

LUKA DONCIC OVER THE LAST 4 GAMES:

40.3 PPG
9.5 RPG
7.3 APG
2.5 SPG
1.0 BPG
50.5% FG
44.6% 3P
85.7% FT
35.4 MPG

ABSOLUTELY UNREAL NUMBERS. 🔥🔥🔥 https://t.co/9wO7HPpIAB pic.twitter.com/3GWlYlWN6E

— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) March 13, 2026