Photo Courtesy of AP Photo

Luka Dončić, Dallas Mavericks superstar and Preston Hollow neighbor, earned a coveted spot on the TIME100 Next 2021 list, which specifically focuses on 100 emerging leaders in their respective industries.

Boban Marjanovic, Dončić’s teammate, penned the piece honoring Dončić, saying that “I see his competitive drive off court: even playing Parcheesi, he wants to win. But he always wins while smiling.”

When choosing the Time100 Next list, Time Editor-in-Chief and CEO Edward Felsenthal stated that the publication specifically highlighted individuals who are coping with the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Amid a global pandemic, deepening inequality, systemic injustice and existential questions about truth, democracy and the planet itself, the individuals on this year’s list provide ‘clear-eyed hope,’ as actor, composer and director Lin-Manuel Miranda puts it in his tribute to poet and TIME100 Next honoree Amanda Gorman,” Felsenthal said in his published commentary about the list.

Marjanovic showed that Dončić has that hope and influence that Time Magazine was looking for. “Before the pandemic, kids would crowd arenas and team hotels, hoping to see him,” Marjanovic said in his write-up.  “And he always made time to sign autographs, to share that Luka magic with the world.”

Read the Time100 Next entry here.