DALLAS (AP) — Luka Doncic returned from a two-game absence because of a left heel contusion with 27 points on Monday night in the Dallas Mavericks’ 132-108 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
The All-Star guard judged the performance “OK.”
“Nothing really special,” added Doncic, who also had seven rebounds and seven assists playing 30 minutes. “The important thing was we got the win. I think everybody was involved, and that’s how we’ve got to play.”
Five Mavericks scored in double figures as they won for the 14th time in their last 17 games and improved to 19-10, fourth in the Western Conference.
Doncic missed his first shot, a 3-pointer, and finished the first quarter 1 of 6 and 0 of 3 behind the arc. He ended up 1 for 7 on 3s.
He scored 10 points in the second quarter and had three and-1s in the first half.
“He knows how to use his body to position himself,” Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said. “He knows the space that he has to get to, and he does it at a very high level. So, if it’s not an and-1, he’s going to the free throw line. For him being out, getting to the free throw line was important just to get his rhythm.”
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) shares a laugh with guard Spencer Dinwiddie (26) as Portland Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons (1) looks on during the second half of an NBA basketball game Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) dribbles against Portland Trail Blazers forward Toumani Camara (33) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) shoots against Portland Trail Blazers forward Toumani Camara (33) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s government accused the United States of attacking civilian and military installations in multiple states after at least seven explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard around 2 a.m. local time Saturday in the capital, Caracas.
The Pentagon and White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Smoke could be seen rising from the hangar of a military base in Caracas. Another military installation in the capital was without power.
People in various neighborhoods rushed to the streets. Some could be seen in the distance from various areas of Caracas.
“The whole ground shook. This is horrible. We heard explosions and planes,” said Carmen Hidalgo, a 21-year-old office worker, her voice trembling. She was walking briskly with two relatives, returning from a birthday party. “We felt like the air was hitting us.”
Venezuela’s government, in the statement, called on its supporters to take to the streets.
“People to the streets!” the statement said. “The Bolivarian Government calls on all social and political forces in the country to activate mobilization plans and repudiate this imperialist attack.”
The statement added that President Nicolás Maduro had “ordered all national defense plans to be implemented” and declared “a state of external disturbance.”
This comes as the U.S. military has been targeting, in recent days, alleged drug-smuggling boats. On Friday, Venezuela said it was open to negotiating an agreement with the U.S. to combat drug trafficking.
Maduro also said in a pretaped interview aired Thursday that the U.S. wants to force a government change in Venezuela and gain access to its vast oil reserves through the monthslong pressure campaign that began with a massive military deployment to the Caribbean Sea in August.
Maduro has been charged with narco-terrorism in the U.S. The CIA was behind a drone strike last week at a docking area believed to have been used by Venezuelan drug cartels in what was the first known direct operation on Venezuelan soil since the U.S. began strikes on boats in September.
U.S. President Donald Trump for months had threatened that he could soon order strikes on targets on Venezuelan land. The U.S. has also seized sanctioned oil tankers off the coast of Venezuela, and Trump ordered a blockade of others in a move that seemed designed to put a tighter chokehold on the South American country’s economy.
The U.S. military has been attacking boats in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean since early September. As of Friday, the number of known boat strikes is 35 and the number of people killed is at least 115, according to numbers announced by the Trump administration.
They followed a major buildup of American forces in the waters off South America, including the arrival in November of the nation’s most advanced aircraft carrier, which added thousands more troops to what was already the largest military presence in the region in generations.
Trump has justified the boat strikes as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S. and asserted that the U.S. is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels.
Meanwhile, Iranian state television reported on the explosions in Caracas on Saturday, showing images of the Venezuelan capital. Iran has been close to Venezuela for years, in part due to their shared enmity of the U.S.
Pedestrians walk past the Miraflores presidential palace after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Cristian Hernandez)
Residents evacuate a building near the Miraflores presidential palace after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Cristian Hernandez)
Smoke raises at La Carlota airport after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Pedestrians run after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Smoke raises at La Carlota airport after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Smoke raises at La Carlota airport after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Pedestrians run after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
