Luka Doncic scores 45 points in Dallas return as Lakers clinch playoff spot with 112-97 win

DALLAS (AP) — Luka Doncic scored 45 points in his first game in Dallas since being traded to the Los Angeles, helping the Lakers wrap up a playoff spot with a 112-97 victory over the Mavericks on Wednesday night.

Doncic's emotional return came two months after a seismic trade out of nowhere that sent the five-time All-Star to Los Angeles. The 26-year-old star from Slovenia spent his first 5 1/2 seasons with the Mavericks, and still had two seasons left on his contract.

The 45 points matched Doncic's season high — he did that once for Dallas and one other time for the Lakers. He also had eight rebounds, six assists and four steals.

LeBron James had 13 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter, when the Lakers fell behind before a strong finish.

Anthony Davis, who went from the Lakers to Dallas in the Doncic heal, had 13 points and 11 rebounds. Naji Marshall led the Mavs with 23 points and eight assists.

The Lakers remained third in the Western Conference standings after their third game in four days. They came to Dallas after splitting a pair of games at Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City.

Dallas (38-42) is guaranteed a losing record a year after making the NBA Finals. The Mavs are still in position to finish 10th and make the play-in tournament.

James's three-point play with 8:10 left broke an 87-all tie and put the Lakers ahead to stay, and he added a layup 34 seconds later. That came after Dallas' 15-2 run.

James' 1,561st career regular-season game moved him past Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for sole possession of second place on the NBA list. Only Robert Parrish with 1,611 has more than the 40-year-old James. It was his 418th game in seven seasons with the Lakers, after 849 games with Cleveland and 294 with Miami.

Both teams play their regular-season home finales Friday night, when the Mavericks take on Toronto, and the Lakers host Houston.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic follows through on a shot in the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic (77) gestures as he walks on the court during a time out in the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic (77) shoots as Dallas Mavericks' Naji Marshall (13) defends in the first half of an NBA basketball game in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic gestures to an official in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

A fan holds up a sign thanking Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic as he stands on the court at rear late in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Los Angeles Lakers' Austin Reaves (15) and Luka Doncic (77) celebrate in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic (77) makes a pass as Dallas Mavericks' P.J. Washington (25) and Max Christie, right rear, defend in the second half of an NBA basketball game in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic (77) and Rui Hachimura, center right, celebrate late in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic (77) and LeBron James (23) celebrate in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic (77) and LeBron James, center, right, hug and celebrate late in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic (77) reacts to play in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

NEWARK, Del.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 15, 2026--

QPS Holdings, LLC (QPS), an award-winning contract research organization (CRO) focused on bioanalysis and clinical trials announces the successful implementation of Oracle Argus, a premier pharmacovigilance system designed to support comprehensive safety case management for clinical trials.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260115711485/en/

The adoption of the Oracle Argus drug safety platform underscores QPS’s commitment to advancing patient safety, regulatory compliance, and operational excellence across its clients’ clinical drug development programs. Integrating this industry-standard safety platform strengthens QPS’ ability to capture, manage, and report adverse events in accordance with global regulatory requirements.

“Ensuring patient safety and data integrity is at the heart of what we do when conducting clinical trials,” said Derek Grimes, Executive Vice President of QPS. “Oracle Argus provides us with a robust, scalable solution to support the growing needs of our customer’s clinical trial portfolios and the evolving expectations of regulatory authorities worldwide.”

“Oracle Argus provides QPS Holdings, LLC with a trusted, globally recognized drug safety platform that supports compliance with stringent pharmacovigilance standards and regulations, while streamlining end-to-end safety operations and insights at scale,” said Seema Verma, executive vice president and general manager, Oracle Health and Life Sciences. “With our industry-leading solutions, QPS Holdings, LLC can further transform and elevate its safety case management for customers worldwide.”

The deployment of Oracle Argus will enable QPS to:

As the demand for innovative therapies continues to rise, CROs play a critical role in managing both development speed and patient safety. By leveraging the Oracle Argus platform, QPS is well-positioned to deliver on its mission to accelerate pharmaceutical breakthroughs across the globe by delivering custom-built research services.

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ABOUT QPS HOLDINGS, LLC

QPS is a global, full-service, GLP/GCP-compliant contract research organization (CRO) delivering the highest grade of discovery, bioanalysis, preclinical and clinical drug development services. Since 1995, QPS has grown from a small bioanalysis shop into a full-service CRO with 1,200+ employees in the US, Europe, Asia and India. Today, QPS offers expanded pharmaceutical contract R&D services with special expertise in pharmacology, DMPK, toxicology, bioanalysis, translational medicine, PBMC processing, central safety labs, clinical trials, and clinical research services. An award-winning leader focused on bioanalysis and clinical trials, QPS is known for proven quality standards, technical expertise, a flexible approach to research, client satisfaction, turnkey laboratories, Phase I/II clinical units, and multi-site clinical research services. For more information, visit http://www.qps.com or email info@qps.com.

ABOUT ORACLE ARGUS

Oracle Argus is an industry-leading, trusted solution for processing, analyzing, and reporting adverse event cases originating in pre-market and post-market drugs, biologics, vaccines, devices, and combination products. Oracle has been a Leader in the IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Life Science R&D Pharmacovigilance Technology Solutions and Consulting Services 2025 Vendor Assessment (doc # US53669225, July 2025). To learn more about Oracle’s pharmacovigilance portfolio visit: https://www.oracle.com/life-sciences/safety-solutions/argus-safety-case-management/. Trademarks: Oracle, Java, MySQL and NetSuite are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation.

Derek Grimes, EVP, Global Head of Clinical Research at QPS Holdings, LLC.