While some athletes are blessed with elite speed, power and athleticism, there are others who must rely on other, non-physical traits to be successful. That is the case with Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic, who uses his ability to control speeds, pace and angles, along with elite vision and IQ to be one of the dominant forces in today’s game.
That can also be the case in other sports and one of those athletes who has been dominant despite not having the most elite physical traits is Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride. And his head coach even sees a little bit of Doncic in his game.
“He’s got this savviness to him. I try to equate it to like Luka, where he plays at his pace,” Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur said on the Pat McAfee Show. “He’s got that savviness to separate, then obviously the finishing skills to make the play… He’s a great dude, a great leader and works his butt off. I think he’s only improving.”
McBride is far from a bad athlete, but he isn’t quite in the realm of guys such as prime Tony Gonzalez or Rob Gronkowski, or even a current top tight end like Brock Bowers of the Las Vegas Raiders. But he uses those other skills to be absolutely unstoppable.
In the same way that Doncic used his combination of skills to lead the NBA in scoring and making another All-NBA First Team appearance, McBride led all tight ends last season in receptions (126), receiving yards (1,239) and touchdowns (11) while being named to his second Pro Bowl and first All-Pro First Team.
It is also interesting that LaFleur mentioned McBride’s savvy on the field while also making note of his leadership, something Doncic has been working to improve as well. With LeBron James gone, Doncic is the clear face of the franchise and leader of this Lakers team and really taking pride in that role.
Both Doncic and McBride are proof that it isn’t just athletic talent that takes players to that next level and each have been dominant in their field without it.
Lakers unveil Luka Doncic bobblehead for Nov. 1 giveaway
The Lakers will be celebrating Doncic’s 2026 scoring title with a bobblehead giveaway on Nov. 1 when the team hosts the Toronto Raptors. And the franchise recently revealed what that bobblehead will look like and let Doncic’s teammates get a look at it as well.
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