When the Los Angeles Lakers made the blockbuster trade to acquire Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks, LeBron James was quick to anoint his new co-star. He told Doncic and the public that it was on him and the rest of the Lakers roster to adjust to Luka, not the other way around.
It was a defining moment of Doncic’s first weeks in L.A. as James has been the top option on every roster he’s been on for over two decades. Even with efforts to defer to Anthony Davis over the years, it always ended up resting on LeBron’s shoulders.
The Lakers star got a chance to speak about why it was so important to defer to Doncic immediately upon his arrival with the Lakers on a Pat McAfee Show appearance:
“His name is Luka Magic for a reason. You see that, you see his play in the game, he’s a very transcendent player. You talk about that moment, you gotta think… I can’t put myself in his shoes, because I’ve never been traded before. But I can have a sense and be a human being to know you commit to a franchise for seven years, and you feel like ‘this is the place I’m going to be, this is my comfort.’ And then out of nowhere, bam, you just get traded. I don’t give a damn where you’re going, it doesn’t matter who you’re pairing with, that’s a shock to your system. Even though he was ready to play that moment, I felt like that had to be said, because he’s still that guy. In order for us to reach our potential, he has to be that guy. He has to fit out, and we’ll figure it out. Let us figure it out with you, because we need you to be who you are. I lost a great friend, a dear friend, a champion duo with AD, miss him to death. But we were able to gain Luka Magic.”
The way James has completely welcomed Doncic with open arms and made it clear that it’s his team moving forward has undoubtedly helped with what has been a shocking transition. While the Lakers have not played perfect basketball, they are as cohesive as anyone could reasonably expect them to be given the seismic midseason shift.
LeBron James believes clicking with Luka Doncic & Austin Reaves is key
The Lakers currently sit in fifth in the West at 43-28 after losing their last three games. After acquiring Luka Doncic, the team went on a win streak and showed they can compete with anyone.
But then some injuries set in with LeBron James among the players going down. Everybody is now back, but it is expected to take some time for the team to gel ahead of the start of the playoffs. James spoke about that with McAfee, labeling health and the ability for him to quickly click with Doncic and Austin Reaves as the keys for the Lakers to finish out the season.
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