Luka Doncic’s 2024-25 season was a rollercoaster to say the least as he was dealt to the Los Angeles Lakers at the trade deadline, a move that no one on the outside knew about.
The Dallas Mavericks trading Doncic, a superstar about to hit his prime, was unprecedented but gave the Lakers a lifeline to their next era following the current one led by LeBron James. James has been open about his mortality as an NBA player, admitting that he doesn’t have much time left.
However, with Doncic in tow he’s got the perfect successor to mentor and hopefully groom into the next star who leads Los Angeles to a championship. This summer, the Lakers will be able to offer Doncic a contract extension though the smarter financial move would be to wait and opt out the following the season in order to earn more on his next deal.
James has the power to influence player decisions, but said he would allow Doncic to come to his own regarding his future in L.A., via Dave McMenamin of ESPN:
James made a concerted effort to empower Doncic since he arrived in L.A., sources said, and will not try to sway his teammate’s decision.
“No, that ain’t my job,” James told ESPN. “I think … I don’t think, I know, Luka knows how I feel about him. And ultimately, that trade happened for the future. That’s not for me. Luka has to decide what he has to do with his future. He’s [26] years old, I’m 40, so he can’t be basing his career off me. That’s just real.
“But I hope, obviously, [he stays long term]. Laker fans f—ing love him here. L.A. has accepted him. We love him as a teammate, as a brother. But ultimately, he’s got to make a decision for him. S—, I ain’t going to be around much longer.”
James is right to let Doncic think about such an important career decision, especially after how emotional and tumultuous this past one was. While Doncic previously expressed a desire to stay with Los Angeles nothing will be official until he puts pen to paper.
Luka Doncic loved first season with the Lakers, hasn’t thought about extension
Luka Doncic was understandably in a daze when he first arrived in Los Angeles to play for his new team, but he looked more and more comfortable as time went out. While Doncic said he loved his first season with the Lakers, he has yet to think about a possible contract extension.
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