From the moment he stepped on to an NBA court, Luka Doncic has established himself as one of the best players the game has to offer. In his first full season with the Los Angeles Lakers, Doncic put forth one of the best years of his career, leading the NBA in scoring and being named to his sixth All-NBA First Team.
What is so impressive about Doncic and his ability to score the ball is that he is not some elite athlete who can just blow by defenders like Anthony Edwards or elevate over them with an unblockable jumper like Kevin Durant. It is those other skills that allow Doncic to be so unguardable and when asked his biggest strength on the court, Doncic didn’t list something physical, but rather something mental, via the Lakers on X:
What’s your biggest strength on the court?
“Patience.”
In this one-word answer interview from Doncic, sometimes the lack of explanation has left many wanting more. But this answer doesn’t need that as it makes perfect sense. Anyone who has had to defend Doncic has spoken about how impossible it is to speed him up and that he always just knows how to get to his spots on the court. That speaks to his patience.
Defenders will do everything they can to try and force Doncic to their desired areas, but the Lakers superstar always just takes his time, switches speeds and angles, knowing he will eventually get to where he wants to go. And once he is there, the only hope is that he might miss the shot or make some other mistake, which doesn’t happen often.
Doncic’s size and strength certainly does give him some advantages, particularly over smaller defenders, but overall it is the mental game where he has a decided advantage over most. Players can know what he wants to do or where he wants to go, but preventing it from happening is a completely different challenge and for the most part no one has been able to master that.
Dirk Nowitzki expects Luka Doncic to have another great season for Lakers
When Doncic first entered the league with the Dallas Mavericks, it was Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki who took the young guard under his wing and the two maintain a close relationship to this day. In speaking on Doncic, Nowitzki believes another big year is coming for the Lakers superstar.
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