The Los Angeles Lakers have not many moves this offseason, but their most notable ones have come thanks to Luka Doncic.
The Slovenian superstar recruited both Deandre Ayton and Marcus Smart to join the Lakers after they were bought out by their respective teams. Doncic is not yet under contract long-term with L.A. but clearly has his footprints all over the organization and their offseason moves.
After Smart’s signing became official, he expressed appreciation to Doncic for reaching out multiple times to get him to join the Lakers, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN:
“When you get a guy like Luka calling, referencing, checking in on you to see where you’re at and to see if you want to come join something special that he’s trying to cook up over here, and for him to say that he can really use my help, that meant a lot. I’ve played against Luka a lot, been on a lot of opposing ends of Luka Magic and to be able to come out and be on his side this time, it means a lot.”
Smart and Doncic don’t have a previous relationship, but the former explained how there has always been a mutual respect there after competing against each other for so many years:
“I wouldn’t say there was a relationship, but we definitely had a mutual understanding and respect for each other. After every game, it was always flowers, way to go, keep going, and vice versa. [We first talked] from my agent, I was working out and got a call from my agent saying that Luka reached out. And I was like yeah, whatever, you know? And then another day, same thing, Luka reached out again. Now, it’s real. It’s no longer what ifs, it’s real and something to talk about. And that was a great feeling, like I said. That’s kind of what got it going for me to be here and I’m excited to be here.”
Doncic is one of the most enjoyable superstars to play with as he gets a ton of open looks for his teammates, so it’s not surprising to see he was able to successfully recruit both Ayton and Doncic.
In order to have success alongside Doncic, players need to be willing to hustle and do the dirty work, which makes Smart a perfect fit if he can stay healthy.
Jake LaRavia excited to reunite with Marcus Smart on Lakers
Marcus Smart does have a familiar face joining him in Los Angeles as his former Memphis Grizzlies teammate Jake LaRavia also signed with the Lakers this offseason.
LaRavia expressed his excitement to team up again with Smart, who was a bit of a mentor for all the young guys in Memphis.
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