Luka Doncic’s exit from the Dallas Mavericks was nasty. General Manager Nico Harrison, rather brutally, sent him to the Los Angeles Lakers, citing his defensive woes as a major reason behind their decision to build a team around Anthony Davis instead. He felt it gave them a better shot at winning in the current window.
Advertisement
And while that’s debatable, one thing that’s difficult to deny is the fact that Doncic needs to work on being a defender. It’s what’s potentially stopping him from becoming the best in the league.
Marc Spears, on ESPN, stated just that. The Lakers believe in Doncic and have decided to make him the new franchise cornerstone. On the offensive side of things, there are hardly any better than him in the NBA even today. So, if he improves his overall game, he’ll reach astronomical heights.
The topic of discussion in the panel was Doncic’s fitness and his incredible transformation in the offseason that got him on the cover of Men’s Health Magazine. That’s when Spears revealed that missing piece that, if found, could help Luka Magic become one of the GOATs.
“I wanna see what he is on defense,” said Spears, who admitted to being excited about seeing the now-ripped Slovenian ball it out in the EuroBasket. He then insisted that with the right tools in defense, he can be the best player in the league.
“If this man can put the effort, the intensity, into playing on the defensive end, why can’t he be the best player in the league? Why can’t he be the one that leads this team to a championship…?”
There’s no guarantee that Luka shedding weight will turn him into an elite defender, and as Spears noted, this summer’s EuroBasket could give NBA fans an early glimpse. But the NBA is a different beast, and we won’t truly know how much Doncic has improved until tip-off in October. Spears even opined that with questions over Luka’s fitness now out of the way, the only remaining area open to critique is his defense.
If Doncic, along with a strong Lakers team and a healthy LeBron James, can stay on the court and deliver as Spears hopes, the Lakers could be a formidable force in the West. It would certainly be a slap in the face to Nico Harrison if Doncic wins a title with LA before Dallas even sniffs one.
