The Los Angeles Lakers are still waiting for the real Luka Doncic to show up.
Through three games for the Lakers, the All-Star guard has shot just 16-of-45 (36%) from the field and 21% on three-pointers while racking up 12 turnovers. Doncic, who was averaging 28.1 points per game for the Dallas Mavericks prior to his trade this season, has yet to crack the 20-point threshold in Los Angeles and looks like a shell of his usual elite form.
His early struggles aren’t all too surprising given that he’s returning from an injury and was stunningly sent away by the Mavs organization, where he spent over six prolific seasons developing into the supposed face of the franchise.
Fox Sports analyst Nick Wright recently took notice of Doncic’s demeanor in the Lakers’ loss to the Charlotte Hornets this week and shared his heartbreaking take on why the Slovenian hasn’t been playing up to his standards.
“He’s really sad,” Wright said. “He, I think for the first time in his entire basketball life, had his confidence shaken by being traded and then by what they said about him. I think he is deeply in his own head.
“We’re all like, ‘Luka is going to be a man of fire, Luka is going to be a man possessed.’ It appears to me that for the first time in Luka’s life there is a bit of doubt in his [mind] like wait, this team that I wanted to stay with, that I thought I was going to potentially have the Dirk career with, not only did they trade me in the dead of night, but now are running to every reporter imaginable being like, ‘They hated me. They thought I was bad for the culture, bad for the locker room.’”
“He’s really sad... He, I think for the first time in his entire basketball life, had his confidence shaken by being traded and by what they said about him.”@getnickwright thinks Luka Doncic is in his own head: pic.twitter.com/GcuA74JiLN
— First Things First (@FTFonFS1) February 20, 2025
In the days following the blockbuster Doncic move, multiple reports came out in which the Mavericks criticized the 25-year-old for his conditioning issues and weight, among other factors that may have led to his trade.
Wright said he thought Doncic, typically fiery and full of his signature swagger on the court, was uncharacteristically “meek” in his opening games with the Lakers, though he added that he didn’t think Doncic’s sad disposition would last the rest of the season.
Doncic could rekindle that fire next Tuesday when the Lakers host the Mavericks at Crypto.com Arena, marking Doncic’s first game against his former organization.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Nick Wright Says Luka Doncic Is 'Sad' Playing With Lakers in Light of Shocking Trade.
