Though the Los Angeles Lakers game against the Boston Celtics didn’t go as planned, with LeBron James leaving the court with a groin injury with seven minutes left to play in the fourth quarter on the way to a 111-101 loss, one bright spot of the contest was the play of Luka Doncic, who scored 34 points in 37 minutes.
Doncic hit 50 percent of his shots from the field, 50 percent of his shots from 3, and even rounded out his stat line with eight rebounds, three assists, and a steal. While his five turnovers were concerning, the Lakers wouldn’t have been close to securing the win over Boston without Doncic’s play and will need to rely on him even further, considering James could be out for weeks, not days, with his latest injury.
Need proof? Well look no further than Jaylen Brown, who, in his postgame press conference, shouted out Doncic for his impressive play, calling one of his favorite offensive players in the NBA.
“I think Luka is one of the greats. He’s one of those generational talents, so I have fun watching Luka play. Offensively, what he’s capable of doing, scoring the ball, like his talent is second to none,” Brown declared.
“Offensively, his talent is next to none. He’s one of my favorite players on that side of the ball, so I spend a lot of time watching his game, things like that, so tonight I was able to make some plays, but Luka’s a great player.”
While Brown is by no means a slouch on offense, his assertion is correct: Luka Doncic is one of the best, if not the best pure offensive player in the NBA, with an ability to score, shoot, distribute, dribble, and drive that is unlike any other player in the Association today. If James can return, maybe the Lakers will be able to get where they want to be in 2025, thanks to the incredible chemistry of their two stars. But if he misses 10, 15, or even the remainder of LA’s regular season games, it will be incredibly interesting to see how Doncic is able to handle the load moving forward and if he, much like in Dallas, can force the team to the playoffs on his own.
