With LeBron James sidelined, Luka Doncic opens the new NBA season as unquestioned leader of the Los Angeles Lakers, the Slovenian superstar eyeing a long-awaited MVP and hoping to turn his dominance into silverware for the storied franchise.
The 26-year-old guard enters his first full season in purple and gold after signing a three-year, $165- million extension over the summer.
He is in top form, having led Slovenia to the EuroBasket quarterfinals, where he averaged a tournament-best 34.7 points per game.
Acquired in February in a blockbuster trade that sent Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks, Doncic made an immediate impact last season, averaging 28.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.6 steals over 28 regular-season games.
His arrival helped Los Angeles to 50 wins and a third seed in the Western Conference, though a first-round playoff exit sparked renewed debate about both his and the team’s conditioning.
Long criticized for inconsistent conditioning since his Dallas days, Doncic set out to change that narrative.
Over the summer, he revealed that he had adopted a stricter off-season routine of gym work, on-court drills and improved nutrition: a regimen that led to a striking physical transformation and drew widespread attention.
“Just visually, I would say my whole body looks better,” Doncic said in the July issue of Men’s Health, where he appeared noticeably leaner on the cover.
Meanwhile, Lakers head coach JJ Redick has made physical and mental sharpness the foundation of his “championship-shape” mantra.
“It’s not just physical shape, it’s mental shape too,” Doncic said earlier this month of Redick’s training camp focus.
“Both are very important. We’re doing it in practice. Everybody’s in great shape. Everybody’s running a lot, so it’s been great so far.”
Doncic’s pre-season workload was kept light, featuring two outings — a 25-point effort in 22 minutes against the Suns and a 31-point display in 32 minutes against the Kings — both in losses as the Lakers dropped five of six pre-season games. (Reuters)