Luka Doncic’s addition to the Lakers seemed like a good move, but things haven’t gone as expected. The Lakers lost to the Jazz recently, a team having the worst seasons. Many believe if Anthony Davis had played, the Lakers might have won.
Then in the very next game against the Charlotte Hornets, who have a 14-38 record this season, the Lakers were expected to win. But surprisingly, they lost to this weaker team as well. Luka Doncic also didn’t play well in this game, and now he’s facing criticism online.
Luka Doncic’s shooting was much worse than usual. He made only 5 out of 18 shots and 1 out of 9 three-pointers. Even though he had 14 points, 11 rebounds, and 8 assists, his mistakes and turnovers were a bigger problem.
He had six turnovers in the game, five of which happened in the first quarter. This showed that he was struggling to work well with his new teammates and make good decisions on the court.
LeBron James has turned generational talent in Luka fucking Doncic into a spot up shooter! This is what was and always will be the problem with lebron. He can’t adapt his game. So everyone has to adapt to him. It’s why players get better when they leave him. LeCancer smh #Lakers https://t.co/m3Mm1rx9MJ
— Danul (@ThatGuyDanul) February 20, 2025
After the game, LeBron James said about Luka, “He still doesn’t know all the plays. He doesn’t know all the defensive coverages, all the signals and things that we’ve built since September.”
Bron added, “So obviously we’re trying to fast-track it on the fly. He’s coming back from his injury. He’s getting back into form. So we’re all working through it together.”
Did the Hornets expose Luka Doncic’s defensive weakness?
The Charlotte Hornets recently won 100-97 against the Los Angeles Lakers, which has started a big discussion about Luka Doncic’s defense. During the game, the Hornets focused on attacking Doncic, especially in the last few minutes.
A video went viral showing how the Hornets scored 11 points by targeting Doncic in the final seven minutes. This could be something other teams try too.
Hornets offense in the clutch was basically “go find Luka” and it worked.
— Esfandiar Baraheni (@JustEsBaraheni) February 20, 2025
Teams are going to do this often. Lakers just don’t have the defensive infrastructure to insulate him like the Mavs did. https://t.co/TJaYJRKiqd pic.twitter.com/O1VSiF0NBD
A social media account, ‘@JustEsBaraheni,’ pointed out, “Teams are going to do this often. Lakers just don’t have the defensive infrastructure to insulate him like the Mavs did.”
