Monday, 12/1 – Suns 12-9
Thursday, 12/4 – @ Raptors 14-7
Friday, 12/5 – @ Celtics 11-9
Sunday, 12/7 – @ 76ers 10-9
Wednesday, 12/10 – Spurs, NBA Cup QFs 13-6
The real Luka Dončić showed up in his Lakers’ preseason debut
by 
October 15, 2025 1 Comment
FROM THE ABOVE ARTICLE:
PHOENIX — Luka Dončić was back, taking the court with his gold jersey hanging down towards his neon green sneaker. Luka Dončić was back, spinning and faking, spinning and faking and spinning and faking again until he created enough of an advantage to draw a foul and score. Luka Dončić was back, pulling the emergency brake in transition and swishing a three. And even in a preseason game against the Phoenix Suns, Luka Dončić was back, rolling his eyes and pleading his case to whichever official he thought was wrong.
The 25 points, seven rebounds and four assists in 22 minutes, the 113-104 loss, none of it mattered as much as Dončić launching one-legged 3s and chirping at the first-row fans. Now eight-plus months removed from a trade to the Los Angeles Lakers that left him shellshocked, that, as much as the hooping, made it seem like Dončić was truly back.
“He has an ability to do what I would call it, like, silly stuff, but still be locked in. It’s important to him that basketball is fun,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “He’s at play. And that’s part of what makes him great.”
Over the summer, Dončić’s physical changes were the most obvious. The lighter weight and quicker feet were easy to spot as he played with the Slovenian national team. But the subtler changes, the way he juggled a dead ball with his feet, the way he skipped over courtside fans near the Lakers bench, might be the things that have the Lakers excited too.
On Tuesday, Dončić acknowledged that the trade to the Lakers, the shock of it all, probably zapped some of his joy. His teammates saw it too.
“I’m sure there was a million things going through his head,” Austin Reaves said. “And that’s not saying that he wasn’t fun to be around. He was always, still joking, having fun. But you can tell that, he’s at peace with it. And he’s excited to go to war with us every night.”
That’s been the vibe in camp, the closed-door practices that fans have only gotten glimpses of from social media photos and video snippets. Other things, like swapping jerseys with Jared Vanderbilt for a day, are more indicative of the version of the player the Lakers have now.
“I think by being in a clearer headspace, and by that I mean just mentally and emotionally in balance, it allows you the freedom to just be yourself,” Redick said pregame. “And that gets reflected in his expressions, his interactions with teammates, his interactions with our coaching staff, his desire to toe that line between competition and joy and playfulness that truthfully makes him the special person and player that he is.”
Playing a real game for the first time since the EuroBasket tournament last month, Dončić looked a lot like the best version of himself, a maestro on offense creating high-quality looks for himself and everyone else on the floor. He also, predictably, looked like a player learning this version of the Lakers.
“I felt great,” Dončić said. “That was probably better than I expected. Those first games are kind of rusty, but I was just very happy to be out there again.”
Of the jobs tasked to him this season, maximizing center Deandre Ayton might be the biggest. Against a Suns team resting almost all its regulars, Dončić and Ayton connected just once for a lob with multiple missed connections among Dončić’s five turnovers.
“I mean, it’s probably just more (on) me,” he said of the connection. “Obviously, (I’m) the guard with the ball. But like I said, it’s more talking about it and what he likes. I know he likes the pocket, too. So I’m trying to get used to that too. But it’s just mostly talking about it and playing games.”
Dončić’s debut, along with Marcus Smart’s first game as a Laker, inched LA closer to its opening night roster. A back-to-back scheduled for Wednesday night in Las Vegas in Dallas kept Redick from allowing Tuesday’s game to be a real representation. The Lakers rested wings Vanderbilt and Rui Hachimura, guard Gabe Vincent and center Jaxson Hayes, all projected pieces of their rotation.
Reaves scored 25 points, and Ayton finished with 10 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks. Suns first-round pick Khaman Maluach had 17 points. Jared Butler scored 35 and former Laker Jordan Goodwin, whom the team waived this summer amidst a roster crunch, had 24.
“We’re trying to form consistent habits, and so if you’re trying to do that, that means everybody,” Redick said after. “That doesn’t mean three guys. We need everybody doing that.”
Still, while the Lakers go through their early-season pains and while they wait for LeBron James to get healthy, there’s some comfort in knowing that their best player looks like someone ready to be at his best.
“Just getting out there and playing basketball for me is amazing,” Dončić said. “I missed it. I think you can see that. … I’m just happy to be on the basketball court again.”