The spectacular and productive partnership between LeBron James and Luka Doncic is making Lakers fans dream of the Playoffs. With its two stars in full swing and the contribution of players like Austin Reaves or Rui Hachimura, they have earned the right to dream and the respect of their rivals, who are beginning to consider them as a serious contender for the ring after coming out on top as third in the wild West.
Before they begin their title run against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the early hours of Sunday morning (2:30 a.m.), LeBron James has revealed how important the arrival of Luka Doncic has been to multiply his team’s options. He did so at the premiere of the second season of Steve Nash’s podcast ‘Mind The Game’.
“Luka plays like me, I’ve always wanted to inspire new generations to play. And for him there is nothing predetermined
‘King’ James explained to the legendary Suns, Mavericks and Lakers point guard why he is excited about the Slovenian’s game: “Because Luka plays like me, I’ve always wanted to inspire the new generations to play. And for him there is nothing predetermined. If you have two players on top of you, it’s a matter of numbers,” he said.
Privileged reading of the game
And he expanded on his reasoning: “If you have the advantage and there’s a player who can’t mark you, or you can get past him, and then there’s a teammate in a better position or anyone else gets free, I can make the passes and read the plays before they happen. That’s what I’ve tried to do throughout my career and what Luka does as well.”
Throughout my career I have always tried to make passes and read plays before they happen. That’s what Luka does too
Another aspect he loves about the former Real Madrid player is his ability to make his teammates better: “I’ve always loved players who instill so much confidence in their teammates, making them believe they’re better than they really are. You did it [referring to Nash]. Luka has done it for seven years. And Chris Paul did it when he was in New Orleans playing for that team.”
It’s a virtue that LeBron himself highlights in his own game: “I’ve been able to do that with some of my teams. I mean, I wouldn’t have played in the 2006 NBA Finals with that team if I didn’t make them believe they were better than they really are, and give them that confidence. You can pass the ball all over the court and help them get better, but give them the confidence to believe that what they do is important and valuable, and that they’re going to help the team win… that’s different.”
Luka knows how to build that important and valuable bond between a leader and his teammates to make them better
That connection between the leaders and the rest of the teammates is, in his opinion, what makes teams grow: “If you do that, your teammates will then do anything for you, they would even run through a wall for you. That’s because you’ve given them so much confidence and so much faith that if they touch you, they feel like they’re messing with them. And you know what? Luka knows how to build that important and valuable bond.“
Luka learned that from growing up in Slovenia to going to Madrid, where he learned the game and played professionally at 13 or 14 years old. And he brought that same model and that same game to the NBA from day one
But ‘King’ James points out that this quality was not acquired by Doncic now, nor even when he arrived in the NBA seven seasons ago. It came from his origins in Europe: “What I mean is that Luka learned that from growing up in Slovenia to going to Madrid, where he learned the game properly and played professionally at 13 or 14 years old. And he brought that same model and that same game to the NBA from day one.”
For LeBron, who has always valued players’ intelligence when it comes to interpreting the game, Doncic represents the next evolution of that style as an unselfish on-court leader and genius who reads the game like a chess master. His basketball IQ and ability to make his teammates better by giving them confidence has endeared him to James, who sees him as a worthy heir to pass the torch of his values when he decides to retire.
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