When Will Luka Doncic Make His Debut with the Lakers?

The arrival of Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers changes the future of the club that is trying to return to the peak of glory as LeBron James' career, now at the age of 40, is in its twilight. The future of the Lakers for the next decade suddenly looks brighter with Doncic as the successor to King James' throne.

In fact, the Lakers could be in the title race if Doncic immediately “clicks” with James. Even more likely if the Lakers can get a center to fill Davis’ void before the midseason trade deadline on Friday (2/7/2025).

However, all of that is only possible if Doncic can return to peak performance after recovering from his injury and making his debut with his new club. The 25-year-old player has been absent since last Christmas, and his prolonged absence from the field has resulted in him not being selected for the All-NBA team, which he had been a part of for the past five consecutive seasons.

Doncic suffered a left calf strain in the second quarter of the Dallas Mavericks' loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The injury was serious enough that the Slovenian missed the Mavericks' next 19 games, returning to the lineup in two before re-injuring himself. He has also had a left heel injury.

The player who played for Real Madrid before joining the NBA has only managed to play 70 games in a single season once since his first year in 2018. His relaxed approach to diet and physical conditioning is cited as one of the reasons for his frequent absences from games. This is also one of the reasons why the Mavericks were willing to trade one of the NBA's best players for Anthony Davis from the Lakers.

LA Lakers General Manager Rob Pelinka stated that Doncic will only start participating in the 5-on-5 training session on Wednesday (2/5/2025), so he is confirmed to be absent when the Lakers meet their city neighbors, the LA Clippers, on the same day. The Lakers will then create a personal training program for Doncic to determine when he can make his debut.

Both Doncic and the Lakers are confident that he will play soon, even before the Lakers conclude their four-game stretch in Los Angeles over the next seven days. Doncic stated that he is now trying to take his injury more seriously after previously routinely playing through the pain, which sometimes exacerbated his injury.

"For the first time, I am taking a break to recover 100 percent from my injury. Previously, I thought I just wanted to get back on the court, even when I was not 100 percent healthy. This time I need time, the normal time to get back to 100 percent," Doncic stated.

The Lakers also do not need to rush to bring down Doncic because their position in the NBA Western Conference standings is quite secure. Meanwhile, they have a record of 28-19 and occupy the fifth position with 34 games remaining in the regular season.

"We'll take it day by day to make sure that his calf injury is good and safe. I would say at this point it's day by day. We'll take it step by step, but if everything goes well and Luka feels good and believes, he'll be playing soon," Pelinka said.

If he is able to return, Doncic will likely play at guard alongside Austin Reaves, filling the spot previously occupied by Max Christie, who was traded to the Mavericks along with Davis.

Christie joins the Lakers' starting lineup on Dec. 8, 2024. The Lakers have not used a traditional point guard since releasing D'Angelo Russell on Dec. 29, though veteran Gabe Vincent could fill in.

James and Reaves can initiate the Lakers' offense, but Doncic will want to have the ball at all times. Contrary to what some observers think, that actually benefits James, who has recently expressed a desire to play more without the ball.

The best way to pair James and Doncic is in a pick and roll. A pick and roll (also called a ball screen or screen and roll), is an offensive play in which a player blocks (pick) a teammate with the ball, and then moves toward the basket (roll) to receive a pass.

Lakers coach JJ Redick, who played with Doncic in Dallas, would no doubt be happy to design a game specifically for the two playmakers and creative scorers.

So what about the Lakers' defense? Without Davis, who has been a protector, the Lakers in the short term must be willing to let their defense be torn apart by opponents. It is very difficult to imagine the tandem of James and Doncic being able to consistently score more points than the opponent, even though both have the talent for it. (AP)