Luka Dončić’s first assist to LeBron James was a 70-foot outlet pass resulting in an easy layup. Their offensive connection was immediate.
“It’s kind of a pick-your-poison when you have two brainiacs when it comes to the game of basketball on the floor at the same time,” James said.
Two brainiacs who also are two of the best players in the league.
Those long touchdown passes from Dončić to James are common – at least once a game it seems – illustrating 1) just how good of a rebounder Dončić is; 2) what an exceptional passer he is; and 3) the James-Dončić link has elevated the Los Angeles Lakers to title contender.
“The goal is to win a championship,” Dončić told reporters Thursday. “I think we have a great team. We have guys that are willing to go to war. Everybody is staying together. The chemistry is high, so I think we for sure have a chance.”
The third-seeded Lakers begin pursuit of the franchise’s 18th championship Saturday against the sixth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves in an intriguing matchup. The two teams were separated in the standings by just one game. However, the Lakers didn’t get Dončić on the court until early February following the blockbuster trade with Dallas.
It’s rare that one team has two of the most gifted offensive players, and the Lakers present a multitude of problems.
After acquiring Dončić on Feb. 2, the Lakers went 22-13, including 18-10 with Dončić in the lineup. In the 23 games James and Dončić played together, the Lakers were 15-8, scoring 116.1 points and allowing 114.1 points per 100 possessions.
“In order for us to be the team ultimately we need to be, the ball needs to be in Luka’s hands,” James told reporters in March. “And then when Luka sits down, the ball can be in my hands or be in AR’s (Austin Reaves’) hands. But I’m very comfortable playing off the ball and finding my spots, running the floor, getting the outlet pass from Luka, being on the backside of the defense if he’s either being blitzed in pick-and-rolls or switched in pick-and-rolls. He attracts so many eyes and bodies.”
Timberwolves coach Chris Finch lost to Dallas in last year’s conference finals in five games. Minnesota struggled to slow down Dončić, who averaged 32.4 points, 9.6 rebounds, 8.2 assists and 2.2. steals and shot 47.3% from the field, 43.4% on 3-pointers and 84.6% on free throws in the five-game series won by the Mavs.
“He’s still the same amazing player,’ Finch told reporters. ‘When the ball’s in his hands, he controls so much of the game in the way it’s played, so we’ve got to do a better job of disrupting that. There’s certain things that we learned from being in a series with him last year that we need to put into action this year. Our discipline around him and the execution of those things has to be better. Last year, we were kind of feeling our way through some of it. And we’re going to have to be ready to do a multitude of things.’
The on-court development between James and Dončić hit pause when James missed seven games in March with a strained left groin. But the results in just two dozen games have been revealing.
In a 123-100 victory against Denver, Dončić had 32 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and four steals, and James had 25 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three blocks.
In a 111-102 victory against Minnesota, James produced 33 points, 17 rebounds and six assists, and Dončić produced 21 points, 13 rebounds and five assists.
The Lakers beat Oklahoma City, Houston (twice), Memphis, Indiana and Orlando in the final three weeks of the season, and in Dončić’s big return to Dallas for the first time as a Laker, Dončić had 45 points, eight rebounds, six assists and four steals while James contributed 27 points and seven rebounds.
In his 28 games with the Lakers, Dončić averaged 28.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.6 steals and shot 43.8% from the field, 37.9% on 3-pointers and 79.1% on free throws.
James hasn’t played with a shotmaker and playmaker like this since he was Kyrie Irving’s teammate with Cleveland in 2016-17.
“I think Luka needs to be the guy that controls the offense,” Lakers coach JJ Redick told reporters in late February. “And Bron and AR, because we’re going to stagger everybody, they’re going to have their times to be on the ball. But all three of those guys are very intelligent basketball players, and we can create mismatches. We can get teams in the blender.”
Unless the outcome is determined in the final minutes or it’s a blowout, there’s rarely a second where either James or Dončić are not on the court. That puts relentless pressure on opposing defenses every possession, and it has yielded an incredibly productive lineup when Dončić is on the court and James is on the bench.
In the 23 games where both Dončić and James have played, the Lakers score 122.2 points and allow 99 points per 100 possessions for an impressive plus-23.2 net rating when Dončić is on the court and James is on the bench, according to NBA data. Conversely, in those same 23 games, the Lakers score 106.6 points and allow 113.2 points per 100 possessions with James on the court and Dončić on the bench. Lineups shrink a bit in the playoffs, so it’s not like there will be many minutes when both aren’t on the court.
Still, Dončić’s value can’t be overstated. He attracts so much attention from defenses with his shooting and playmaking that his teammates benefit.
Jaxson Hayes has benefited from easy buckets at the rim on lobs from Dončić. There are better 3-point opportunities for Reaves, Rui Hachimura, Dorian Finney-Smith, Jarred Vanderbilt, Gabe Vincent, Jordan Goodwin and Dalton Knecht.
Finch also understands that too much attention on Dončić creates other advantages for the Lakers. “You can’t just commit to running around multiple guys at the ball,’ he said, ‘because now you’re giving maybe the best player in the game to ever have played (James) the chance to pick you apart in space.’