INine and a half months have passed since the deal that shocked the sports world was broken via Shams Charania's tweet. It was such a shock that most of his followers thought he had been hacked. Fresh off a trip to the NBA Finals, young Slovenian superstar Luka Doncic was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in the middle of the night for Anthony Davis, and the NBA as we know it was changed forever. The fallout from one of the most shocking trades in sports history is still unfolding: Disgraced Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison, who spearheaded the deal, was fired by the team last weekMavericks fans were on the move loudly demanding ever since news broke that their homegrown franchise player had suddenly been thrown into the sea. But on the other side of the coin was a mixed blessing and a new beginning: Doncic, who imagined he would spend his entire career in Dallas like his mentor Dirk Nowitzki, suddenly found himself the face of the NBA's most famous franchise under the bright lights of Hollywood. And, as it turned out, the future has already arrived.
Although Doncic's breakup with the Mavericks was at the same time very public and very dirty (The Mavs weren't shy about making their case for the move while casting the 26-year-old in an unflattering light), but the positives quickly emerged. Doncic may not have thought he was suited to the Los Angeles spotlight, but with his flair for the dramatic and sense of sports theater, playing for such a high-profile franchise turned out to be surprisingly good. And for the Lakers, things couldn't have worked out better: The team faced an uncertain future, the departure of 40-year-old LeBron James was looming, and Davis' injury history created a cloud of doubt about his ability to be the No. 1 option down the line. Enter Luke stage right: the ticket to saving the franchise, equipped with the newfound motivation that can only be found after being publicly and mercilessly dragged through the mud.
Of course, James's retirement turned out to be much less inevitable than anyone expected; his unprecedented longevity and level of play continue to break records and defy logic. So the months following Doncic's arrival have felt less like a passing of the torch and more like a collaboration. But James' bout with sciatica this summer, which sidelined him for the first month of the season and caused him to miss the first opening night of his 23-year career, was a dress rehearsal for the post-LeBron Lakers era. The lineup remains a bit clunky, but Doncic is starting to lean into his newfound leadership role—and those around him are convinced he's the man for the job. And not just because his 34.4 points per game lead the league. NBA by a wide margin. The Lakers are 10-4, fourth in the Western Conference behind Oklahoma City, Denver and Houston, and the prospect of life after LeBron suddenly looks… well, not so scary.
Doncic has always been special, and the NBA's brightest minds have recognized that from the very beginning. When the Miami Heat visited Los Angeles in early November, I asked Erik Spoelstra what he thought made Doncic different from other players. “Just an incredible competitive spirit,” he told me. “I remember the first time I saw him play – I'll never forget it. I went to watch Goran Dragic at EuroBasket, so I went to their training camp. Luka was 18, and everyone in the room was stunned by how mental his game was. He could do all the spins, all the reads, just pick you apart. His fundamentals, his footwork, his skill level – all of that is elite. But more than anything, even then, he could rise to the level” of the competition. That's what all the greats do: competition creates something that most players can't achieve.”
“Quiet” was the word Lakers guard Marcus Smart used to describe Doncic’s leadership style in the early days of the season, shortly after the former Defensive Player of the Year played his first few games with his new team. “He leads by example,” Smart said. But something is starting to change for Doncic, whose approach to leadership throughout his career has been, as Smart suggests, brilliant without saying much.
Doncic is regaining his maturity and focus this year, even if he still displays more youthful exuberance than anyone else in the league. Already in the summer, when rumors spread, it became obvious that he had undertaken a radical overhaul of his diet, which was soon followed by amazing men's health function revealing a noticeably slimmer and more sculpted Doncic. The makeover (and the PR movement surrounding it) was almost certainly fueled by the Mavericks' post-Doncic smear campaign, which sought to question everything from his work ethic to his relationship with alcohol.
Off the court, Doncic is quiet and even-tempered and enjoys nothing more than laying low with his wife, young daughter and video games. On the court, he's a demon: one of the league's fiercest competitors, a player who seems to genuinely enjoy tormenting his opponents. For all his talents, this almost manic competitiveness may be his defining characteristic. And when you look at it closely, it's obvious that there was never a version of reality in which his exile, as he was in February, led to anything other than this moment when he turned into the Terminator.
Doncic admits his approach has changed. He's become noticeably louder this season, and when asked if that's intentional, he doesn't hesitate. “Definitely [more vocal]”I'm just trying to help the guys,” he says. But he attributes the change in part to improved communication, emphasizing that he still wants management to feel connected. “I think leadership shouldn't be one player – it should be more players, and I think we have that. Everyone talks a lot. It feels like everyone is on the same page.”
Those around him noticed his growth. Lakers head coach JJ Redick says he's seen a real shift from last season: “I think he's letting his teammates in right now,” he says. Austin Reeves is a Lakers guard who Established an easy, teasing relationship with Doncic several months from the moment of his arrival – he also sees this and is not surprised that it took some time. “It's human nature when things like last year happen. Nobody ever thought this would happen… I'm sure he was in a state of shock,” Reeves said. “Moving, moving with family, it was hard. But now I think he's just comfortable and having a good time.”
When will James return to make his season debut? could happen as early as Tuesday night Against the Utah Jazz, the Lakers' soft start to the Luka era will temporarily come to an end. But the progress won't stop: the progress Doncic has made with the keys to the franchise in his hands is palpable and likely to continue. He knows that the future belongs to him, and he seems more comfortable with this fact than ever.
