Although Luka Doncic speaks four languages, he struggled for the words to express just how strange it was to play against the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night.
Just 23 days after his world was upended by Dallas’ shocking decision to trade him, Doncic was on the Los Angeles Lakers’ home court to face those same Mavs. His feelings of betrayal and uncertainty were still fresh, and they affected a performance that was inconsistent, occasionally brilliant and altogether fraught with anxiety.
“It was just a lot of emotions I was feeling,” Doncic said of their 107-99 victory. “I can’t even explain. It was a different game. Sometimes, I don’t know what I was doing. I’m just glad it’s over, honestly.”
Photo: AP
Doncic’s game was all over the place — just like his head.
He posted his first triple-double in a Lakers uniform, but he also missed 11 of his 17 shots and was wild from three-point range. He made a dozen sublime passes and at least that many big defensive plays, yet he could only score two points in the fourth quarter of a tight game.
“It was so weird,” Doncic said. “There were moments I felt like I don’t know what I was doing. I’m glad we got a win.”
Fortunately for Doncic, he now has LeBron James for a teammate — and the top scorer in NBA history simply would not let him lose.
In that fourth quarter, the Lakers’ eager fans saw another glimpse of what Doncic and James could become. James took over the game, scoring 16 of his 27 points in the final period — including three key buckets on passes from Doncic to cap his superb playmaking performance.
“We understood as his teammates that we wanted to try to get this win for him,” James said. “Obviously, we know what transpired not too long ago. As his teammates, we wanted just to back him in any way, shape or form.”
Elsewhere, the Memphis Grizzlie mauled the Phoenix Suns 151-148, the Boston Celtics outplayed the Toronto Raptors 111-101, the Cleveland Cavaliers topped the Orlando Magic 122-82, the Houston Rockets survived the Milwaukee Bucks 100-97, the New Orleans Pelicans overpowered the San Antonio Spurs 109-103 and the Golden State Warriors swatted the Charlotte Hornets 128-92.
Additional reporting by staff writer
The Greek basketball league finals between Panathinaikos and Olympiakos were suspended by the government on Monday following on-court scuffles involving rival security teams. The best-of-five series is at 1-1. The third game, scheduled for today, has been postponed. The owners of both clubs were summoned to meet with the country’s sports minister. They “will be asked to provide explicit guarantees that this situation will be brought to an end. If not, this year’s championship will be definitively canceled,” government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said. “There can be no tolerance for such pathological phenomena of violence and delinquency.” In online posts, the owners of Panathinaikos and
Spain starlets Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams dazzled on Thursday as La Roja beat France 5-4 in a thriller in Stuttgart, Germany, to set up a UEFA Nations League final with Portugal. Yamal bagged a brace, while Williams scored and provided an assist as the two wingers cut France’s makeshift defense to ribbons. Mikel Merino and Pedri were also on the score sheet for the UEFA Euro 2024 champions. Kylian Mbappe netted a second-half penalty, but Spain were 5-1 up and cruising, before Les Bleus suddenly woke up as their opponents took their foot off the pedal. France’s three late goals — a
The Crusaders yesterday produced a clinical performance in difficult conditions to beat the Queensland Reds 32-12 and claim home advantage in next week’s Super Rugby semi-finals. Lock Scott Barrett and prop Tamaiti Williams scored first-half tries to reward an outstanding performance from the Crusaders’ forwards in wet, slippery conditions and bitterly cold temperatures. Scrumhalf Noah Hotham defied the conditions in the second half to score a superb solo try and, after kicking a conversion and penalty to make the score 22-0 at the hour mark, flyhalf Rivez Reihana scored a try which took the game beyond the Reds. “Typical Christchurch weather, cold, wet
Italy crashed to a 3-0 loss away to Norway, as the four-time FIFA World Cup champions made a disastrous start to their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign on Friday, while Belgium had to settle for a draw in North Macedonia. Alexander Sorloth, Antonio Nusa and Erling Haaland all scored in the first half in pouring rain in Oslo as Norway made it a night to forget for Italy, who missed out on the past two World Cups. “I have no explanation. Our supporters don’t deserve this kind of match. We need to do some soul-searching. It’s unacceptable,” Italy captain and goalkeeper Gianluigi
RSS