Projected Lakers lineup after acquiring Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic
By Quinn Everts
Luka Doncic plays for the Los Angeles Lakers. That sentence won't look real until... well, I don't know if it'll ever look real, even after Luka starts playing games alongside new teammate LeBron James.
Anthony Davis is a massive loss for this Lakers team, and it shouldn't be understated how much he improved this team's defense. Plus, there's not a clear replacement for Davis on the roster.
Still, any roster that starts with "Luka Doncic + LeBron James" is pretty fun regardless. Here's how the rotation could shake up.
Projected Lakers lineup with Luka Doncic
Starters | Bench |
|---|---|
Luka Doncic | Gabe Vincent |
Austin Reaves | Max Christie |
LeBron James | Dalton Knecht |
Rui Hachimura | Dorian Finney-Smith |
Jaxson Hayes | Jarred Vanderbilt / Maxi Kleber |
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It's not bad! The defensive upside obviously goes down a few notches without Anthony Davis, but like I've said, if you can get Luka Doncic... you get Luka Doncic. The Lakers did that. I think if I type it out enough times I'll believe it.
Austin Reaves has been pretty dang good as LA's facilitator, and I'm curious to see how Raves is used with Doncic now in the lineup. It's not like Luka can't co-exist with another primary guard on the court — he and Kyrie Irving made it work pretty well in Dallas — but Reaves and LeBron obviously both handle the ball a lot, so I'll be interested to watch how JJ Redick divvys up minutes and touches with Luka now running the show.
Maxi Kleber could provide floor-spacing
Kleber can probably still be an effective NBA player, but I'm also curious to see how much run he gets on a team that has plenty of offensive firepower, but much less rim protection and defensive versatility with AD no longer on the team.