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Kendrick Perkins Sends Clear Message About Luka Doncic's Weight Before NBA Playoffs

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Kevin Borba | Last updated Apr 4, 2025 5:41 PM ET

With just six games remaining in the regular season and the Western Conference standings as tight as ever, the Los Angeles Lakers have no room for error.

Following Thursday's 123-116 loss to the Golden State Warriors, the Lakers are now 1.5 games behind the Denver Nuggets for the No. 3 seed and are just one game ahead of the Warriors, who are in the No. 5 spot. Many fans and analysts walked away from Thursday's game concerned with the performance of All-NBA guard Luka Doncic.

He finished the game with 19 points on 6-of-17 shooting from the field, and also missed all six of his threes. When discussing why Doncic struggled so much in the loss, ESPN's Kendrick Perkins cited concerns about his weight.

"Luka's biggest issue has to be addressed in the offseason," Perkins said. "He's out of shape. He needs to lose weight...That's not gonna happen no time soon. It's a reason that Golden State was searching him out defensively and it's gonna continue to happen even when they get into the postseason."

Concerns over Doncic's weight have followed him throughout his NBA career, and as revealed by a February ESPN report, this was actually one of the reasons that the Dallas Mavericks were willing to trade him.

"The Mavericks were motivated to move Doncic because of his constant conditioning concerns," reported Tim MacMahon. "There had been significant frustration within the organization about Doncic's lack of discipline regarding his diet and conditioning, which team sources considered a major factor in his injury issues."

The same report also revealed that Doncic's weight had risen to the "high 260s" early this season.

Only 1.5 games separate the Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves, currently the No. 7 seed, which is the NBA Play-In Tournament territory. If the Lakers can hold onto a top-six seed, the first round begins on April 19, if they fall into the dreaded Play-In Tournament, it will take place from April 15-18.

Needless to say, they will need Doncic at his best in the coming weeks.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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