LeBron James Compares Luka Doncic & Himself To Quarterback & Receiver

With injuries mounting for the Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James and Luka Doncic are now the two stars who need to man the ship. While those two are capable of doing so, L.A. has not been playing at a high level lately.

After closing out 2025 with a disappointing blowout loss to the Detroit Pistons, the Lakers hoped for better results in a new year. To kick off 2026, Los Angeles faced a struggling but feisty Memphis Grizzlies team with a healthy Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr.

Granted, it was not perfect, but James and Doncic led the way with 30-plus-point performances in a 128-121 win.

At one point, Doncic dropped in a perfect full-court pass to James for a layup as the crowd cheered on. The 41-year-old spoke to his developing chemistry with the Slovenian star, particularly when it comes to getting easy baskets in transition.

“One of the best quarterbacks and I’m a pretty good receiver, when it comes to that,” James said. “It’s my job to not allow the defense to break that up or steal the ball. And he put it right on target, and made it a lot easier for me.”

The four-time champion tends to leak out when a shot goes up, but he knows that he cannot show his hands to signal he is open, similar to Hall of Fame wide receiver Randy Moss.

“Yeah, for sure,” he said. “I watched him a lot growing up and he did that a lot. Actually, when I played football I kind of took that tip from him as well and I guess brought it to the game of basketball as well when I had that seal.”

Another teammate of James’ who took on a quarterback role was Kevin Love back in Cleveland with the Cavaliers. It is good to see Doncic making his co-star’s life easy, especially in his 23rd season.

To have two gifted passers, there is no reason why this duo cannot feed off one another. Frankly, the Lakers do not have a choice right now due to their injuries, so Doncic and James need to pave the way until reinforcements arrive.

JJ Redick: LeBron James was ‘phenomenal’ in Lakers win over Grizzlies

Since James did not suit up in the preseason or develop chemistry with his teammates in training camp, he needed time to get into game shape. As of late, the future Hall of Famer is rounding into form as he put up 31 points, nine rebounds and six assists on Friday night.

Head coach JJ Redick spoke to his veteran’s production against the Grizzlies, going as far to say that James was phenomenal in the victory.