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 Luka Doncic Amazed By LeBron James
Jan 6, 2026; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) jokes with forward/guard Luka Doncic (77) after a shot against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images Jan 6, 2026; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) jokes with forward/guard Luka Doncic (77) after a shot against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Regardless of how talented some players are, it will always take some time for them develop chemistry on the basketball court. Some wondered whether Luka Doncic and LeBron James would be able to co-exist on the Los Angeles Lakers, but for the most part the two have fit together very well.

The superstar duo were outstanding in the Lakers’ win over the New Orleans Pelicans with each pouring in 30 points while providing some true highlights as well. The two connected on numerous plays, highlighted by an alley-oop from Luka to LeBron that brought the crowd to their feet.

For James to still be this good at 41 years old is unprecedented and Doncic had a ton of praise for him following the win, calling him amazing while expressing his belief that the chemistry between them will only continue to improve, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN:

“He’s been absolutely amazing,” Doncic said of James. “Just helping me out, helping others out, being super efficient on the field goals. … That’s Bron. He can do anything. Just really appreciate him. … We are playing better with each other, game by game. And this is just going to be improving more.”

For two players with the basketball IQs of Doncic and James, it was only a matter of time before they figured things out. There are still plenty of things for them to improve on as a duo, but the growth from their first games together to now are apparent.

Both are able to operate on and off the ball and with each of them able to shoot, find open teammates, get to the rim and draw fouls, it makes it extremely difficult for opposing teams to stop them. With LeBron now seemingly having found his rhythm after missing the first part of the season, he and Luka have locked in and are just on the same page right now.

The focus now is for them to continue to grow together and feed off each other and once Austin Reaves comes back and those three can build that chemistry as a trio, the sky is the limit for what this Lakers offense can be.

JJ Redick loves synergy developing between Luka Doncic & LeBron James

The growth in synergy between Doncic and James has also been noticeable to Lakers head coach JJ Redick who spoke about how much he loves what he is seeing between the duo right now.

This article first appeared on Los Angeles Lakers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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