Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) and guard Luka Doncic (77) Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images

Lakers have no reason to panic about Luka Doncic's sluggish start

By Sai Mohan | Last updated Feb 20, 2025 12:49 PM ET

Luka Doncic's early struggles as a Laker have led some to wonder if the Mavericks were ahead of the curve and if the Slovenian, with his calf injury and conditioning issues, could be damaged goods.

That would be a gross exaggeration.

Unless there's more to Doncic's injury than meets the eye, the Lakers have nothing to worry about. Doncic will figure this out as he gets his legs under him, coming off the most severe injury of his career that sidelined him for 27 of Dallas' 49 games before he was traded.

Luka Doncic is shooting 36/21/58% as a Laker. pic.twitter.com/O9pNabfhRM
— StatMuse (@statmuse) February 20, 2025

Doncic has been a notoriously slow starter throughout his career. Whether due to his conditioning or playing style, he has a history of producing early-season stinkers before hitting his stride by late November. In some ways, his 2024-25 season is only getting started, as he has played just three games since Christmas, all with new teammates.

History suggests Doncic will close the season averaging an efficient 30-point triple-double. He averaged 31.6 points, 10.6 rebounds and 9.6 assists at 45/40/77 splits post-All-Star break last year after shooting poorly from three through the early part of the season.

And even if Doncic doesn't hit his peak form in the final 29 games, the Lakers must feel good entering next season. It's not a travesty to consider the 2024-25 campaign a wash. This season marks the first time Doncic failed to make an All-Star team since his sophomore season. He's also ineligible for an All-NBA team, missing out on the honor for the first time since his second season in 2020-21. Those anomalies further the notion that this isn't Doncic's year.

The following 29 games are a test run for Doncic and the Lakers. There shouldn't be lofty expectations of them. It wouldn't be fair to rookie head coach JJ Redick, Doncic and especially not 40-year-old LeBron James. Their championship window officially opens in 2025-26.

Sai Mohan

A veteran sportswriter based in Portugal, Sai covers the NBA for Yardbarker and a few local news outlets. He had the honor of covering sporting events across four different continents as a newspaper reporter. Some of his all-time favorite athletes include Mike Tyson, Larry Bird, Luís Figo, Ayrton Senna and Steffi Graf.

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