For weeks, the Dallas Mavericks tried to blame Luka Doncic for the decision to trade him to the Los Angeles Lakers, leaking reports about his work ethic and conditioning.
Fans and analysts have called him out multiple times in his career for seemingly being out of shape.
In an interview with Men's Health, the Los Angeles Lakers star addressed his fitness. The article suggested that his former team failed to give him proper guidance to stay in shape between seasons.
"At the start of his NBA career, Doncic mostly received advice from Mavs trainers and nutritionists. During the offseasons, when he returned to Europe, the limited guidance left him flailing. And during the season, the vicious NBA travel schedules gave him little time to clean up his diet," wrote Andrew Heffernan and Ebenezer Samuel in the article.
Even so, Doncic isn't going to sit around and blame the Mavericks or anybody anymore. He's taking the bull by the horns and looking to control what he can control, which is what he does to take care of his body.
“Obviously, be the best that I can be, take care of myself,” Doncic said. “This year, with my team, I think we did a huge step. But this is just the start, you know. I need to keep going. Can’t stop.”
Doncic is one of the most talented players the game has ever seen, but talent can only get you so far.
And with LeBron James by his side, he should take a page out of his teammate's book and treat his body like a temple. If he gets and stays in shape, the rest of the league will be in a lot of trouble.
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