If there were any questions about Luka Dončić’s commitment to the Los Angeles Lakers beyond next NBA season, we can probably put those to rest now. Because it sure seems like the superstar guard is ready to ride with the Lakers much longer than the tail end of the legendary LeBron James’ career in Los Angeles.
In a Monday appearance on The Dan Patrick Show, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon poured cold water on the idea that Dončić would leave the Lakers any time soon. Per MacMahon, Dončić is “fully committed” to the purple and gold and sees them as his main conduit to contending for championships in the future. After a devastating trade, the Dallas Mavericks are firmly in his rearview mirror. Dončić notably has just one year left on his current contract before a player option comes up in the summer of 2026.
It sounds like that player option won’t be something the Lakers will have to fret about at all.
Here’s more from MacMahon on The Dan Patrick Show:
“I would be shocked if there’s not some sort of extension this summer,” MacMahon said. “There’s a lot of factors. I don’t want to bog you down with CBA minutia and all that kind of stuff, but what I know of Luka [Dončić], and I haven’t talked to him directly about this, but talking to people who know Luka well, I think he’s fully committed to LA now. His heart was broken, but he’s fully committed to the Lakers. His goal now is to win championships with that franchise.”
The hard part for the Lakers to try to secure their next title contention window was always going to be ensuring Dončić is their cornerstone. Now that it sounds like they don’t have to worry about him, the next step is finding more size on their frontline, especially at center, which the massive Minnesota Timberwolves showed was a massive weakness in their first-round victory over Los Angeles. Also, the Lakers probably need more viable point-of-attack defenders because a trio featuring Dončić, a 40-year-old James, and Reaves is definitely not good enough on the defensive end without more complementary defensive support.
Needless to say, general manager Rob Pelinka has his work cut out for him.
Dončić seems ready to usher in another Lakers golden era. We’ll see whether they’re capable of piecing together that kind of special supporting cast around him.
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