As Luka Doncic became “more vulnerable”, it paid off for LA

LOS ANGELES – As a new player coming into an established locker room, fitting in and finding a role can often be a challenge, especially when you’re already accustomed to a certain familiarity. Luka Dončić he found himself in such a situation in the middle of a blockbuster search that he was changed to Los Angeles Lakers after six and a half seasons with the Dallas Mavericks. But after the initial shock of the trade wore off, the Lakers’ head coach JJ Redick has seen a change in Doncic as a leader.

Before the Lakers’ game against the Toronto Raptors on Sunday night, JJ Redick talked about how Luka Doncic opening up to the rest of the team allowed him to grow as a leader.

“I think there’s a comfort level that hasn’t been there because of everything about the trade and the emotional fallout and the shock of it,” Redick said. “He’s been more engaged, he’s obviously done some great things off the field, like the Porsche experience.”

The Porsche experience that Redick talked about was an event that Doncic organized for his teammates before the start of the season. Every one of them was able to test drive Porsche cars on the official track, according to Brad Turner of the LA Times.

That was just one of the ways in which Doncic did his best for his teammates and let them see his true self. For Redick, it’s all about leadership. It’s not just loud on the field during games and training.

“The things that we coach him on, whether it’s his interaction with the referees, defensive engagement, all those things, it’s all forms of leadership … He’s improved a lot from last year, and I think guys have seen his personality,” Redick said. “Opening up and just being yourself and being vulnerable is also a form of leadership, and he did that.”

As for Doncic’s achievements on the field this season, he stated that he is in the MVP race. At the official halfway mark of the season, he is leading the league with 33.6 points per game. That’s the second-highest rating of his career, just shy of the 33.9 he averaged his last full season in Dallas in 2023-24. He led the Mavericks to the NBA Finals that season while finishing third in MVP voting.

In addition to scoring, he is averaging 7.7 rebounds, 8.7 assists and 1.6 steals while shooting 46.8 percent from the field, 33.4 percent from the 3-point line and 78.3 percent from the free throw line.