Luka Dončić is bizarrely not among the last-second scorers in the NBA
on tuesday, The Los Angeles Lakers recorded their second straight loss with a home loss to the Orlando Magic. Luka Doncic had a chance to win this one late, but eventually picked up his dribble and passed the ball to teammate LeBron James, who saw his desperation shot miss the rim.
Doncic later took responsibility for the mistake, which tarnished his reputation as one of the deadliest players in the NBA. Actually, Doncic has a bizarre not shown in the clutch with any consistency over the past two seasons, dating back to his time with the Dallas Mavericks.
“Over the past two seasons, 207 NBA players have scored a game-tying or go-ahead goal in the final minute of a game,” Stathead said, via Tom Haberstroh on X, formerly Twitter. “Luka Doncic is not among those 207 players. The bizarre grenade from Tuesday night to LeBron is no aberration.”
Doncic has made a few big plays throughout his career, including an attempt to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 2 of the 2024 Western Conference Finals, but that trend has diminished significantly over the past two years, which is hard to explain.
The Slovenian star can get a shot against most any defender in the league, and has a wide array of moves at his disposal to get to his spots. The Lakers have been elite in close games for the most part this season, which goes a long way toward explaining their solid record despite a mediocre net rating, so Doncic’s clutch shortcomings haven’t affected the team much, aside from the loss to the Magic.
However, Los Angeles will surely want Doncic to take those last-second shots when the playoffs come around.
The Lakers will next take the floor Thursday night against the Phoenix Suns on the road.
2026-02-26 23:20:00
