Luka Doncic’s honest confession at the Timberwolves’ rematch

LOS ANGELES – It’s the last time Los Angeles Lakers against the Minnesota Timberwolves, it was during last season’s playoffs when the Lakers were eliminated in five games. It was a disappointing end for the Lakers who won the top three seeds in the Western Conference. But after the Lakers’ 128-110 victory Friday in their rematch against the Timberwolves, Luka Doncic admitted he wasn’t worried about the playoffs last season.

“Honestly, I didn’t. I always said that last year was very difficult for me. I just want to forget that season, to try to move on,” Doncic said. “I haven’t really thought about that first-round series just because it’s the second game. We’re going to meet them two or three more times, it’s going to be a war every time we play.”

Luka Dončić continued his stormy start to the 2025/26 seasonfalling down 49 points against Timberwolves, just a few nights after his 43-point effort against the Golden State Warriors on opening night. Against the Wolves, he shot 14 of 23 (60.8 percent) from the field, 5 of 12 (41.6 percent) from the three-point line and 16 of 19 from the free throw line.

But it wasn’t just Dončić who scored what cut Wolves. He also grabbed 11 rebounds and was two assists short of a triple-double with eight. A good number of his assists came from looking for Deandre Ayton around the basket.

In the offseason, Doncic made headlines for his apparent body transformation while participating in EuroBasket with the Slovenian national team. After the win against the Timberwolves, Doncic confirmed that he feels great physically for the start of this season.

“I feel great. I wish we had won the first game (of the season), but obviously it’s a good return,” said Doncic. “I think Minnesota is a great team. We had to do a lot to win today. But I feel great… I just want to win every game.”

Doncic is coming off his first full training camp with the Lakers after spending last season with the Dallas Mavericks. After the trade, Dončić appeared in 28 games for the Lakers, with a little more than 35 minutes per game. He averaged 28.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.6 steals while shooting 43.8 percent from the field, 37.9 percent from the three-point line and 79.1 percent from the free throw line.

The Lakers will face the Wolves two more times during the regular season, with the next matchup coming next week in Minnesota and the last meeting not until March 10, which is the Lakers’ home game.