Slovenian guard Luka Doncic was named to his sixth All-NBA First Team on Sunday, joining a quartet of Hall of Famers in NBA history. The Los Angeles Lakers star joined Tim Duncan, LeBron James, Oscar Robertson and Bob Pettit as the players with the most All-NBA First Team nods by age 27.
“Luka Dončić was named to the All-NBA First Team for the 6th time. Only 4 other players in NBA history have done so by age 27: Tim Duncan (7); LeBron (6); Oscar Robertson (6); and Bob Pettit (6),” wrote Lakers reporter Mike Truddell on X.
“Dončić led the NBA in scoring (33.5 ppg), ranked 3rd in assists (8.3) and 6th in steals (1.6).”
Luka Doncic Climbs the Ranks
Last year, Doncic missed out on an All-NBA nod as he failed to meet the 65-game eligibility rule due to injuries. It marked the first time he missed out on the honor since his rookie season, having made All-NBA First Team every year between his sophmore season in 2019-20 until his last full year with the Dallas Mavericks in 2023-24.
Remarkably, the 27-year-old Doncic already has as many All-NBA First Team nods as Kevin Durant, Hakeem Olajuwon, James Harden, George Mikan and Elvin Hayes. He just needs one more to equal Wilt Chamberlain and Giannis Antetokounmpo, and two more to tie up Shaquille O’Neal with eight All-NBA First Team selections.
Per the voting results released by the NBA, Doncic received 91 First Team votes and nine Second Team votes, bringing his tally to 482 points. Meanwhile, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic received 100 First Team votes and Victor Wembanyama got 99. Cade Cunningham barely edged out Jaylen Brown for the fifth and final spot.
Lakers Pin Hopes on Luka Doncic
The NBA’s announcement only further justifies the Lakers’ plans to rebuild the roster around Doncic, one of the five best players in the league. After being swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round of the playoffs, Lakers front-office boss Rob Pelinka made it clear that the plan was to retool around Doncic.
“The archetype of the roster that we want is going to be retrofitted around Luka and the things he needs,” Pelinka said, via The Athletic. “Clearly, he’s that leader and that player for the future that we want to build the right way around.”
Pelinka was referring to athlet bigs and 3-and-D wings — the type of players Doncic thrived next to during his six-and-a-half years with the Dallas Mavericks. In 2024, for example, Doncic was surrounded by athletic bigs (Derreck Lively, Daniel Gafford) and 3-and-D wings (P.J. Washington, Derrick Jones Jr. and Josh Green) as he led the Mavericks to the NBA Finals for the first time since the Dirk Nowitzki era.
Although Doncic plans to spend his summer in Slovenia, the Lakers will reportedly be in concert with him while retooling their roster this summer.
“It’s a full rebuild and retool, and it’s adding to the great things that are already here, which have led to success, but elevating it and bringing it to the next level,” Pelinka said of the Lakers reshaping their roster.
“So, an ongoing process that we’ll be doing throughout the offseason.”
The Lakers could have nearly $50M in cap space even after re-signing free agent Austin Reaves. It remains to be seen how they spend their cap space to retool around Doncic.
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