Slovenian guard Luka Doncic is no longer teammates with LeBron James after the latter departed from the Los Angeles Lakers this offseason. And it appears Doncic no longer has to provide a politically correct answer to appease “The King.”
In a chat with content creator Klemen Kopina on Monday, Doncic was asked to choose his “ultimate” teammate in a hypothetical 2-on-2 game. When asked to pick between dear friend Nikola Jokic and James, Doncic didn’t hesitate for a solitary second.
“Jokic,” Doncic responded.
In fairness to Doncic, he chose Jokic as his 2-on-2 partner over a series of other current and past NBA superstars, including Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Victor Wembanyama, Kevin Durant, Shaquille O’Neal, Magic Johnson and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
However, he picked Larry Bird and Michael Jordan over Jokic.
Nikola Jokic a Future Lakers Star?
Needless to say, Doncic’s answers immediately sparked rumors of Jokic — who has the option of testing free agency in 2027 — possibly linking up with him in the future.
Incidentally, Jokic has opted to forego signing a contract extension with the Nuggets for two consecutive seasons, even though he has reiterated his desire to stay in Denver.
“My idea and desire is to stay in Denver. I’ll probably sign next year,” Jokic told reporters in Serbian during a FIBA World Cup qualifier game on Monday, via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “… My desire is to play the rest of my life in Denver.”
It makes a lot of financial sense for Jokic to delay inking his next contract. The three-time MVP is currently eligible for a four-year, $278M extension, but can sign a five-year deal worth nearly $360M by waiting until the 2027 offseason. Still, the Serbian’s decision to delay his extension has given Lakers fans reason to be optimstic, especially since the Nuggets have underperfomed in the postseason the last few years and could be compelled to blow up the roster with another poor postseason run in 2027.
LeBron James, Luka Doncic Relationship
Although James chose to leave the Lakers, his decision reportedly had nothing to do with Doncic being coronated as the team’s new franchise star. Per multiple insiders, Doncic and James developed a close bond during their one-and-a-half seasons as teammates and remain good friends off the court.
ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported this week that James and Doncic have a lot of respect for each other and rarely butted heads during their time as teammates.
“There was no personal rift between James and Doncic, multiple team sources told ESPN,” McMenamin wrote. “While they worked through growing pains on the court as two ball-dominant players, they got along and respected one another off of it.
“There was more of a disconnect between James and the organization, sources said, one that started during the doomed 2021-22 season following the Russell Westbrook trade and never fully recovered.”
Doncic is reportedly “thrilled” with the moves made by the Lakers this offseason, which include signing free agents Walker Kessler, Quentin Grimes, Sandro Mamukelashvili and Collin Sexton, and re-signing Austin Reaves to a four-year max contract.
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