LOS ANGELES — The tone for Luka Doncic’s first game in a Lakers jersey was set early on Monday night against the Utah Jazz.
On the Lakers’ first possession, fellow star playmaker LeBron James drove into the paint while Utah’s defense was focused on Doncic coming off a pindown screen set by Austin Reaves, helping open an opportunity for James to throw an alley-oop to Jaxson Hayes for the game’s first points.
Less than 30 seconds later, after James pushed the ball up the court in transition and passed the ball to Doncic above the break, Doncic drove into the paint and assisted Hayes on his second alley-oop of the night.
The plays were emblematic of how the Lakers performed in Doncic’s debut, dominating the Jazz, 132-113, for their sixth consecutive victory, tied for their longest win streak of the season.
Doncic got multiple standing ovations from a crowd wearing thousands of gold T-shirts featuring his name and jersey No. 77. The Slovenian superstar scored 11 of his 14 points while the Lakers streaked to a 25-point halftime lead, and he sat down for good with 3:07 left in the third quarter with the Lakers far ahead.
Doncic’s first basket was a 3-pointer in the opening minutes on his second shot. Doncic finished with five rebounds and four assists – none prettier than a three-quarter-court strike to James for a layup late in the first half.
Offense came easy for the Lakers (32-19), who have won 12 of their last 14 games dating to Jan. 15.
Doncic, James and Reaves took turns capitalizing on advantages and mismatches they created, leading to efficient offense for themselves and their teammates.
James led the way with 24 points (10-of-17 shooting), eight assists and seven rebounds.
Reaves, coming off scoring a career-high 45 points in Saturday’s home win against the Indiana Pacers, was uber efficient, scoring 22 points on just 10 shots (60% shooting) to go with nine rebounds and four assists.
Doncic looked rusty at times (5-for-14 shooting, 1 for 7 from 3-point range) in his 24 minutes – his first game since suffering a strained left calf on Dec. 25 while playing for the Dallas Mavericks, who shocked the sports world by trading him to the Lakers on Feb. 1.
After a full week to settle in and to return to full strength, Doncic joined James, Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura and Jaxson Hayes as starters. While his legs weren’t quite there yet after seven weeks away from game play, his playmaking immediately meshed with his new teammates.
“It’s special, it really is,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said at halftime, with his team leading the Jazz, 72-47. “He has such a good feel for the game. He makes it easy for everybody on the court.”
He was serenaded with “Luka! Luka!” chants at the first dead ball, and several times thereafter. That crowd included Dirk Nowitzki, who overlapped with Doncic for one season in Dallas and served as his mentor.
Doncic played the first 6:56 before checking out alongside James – likely a coincidence due to Doncic’s minutes restriction while he returns to full strength. The Lakers are expected to have one of their superstars on the court at nearly all times when Doncic is up to speed.
Doncic returned with about eight minutes left in the first half, and he helped the Lakers on their way to a big lead with several key plays.
Everyone received a Doncic T-shirt to mark the occasion, including James, who warmed up before the game in the gold No. 77 shirt.
Doncic, who watched three straight Lakers victories from their bench since arriving in Los Angeles a week ago, was followed by dozens of cameras as he warmed up for about 10 minutes before the game. The Lakers’ arena played the Serbian music he favors for pregame workouts and introduced him last before the game, giving him the spot normally reserved for James, which led to another standing ovation.
The Lakers’ offense continued to hum all night, as they shot 54.3% from the field (50 for 92) and finished with 28 assists.
Their total field goals were one shot of tying the season-high 51 they made in an overtime road loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Dec. 6.
And when the trio of Doncic, James and Reaves weren’t creating for themselves, they were making life easier for others.
Seven Lakers scored in double figures: Rui Hachimura scored 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting to go with six rebounds and two steals. Hayes finished with 12 points.
Jordan Goodwin (17 points, eight rebounds, two steals), who signed a two-way contract with the Lakers last week, and Gabe Vincent (11 points, four assists) combined for 28 points off the bench.
The Lakers scored at least 28 points in each quarter – including 37 in the first, 35 in the second and 32 in the fourth.
The Jazz were led by John Collins’ 17 points and 11 rebounds.
More to come on this story.