Rick Carlisle didn’t hesitate when asked about coaching Luka Doncic in Dallas. The veteran coach, now with the Indiana Pacers, made it clear that the Mavericks’ young guard left an immediate impression.
On The Draymond Green Show, Carlisle was asked what it was like to coach Doncic during his first run in the United States. Carlisle said he was struck by the talented, versatile rookie right away.
That praise carries extra weight coming from Carlisle, who played alongside Larry Bird and saw Magic Johnson up close during the Showtime era. When Carlisle reaches for a comparison, he is speaking from a rare perspective.
Johnson is the obvious name in the conversation from a court-vision standpoint. But the two players operated in very different ways.
The Lakers of that era played fast, turned games into a sprint and built their five NBA titles on that style. Magic was the center of it all.
Doncic, by contrast, bends the game to his own rhythm. He slows opponents down, leans heavily on outside shooting, and makes teams adjust to him rather than the other way around. That’s not how Magic and the Showtime Lakers won, but it is what makes Doncic so difficult to handle.
Carlisle’s admiration didn’t stop with that comparison. It also underscored how Los Angeles is now built around Doncic as the post-LeBron James era begins next season.
The Lakers have already overhauled their roster ahead of the 2026-27 campaign, and the message is clear: Doncic is the new face of the franchise.
That brings expectation with it. The pressure will be there every night, especially in a Western Conference that figures to stay brutal for years. But Doncic appears ready for it.
In Other News...
Lakers New-Look Roster Comes With One Question Fans Can't Ignore
The Lakers roster reset has brought a different kind of conversation into focus, one centered less on star power and more on how the pieces fit around it. A front office executive and an assistant coach spoke with Keith Smith of Spotrac about the teams additions after LeBron James departure, laying out the early expectations for rookies Cameron Carr, Walker Kessler, Collin Sexton and Quentin Grimes. The emphasis was clear: defensive improvement, more offensive versatility and a group that has to grow into the roles the staff imagines for it.
There is optimism around what the new-look group can do with the ball, and a rival scout even flagged the offense as a potential strength. But the bigger issue remains on the other end, where the Lakers ability to make real progress defensively under JJ Redick will shape how far this reset can go. For all the interest in the new names, the lingering question is whether the roster has enough reliable two-way balance to hold up when the schedule gets heavy. [Read more 🡒]
Lakers Interest In Jonathan Kuminga Comes Down To One Crucial Fit
The Lakers interest in Jonathan Kuminga has hovered in the background as free agency drags on, but the appeal is tied to more than just talent. Jovan Buha noted that Los Angeles is weighing both the contract number and whether Kuminga would accept a role built around defense and team play, the kind of fit the Lakers have been targeting as they try to round out the roster.
Kuminga remains a young forward with clear upside and All-Star ambitions, which is part of what makes this such a delicate conversation. The open question is whether he would be willing to lean into the kind of responsibilities the Lakers need most, or whether he is still looking for a bigger offensive lane elsewhere. [Read more 🡒]
Lakers Just Lost One Of Their Clearest Wing Fits
A wing market that already felt thin got a little tighter for the Lakers, who had shown interest in Naji Marshall as a possible fit. Dallas took him off that board with a three-year extension that locks him in as part of the Mavericks long-term plans, a move that also nearly doubles his previous salary and signals how much value the team places on his two-way profile.
For the Lakers, the timing matters because Marshall had been one of the cleaner roster fits to monitor, especially for a team always searching for sturdier perimeter help. He is still technically trade-eligible under NBA rules, so the door is not completely closed, but Dallas has made its stance clear enough that Los Angeles will have to look elsewhere unless the market changes in a bigger way. [Read more 🡒]