The Los Angeles Lakers have completed one of the most remarkable trades in NBA history. Los Angeles has swapped 31-year-old NBA champion Anthony Davis for 25-year-old All-NBA First Team mainstay Luka Doncic, effectively rewriting its future plans.
Most are of the belief that the Lakers won the trade, but there's a concerning trend they must keep an eye on to avoid a repeat of past issues.
The prevailing notion from the Davis for Doncic trade appears to be that Los Angeles has found its superstar of the future. It's hard to dispute that belief, as Doncic is already one of the most accomplished players of his generation.
Doncic is a five-time All-NBA First Team honoree, a scoring champion, and a five-time All-Star who has led teams to the NBA Finals and two Conference Finals.
Considering Doncic is also six years younger than Davis, there's every reason to believe this trade will work out for the Lakers. Davis' injury history, including his current issue with a left abductor strain, has only hammered that point home.
Unfortunately, Los Angeles has another injury history to consider and closely monitor moving forward: That of Luka Doncic.
Luka Doncic has injury woes of his own for Lakers to monitor
The obvious context is that, prior to the 2024-25 regular season, Doncic had never missed more than 21 games in a single season. That's a key difference between he and Davis, who has experienced that unfortunate twist of fate on four different occasions.
For as valid as that point is, Doncic has now missed at least 16 games in five of the past six seasons—with 2024-25 being an arguably natural progression.
Much has been made of Doncic's weight and conditioning, which could go hand-in-hand with his minor yet significant injury woes. Rather than playing physiologist, however, one can simply acknowledge the entirely rational concerns.
Doncic has dealt with a long list of injuries during his NBA career and the Lakers must find a way to help rectify the issue.
Injuries are never easy to manage, especially when a player carries the workload Doncic manages to. He's a downhill scorer who uses his body to create space and finish in traffic, as well as a high-volume shooter and facilitator.
The toll that takes on a player is destined to result in minor injuries, which could be the simplest explanation for what Doncic has endured.
For the Lakers to maximize the Doncic era, however, they'll need to work with him on how to limit the risk of injury. Missing at least 20 percent of every regular season is better than suffering major injuries left and right, but the older he gets, the more the wear-and-tear will limit him.
If the Lakers are able to help Doncic overcome the ailments that have plagued him in the past, however, they'll avoid repeating the issues that plagued Davis during his tenure with the team.