Luka Doncic is 27 years old, entering his prime, and missing the hardware in his trophy cabinet to reflect just how generational of a talent he is. That would all be a little troubling by itself. The size of the gulp increases with all the shenanigans happening on the business side of things.
In case you somehow missed it, calling the Los Angeles Lakers messy would be an undersell right now. Bob Iger and Josh Kushner are taking over the team from Mark Walter in a shockingly quick manner after the latter bought the franchise. Jeanie Buss is feuding with her family over a tag-along clause in that same sale. The front office is not filling vacancies in the meantime. Yikes. All yikes.
This kind of turmoil is not what a superstar looking for his first championship should want to see. Doncic has remained resilient, expressing his love and commitment when it comes to being a Laker. However, rival teams are bound to test the strength of that bond in the coming years, especially if Los Angeles underperforms.
Rival teams will circle like hungry sharks around Luka Doncic
The thought of a player as great as Doncic relocating at all was once seen as unthinkable. The Dallas Mavericks ripped that Band-Aid off, and have made the idea much more stomachable for the second time around.
Mind you, it is still an unwelcomed thought in Los Angeles. Luka is their present and future after all. They gave up significant assets to retool around him. Everything has been built with Doncic in mind.
That should hopefully endear to him, but what would go the furthest with Luka is winning. Doncic has consistently talked about his desire to chase a title since his arrival in Los Angeles. That hunger needs to be fed.
If the Lakers do not do it, another team will make their case as to why they can. Tim MacMahon highlighted that on a recent episode of The Hoop Collective.
"[Nikola Jokic] can profess his loyalty to the [Denver] Nuggets, there's still going to be teams that are positioning themselves and monitoring that. ... It's the same thing with Luka. He's done nothing but express optimism and excitement ... but it's not that long-term of an extension."
MacMahon added that teams are going to be seeing whether things go sideways in Los Angeles amid the turbulence. If they do, there are going to be suitors who want Doncic midway through his prime.
The Lakers will feel as though they have done a lot this summer to convince their superstar as to why he should sign that next extension. The results will need to follow suit.
Fast forward a year, if the Lakers underperform in 2026-27 and Doncic is headed for his final guaranteed year under contract ahead of a player option for 2028-29 with little to show for his time with the franchise other than instability and ineffective results, it is going to look scary. Los Angeles must remain vigilant with what could be ahead.
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