How many games can you ignore efficiency and turnover problems from your superstar player at the start of the year? Luka Doncic showed everyone the answer to that was at least two, during Sunday night's offensive outburst in the Los Angeles Lakers' gutsy 132-123 win over the Utah Jazz.
Doncic poured in 52 points, shooting 17-of-30 from the field and 8-of-18 from beyond the arc in a masterful performance. Just like that, the transgressions of his first two games felt like a distant memory. No one really cared anymore about the career-high 11 turnover game he had a few nights ago.
Why would they? Basketball is a fast-paced sport. In a league that frequently asks what have you done for me lately, Doncic's most recent accomplishment is setting the season high in points for everyone else to chase during 2026-27.
That dazzling display has stabilized most of his early averages, apart from those pesky turnovers. It really served as a reminder of why making immense judgment calls on anything this early can be risky. Sometimes, you can be proven wrong in just a few weeks. Sometimes, it only takes days.
Luka Doncic shows just how misguided early overreactions can be
Takeaways, even this early, are a natural part of the basketball-watching process. Everyone is bound to have them. Depending on the type of evaluation made, though, it can prove to be silly very quickly.
Imagine being bold enough to use the first two games of Doncic's season as a big prognosis of what was to come. You would have an egg on your face by now.
Realistically, no matter how hard anyone tries to avoid it, overreactions are always inevitable. There are probably going to be a handful of things you read, hear, or watch over the first few weeks that are going to be null and void by the time December comes around. That is just how it goes at times.
The important part is trying to catch yourself in those moments. It is also about admitting when you were wrong the first time. Being incorrect about something is okay. Standing by an incorrect takeaway out of pure stubbornness is the real issue.
All the sample sizes that are being worked with right now are in their infancy stage and are bound to grow as the 2026-27 season goes on. Have those bold overreactions now, if you are brave. Be just as prepared that someone like Doncic can change them in the blink of an eye.
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