Luka Doncic's leadership for the Los Angeles Lakers gets a spotlight from Collin **** ton originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Now that LeBron James has left the Los Angeles Lakers, the team is now clearly centered on Luka Doncic. He is the superstar now, and he seems to be embracing the leadership role, with the four-time Finals MVP moving east to join the Philadelphia 76ers.
So far, so good for Doncic because he has been taking his new role seriously. In fact, he even brought a lot of his Lakers teammates to Slovenia in the summer. It was a big deal for Luka and his teammates because it shows he is willing to lead them in the 2026-27 season.
It was clear in the 2026 Playoffs that the Lakers would have gone further if they had a healthy Doncic. They managed to make it into the second round, but they fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder in a dominant sweep. James and Reaves tried their best, but they lacked the firepower.
While James has left the Lakers, Doncic is back and healthy. He was the #1 guy for the Lakers since they traded for him in February 2025. Now that LeBron is not on the Lakers, it is time for Luka to step up and be the star while also **** uming the leadership role.

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