During an interview at the 2022 NBA All-Star game Media Day, LeBron James gave high praises for Luka Doncic as a player.
When asked what he thought of the 22-year-old Slovenian superstar, James told the interviewer:
“The way he plays the game reminds me of the way I play the game,” followed by huge praise of Doncic’s skillset, “We’re triple threats. We rebound, we pass, which is the number one thing on our mind. … and we’ll put 40 on you too if you disrespect us.”
A few years ago, LeBron told in an interview that he is grateful that Luka Doncic looked up to him growing up. Doncic has been idolizing The King ever since he started playing the game of basketball.
“Luka is one of my favorite players in the NBA today,” – James said during an interview in the Road Trippin’ podcast back in 2020
Luka, a 3-time All-Star from the Mavericks has been a sensation ever since he came into the league. Breaking record after record. For example, he joined LBJ in the history books as one of the youngest players to ever record a 40-point triple-double.
The Dallas superstar guard was also previously compared to other NBA greats such as Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. 4 years into the league and he is already getting the recognition he deserves.
LeBron sees himself in Luka. A praise no one has ever received, except Luka.
Both players are excellent playmakers, great rebounders, have fantastic court awareness and high basketball IQ, and can score effectively at will. They have no limits to their game whatsoever. The only advantage James has is, he is extremely athletic, unlike Luka. But that does not make Luka much lesser of a great player.
Let’s compare both of their stats in their fourth year:
Luka Doncic (2021-2022) |
||||
| PPG | APG | RPG | FG | 3P FG |
| 27.5 | 9.0 | 9.2 | 44.9 % | 33.5 % |
LeBron James (2006-2007) |
||||
| PPG | APG | RPG | FG | 3P FG |
| 27.3 | 6.0 | 6.7 | 47.6 % | 31.9 % |
One could argue Luka was way better than LeBron during their fourth year in the league. But the one thing that would probably separate them in this scenario is, James brought a team of mediocre players to the NBA Finals. Luka, on the other hand, hasn’t still got out of the first round of the playoffs. We’ll see how he and the Mavs do in this coming 2022 Playoffs.
Nonetheless, King James really knows what he’s talking about when he says he sees himself in Luka. At a very young age, Luka is already creating a brand and a case for the future face of the league.
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