Slovenian guard Luka Doncic was subject to a lot of criticism for his defense, specifically his transition defense, during the Los Angeles Lakers‘ 132-119 loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Cup quarterfinal on Wednesday.
While Spurs guards Stephon Castle (3-of-5) and De’Aaron Fox (3-of-5) shot 60% from the floor when guarded by Doncic, rookie Dylan Harper (3-of-4) shot 75% when the Lakers superstar was his primary defensive matchup.
Doncic was also blasted by “NBA on Prime” analyst Stan Van Gundy during the live broadcast of the Spurs versus Lakers game. There were at least two instances in the game when Doncic argued with a referee over a non-call instead of getting back on transition, which infuriated the former NBA head coach.
“That’s the second time he hasn’t gotten back on defense,” Van Gundy fumed on the air as Doncic’s matchup completed a wide-open layup on the other end.
‘A Traffic Cone’
Veteran NBA analyst Skip Bayless referred to Luka Doncic as “Luka Oncic” on X, which was a reference to the Lakers guard’s shoddy defense.
“Lakers are Fakers on defense – especially Luka Oncic,” he wrote.
Besides analysts like Van Gundy and Bayless, scores of Lakers fans ripped Doncic for his defense, with one fan suggesting that ex-Mavericks GM Nico Harrison “was right about Luka” and that the Lakers will never win a title with him as their best player.
“Nico Harrison was right about Luka man he’s a front runner, black hole, gives up free points at the line, and doesn’t play defense. Never winning a chip with him.”
Lakers fans on Reddit were also very critical while analyzing footage of lowlights from Wednesday’s loss, most of which involved the Slovenian’s shoddy defense.
“Luka will literally put more energy into yelling at the ref than guarding his guy.”
“Lakers playing 4v5 or 3v5 in transition or off turnovers all the time. Luka is so bad in transition. Just so horrific.”
One fan went as far as to call Doncic a “traffic cone” for his inability to move laterally.
Lakers Need Defensive Help
The consensus from Wednesday’s loss is that the Lakers need to shore up their defense desperately ahead of the Feb. 5 deadline.
Even Lakers head coach JJ Redick did not hold back on his team’s horrific defensive performance after they allowed the Spurs to shoot 45% from three (17-of-38).
“Very few teams don’t have something that you can expose. We’ve consistently been exposed to the same things,” Redick said of the Lakers’ defense.
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