Luka Doncic is one of the best basketball players in the world, but he still can't find a way to beat the Boston Celtics.
The Los Angeles Lakers superstar wasn't close to good enough against the Celtics on Sunday, finishing with 25 points, five rebounds and three assists as the Lakers lost by 22 points. Those are well below his season averages of 32.8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 8.5 assists.
Doncic also struggled with his shot, shooting just 9-for-22 from the floor and 3-for-6 from the free-throw line. Again, not nearly good enough.
Throw in his bad defense, and Los Angeles got outscored by 21 points when he was on the court -- tied for his fifth-worst plus/minus in 44 games this season.
Including the playoffs, Doncic has now lost nine of his last 10 games against Boston -- an embarrassing look for one of the league's best players.
Conversations need to be had 😠pic.twitter.com/Jtaw6C26nh
— CelticsMuse (@CelticsMuse) February 23, 2026
Individually, he usually plays well against the Celtics, averaging 29.8 points, 8.5 rebounds and 6.8 assists in 13 regular-season games against them.
In the end, however, that usually doesn't seem to matter. Doncic gets his stats, but Boston still prevails.
The Celtics do a good job of exposing his defensive weaknesses, as he's not really capable of guarding any of them. They also do a good job of forcing him into bad shots and passes, limiting his overall impact on offense and frustrating him with their physical defense.
Boston's teams have generally been better than Doncic's, and he can't beat them all by himself. Like his former teammate Kyrie Irving, however, it's telling that he can't seem to get over the hump against the Celtics.
More NBA: Kendrick Perkins Throws Full Support Behind Jaylen Brown MVP Candidacy