After Monday's hard-fought win over the Houston Rockets, Luka Doncic has now played as many games for the Los Angeles Lakers as he did for the Dallas Mavericks this season prior to his landscape-shifting trade back in February.
Doncic marked his 22nd game for L.A. with 20 points on 6-of-16 shooting, to go along with six rebounds, nine assists and two steals, as he helped the Lakers secure a crucial 104-98 home win against the No. 2 seed Rockets.
Doncic spoke to reporters after the game, and he revealed a rather surprising fact surrounding his relationship with his new Lakers teammate.
"We haven't even done dinner yet because we've had so many games," Doncic said, via LoJo Media on X.
It has now been nearly two months since Doncic made the move to L.A., which is why his current situation with his Lakers teammates -- at least when it comes to having dinner with them in between games -- is somewhat unexpected.
Then again, Doncic did explain that the only thing stopping them from bonding over dinner is the fact that the Lakers have had a very demanding schedule since his arrival.
The good news for L.A. is that the chemistry of their new-look side on the basketball court is still looking good despite their inability to strengthen their friendships off of it. The team, however, has been spending a lot of time together over the past couple of months, and their proximity has to have played a role in building team rapport.
With seven games remaining in the regular season, the second seed in the West is still very much within reach for Doncic and Co. After Monday's win, they are now just 2.5 games behind the Rockets.
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This story was originally published April 1, 2025 at 3:02 AM.