Blaming LeBron! What happened to Doncic?

The Lakers lost to the Magic 109-110 at home by a narrow margin.

In the final 9 seconds, the home team was trailing by one point.

On a frontcourt inbound, Doncic caught the ball, the Magic’s defense was out of position, Ayton provided an excellent screen, and there was no defender within two meters of Doncic. Tactically, this was a golden chance, but #77 hesitated and didn’t take the shot!

As the defense rushed in, he passed to LeBron with only 1.2 seconds remaining. LeBron hurriedly took a shot but missed, and the game was lost.

This pass that shifted blame sparked intense debate after the game, since both the passer and receiver are high-profile players.

And of course, the criticism was mainly directed at Doncic.

Doncic admitted he was open at the time but felt the distance to the basket was too far, so he wanted to dribble closer before shooting. Later, he acknowledged that he shouldn’t have dribbled and should have taken the shot immediately upon receiving the ball.

He saw LeBron was open and passed to avoid a turnover, while also admitting his three-point shooting was off that night, which made him hesitate on the crucial play.

He believed that six or seven seconds was enough time to find a better opportunity, but he failed to make the optimal choice.

Regarding the team’s blown 12-point lead, Doncic said the Magic hit consecutive threes and grabbed key rebounds late in the game, showing far better execution than the Lakers.

He pointed out that the team’s recent home series record is 4 wins and 4 losses, with the biggest problem being inconsistency, failing to close out games they should have won.

What does DiGe think?

Doncic is a very puzzling player.

His shot selection has always been debatable.

Sometimes he thinks too simply; other times, he overcomplicates things.

When his shot is on, he can effortlessly shoot over defenders like Zubac, Gobert, or various tough defenders during training.

However, his consistency from outside has never been reliable.

Given his star status, his shooting volume is understandable regardless of efficiency.

But to become the true core leading the Lakers to a championship, these shots must be taken no matter what his previous shooting percentages say.

We talk about the game with hindsight.

That shot was indeed a bit far.

If Doncic had shot directly from that spot and missed, surely people would criticize him for taking a long shot with time left, and media and fans would question his shot selection.

So, in a 48-minute game, losing is never about a single play.

If we discuss, let’s consider the whole long game context.

I’m not surprised the Lakers lost to the Magic.

If Wagner Jr. were playing, the loss would have been even more decisive.

The deeper reason is simple:Orlando has enough defensive resources to handle the Lakers’ three main driving players.

If Doncic can’t outperform Banchero (which happened today), then losing is expected.

Against the Magic’s energetic wing group, the Lakers can’t match their energy and toughness.

The most direct evidence is losing the rebound battle.

Hachimura, a 2.03m big man, played 26 minutes and didn’t grab a single rebound...

This season, the Lakers rank third from last in average rebounds and fourth from last in second-chance points.

These glaring stats are far more important than Doncic’s single blame-shifting pass.

I believe if this play happened in the playoffs, Doncic would have taken the shot; he’s not the type to shy away.

However, the Lakers’ rebounding issues and lack of frontcourt toughness won’t be fixed even in the playoffs.