Luka Doncic. Image via: Harry How/ Getty Images
Doncic and Austin Reaves anchored the offense a season ago, with Doncic putting up a league-high 33.5 points a game. Vujacic, who won two titles with the Lakers, sat down with ESPN Los Angeles and broke down what stood out most from the trip. Horry, who won seven championships across his career, is not rushing to judge how it all fits together.
Vujacic said the leadership has been obvious. “That’s always great to see,” Vujacic said. “I’m going to hold back right now because I want to see them,” Horry said on ESPN LA.
He pointed to how Doncic opened up his home country to guys he had just started playing with, calling it a sign that his new teammate finally feels like a true Laker. He wants to see the pieces play real minutes before forming an opinion. The new faces around them will decide how quickly the Lakers close the gap between talent and chemistry. Thybulle, Grimes and Williams give the Lakers more length on the wing, joining Jarred Vanderbilt as options to shore up a defense that will look different from a year ago.
Luka Doncic flew his new teammates out to Slovenia this summer, giving them a firsthand look at his home country before the grind of an NBA season sets in.
Fellow Slovenian Sasha Vujacic watched it thoroughly and came away impressed, while Lakers legend Robert Horry is not ready to hand out grades just yet. Their reactions frame a Lakers team still searching for its identity. I’m very excited about this year. I think he’s finally a Laker, Laker. And him and AR and the team that we have, I can’t wait to watch it and for him to bring the team to Slovenia to show them where he comes from, to show everybody what Slovenia is all about,” Vujacic shared.