Luka Doncic looks strong and Marcus Smart returns as Lakers lose preseason game to Suns

He whipped passes through a sea of outstretched arms. He lobbed up a sky-high alley-oop. He canned a step-back three.

Luka Doncic is so back.

The star guard had 25 points, seven rebounds and four assists in his preseason debut Tuesday, but the Lakers crumbled in the second half of a 113-104 loss to the Phoenix Suns at Mortgage Matchup Center.

Fresh off a quarterfinal finish in EuroBasket, where he led the tournament in scoring for Slovenia, Doncic wowed his teammates by zipping passes through microscopic lanes and chucking up one-legged three-pointers. After Doncic missed a free throw, he saved the rebound blindly over his head and the possession ended in a three-pointer from Nick Smith Jr.

Doncic flashed an ear-to-ear grin toward his teammates on the bench.

The playmaking was a welcome sight, but coach JJ Redick, who played with Doncic in Dallas, was looking forward to seeing that joyful, childlike energy return after the star guard shook off the emotional toll of last year’s shocking trade.

“Just getting out there and playing basketball for me is amazing. I missed it,” Doncic said. “I think you can see that. … I’m just happy to be on the basketball court again.”

With Doncic and veteran guard Marcus Smart — who returned after Achilles tendinopathy — back, the Lakers inched one step closer to full strength with the regular season one week away. But they are still far from whole.

Not only was LeBron James not on the bench as he is expected to miss the beginning of the season with sciatica, the team ruled out guard Gabe Vincent, forwards Rui Hachimura and Jarred Vanderbilt and center Jaxson Hayes from Tuesday’s game ahead of a back-to-back set that will end in Las Vegas against the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday.

Doncic will likely be among the players who now rotate out against the Mavericks, along with guard Austin Reaves, who scored 25 points on eight-for-16 shooting in 31 minutes Tuesday.

The Suns’ bench seemingly had more players dressed in street clothes than suited up for the game. Guards Devin Booker, Dillon Brooks, Collin Gillespie and Grayson Allen, forwards Royce O’Neal and Ryan Dunn and center Nick Richards were all out after the Suns returned Monday from two preseason games in China.

Guard Jared Butler instead carried the Suns with 35 points, seven rebounds and nine assists.

Doncic was on a modified training regimen to begin training camp because of a busy summer with his national team. He led Slovenia to the quarterfinals at EuroBasket and was named to the tournament’s All-Star Five after leading in scoring with 34.7 points per game, 8.6 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game.

While ramping up during practice, Doncic was already starting to build chemistry with his new teammates in his first training camp with the Lakers. He said his debut was “probably better than I expected,” but he still had five turnovers, a sign of early rust. A first-quarter alley oop dunk with center Deandre Ayton showed signs of what could be.

“He’s truly one-in-a-generational player when it comes to that pick and roll,” Ayton said. “Like it feels like he got eyes on the back of his head.”

The 26-year-old Doncic dominated in the first half to help the Lakers to a 10-point halftime lead. But the offense fell apart when he retired to the bench halfway through the third quarter. The defense gave up 67 points in the second and third quarters combined.

Guard Jordan Goodwin, who was waived by the Lakers this offseason, led the Suns comeback with 24 points on 10-of-20 shooting with six assists. He even converted a four-point play after Bronny James fouled him on a three-pointer that gave the Suns an 82-80 lead with 2:25 remaining in the third quarter. The Lakers never climbed back in front.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Luka Doncic looks strong and Marcus Smart returns as Lakers lose preseason game to Suns

Tags: