Lakers Star Luka Doncic Lands on Surprising Side of James Harden Debate

Former NBA All-Star Jeff Teague pointed to one crucial difference when delivering his bold verdict on the two elite scorers.

Mar 31, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) is defended by Cleveland Cavaliers guard James Harden (1) as he drives to the basket in the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Los Angeles Lakers superstar guard Luka Doncic is coming off his first full season with the storied NBA franchise, where he showed just how dominant he can be as arguably the league’s best scorer.

Doncic won the NBA scoring title for the second time in his career, averaging 33.5 points per game to go along with 7.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists per game, shooting 47.6 percent from the field and 36.6 percent from beyond the arc.

Jeff Teague Believes James Harden is a Better Scorer Than Luka Doncic

Even though Doncic is on track to go down as one of the most prolific scorers in league history, former NBA player Jeff Teague believes James Harden is the better scorer because of how easy he can manipulate opposing defenses, via Club 520 Podcast.

Jeff Teague says James Harden is a better scorer than Luka Doncic:

“I think James scored easier than Luka. I mean, Luka score easy as hell too. They both hold the ball the whole time, James is just able to manipulate the defense way easier. Like, you had to foul him or he was… https://t.co/1t2f9pGO62 pic.twitter.com/G8gyHhkx06

— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) August 11, 2026

“I think James scored easier than Luka,” Teague said. “Luka score easy as hell too. They both hold the ball the whole time, James is just able to manipulate the defense way easier. Like, you had to foul him or he was going to make a lay up, pretty much or he was going to shoot a step back three. It’s like you really couldn’t stop him.”

During his prime, Harden was quite possibly the best scorer in the league, averaging 29 or more points per game for six straight seasons as the face of the Houston Rockets franchise.

However, Harden now plays a different role as a secondary scorer for the Cleveland Cavaliers behind superstar Donovan Mitchell. He can still light up the scoreboard on any given night while sharing the spotlight with Mitchell, but he isn’t the same dominant scorer of old who was in the NBA MVP conversation on an annual basis.

Currently, Harden remains an unrestricted free agent, but it seems like a foregone conclusion that he’ll re-sign with the Cavs ahead of the 2026-27 season.

Luka Doncic Still Has a Long Way to Go

Doncic has far less experience on the NBA level when compared to Harden. The one-time NBA MVP has played nearly a decade more than the Slovenian superstar, meaning the new face of the Lakers franchise has a lot of time left to prove that he is the better scorer than Harden, even though his only motivation moving forward is to help Los Angeles lift an 18th championship banner in the rafters at Crypto.com Arena.

With LeBron James taking his talents to the Philadelphia 76ers this summer, the Lakers are officially Doncic’s team, as he and Austin Reaves will shoulder the scoring load moving forward while playing alongside several new players, including rising star center Walker Kessler.

It’ll be interesting to see if Doncic takes his game to another level next season while trying to remain the league’s best scorer, a legitimate NBA MVP candidate and putting the Lakers back into title contention in a very competitive Western Conference.

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