Luka Doncic’s Newest Teammate Still Getting Used to His Incredible Passing

Luka Dončić made an immediate impression on one of his new teammates during his first action of the preseason.
Luka Dončić made an immediate impression on one of his new teammates during his first action of the preseason. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
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Luka Dončić made his preseason debut on Tuesday night as the Lakers played the Suns. He had 25 points, seven rebounds and four assists in just 22 minutes of action and immediately made an impression on one of his new teammates.

Deandre Ayton, who was drafted ahead of Dončić in 2018 and signed with Los Angeles over the summer, saw his first minutes with his new teammate on Wednesday with the two connecting on one lob out of the pick-and-roll, but it was the passes that weren't to him that Ayton was most impressed by.

"One-in-a-generational player when it comes to that pick-and-roll," Ayton said. "It feel like he got eyes in the back of his head. He was finding guys in the weakside corners and I'm like... I thought the pass was for me, but I'm ducking my head for the pass to get to the corner so that was really fun. Seeing how he starts to do his Luka magic in those situations."

Ayton should have fun catching lobs from Dončić this season as he previously did when he got to play with Chris Paul in Phoenix earlier in his career. The big difference is those passes to the corner out of the play though. Paul is one of the best point guards to ever live, but Dončić has the size and ability to make any pass at any moment, which is why it's a good idea to keep your eyes on him at all times.

Luckily for Ayton, it sounds like that's something he'll enjoy.


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Stephen Douglas
STEPHEN DOUGLAS

Stephen Douglas is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in media since 2008 and now casts a wide net with coverage across all sports. Douglas spent more than a decade with The Big Lead and previously wrote for Uproxx and The Sporting News. He has three children, two degrees and one now unverified Twitter account.