Fans of the Los Angeles Lakers have had 16 months to get used to the idea and reality of Luka Doncic being a member of the team. When it acquired him last February, he reset its timeline and gave it a short-term and long-term future no one could have possibly imagined with an aging LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Doncic signed a three-year contract extension last summer, and that gave fans some peace of mind as far as his standing with the franchise. But that extension has a player option for the 2028-29 season, which means he can opt out in the summer of 2028 and sign a supermax extension with the Lakers.
As the Lakers embark on a critical offseason, one shouldn’t assume that Doncic will automatically agree to stay with them past 2028. Dan Woike, who covers them for The Athletic, reminded everyone of that reality in a recent mailbag when he was asked if the franchise cares about the Slovenian’s ability to become a free agent in two years.
“If they don’t — they need to be,” Woike wrote.
“Sam Amick and I reported that the Lakers were “on the clock” with Dončić right after the end of last season, and nothing I’ve heard from my sources would change that thought process. Dončić is in the prime of his career and was traded away from a roster built to his specifications to compete for NBA titles. And if the Lakers can’t provide that, maybe he looks elsewhere (if anybody should understand that this is business, it’s Dončić).
“He’s under contract with the Lakers for two more seasons with a player option in the third. Before the 2028 season, he’s eligible for a mega contract that could be worth more $417 million. That’s a lot of money to walk away from, but I think there’s an actual threat that he could have a wandering eye if the Lakers can’t deliver on the plans they presented last summer.
“How the Lakers handle this summer, how their decisions play out, how they’re reacted to by Dončić could have ripples for years inside the organization and around the league. The Lakers don’t have to solve all their roster issues in one transaction period — but they have to start finding the answers.”
Doncic has made it clear multiple times that he wants to win at least one NBA championship. As a member of the Dallas Mavericks, he reached the finals in 2024, only to lose there to the Boston Celtics in five games.
Starting last offseason, he improved his diet and offseason training regimen, which resulted in him dropping plenty of weight and getting into much better shape. He put together an MVP-caliber campaign this season, and at age 27, he may be just beginning the prime of his career.
But no one knows how long any athlete’s prime will ultimately last, and there is already talk that Doncic’s best years will end once he hits his early 30s. The Lakers must act as if they only have a couple of transaction cycles to build a championship team around him in order to prevent him from leaving.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Woike: Lakers could potentially lose Luka Doncic in near future
Reporting by Robert Marvi, LeBron Wire / LeBron Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Robert Marvi, LeBron Wire | USA TODAY Network
