Luka Doncic addressed the Lakers’ 128-106 loss to the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday, citing turnovers and Detroit’s physicality as key factors.
“It could have been better for sure,” Doncic said. “I think in the fourth quarter, we were playing great basketball for three quarters and then they just went on an insane run.”
When asked about handling Detroit’s bigger, more athletic lineup, Doncic emphasized matching their intensity. “We got to definitely match their physicality…we should have played with more physicality for sure,” he said.
Reflecting on the turning point of the game, Doncic noted, “In the third quarter it was 79-79…we just let off the rope a little bit…we played good basketball for three quarters then we just kind of let go of the rope.”
Turnovers were a recurring theme in his remarks. “Too many for me…we had a lot of turnovers, I had a lot of turnovers and then just went down in transition and scored.”
Doncic also addressed balancing LeBron James’ off-ball movement with playmaking responsibilities. “Too many turnovers. Got to stop losing the ball,” he said.
The loss marked Los Angeles’ fourth defeat in five games, despite James scoring 17 points on his 41st birthday, including three 3-pointers. Doncic led the team with 30 points and 11 assists, but the Lakers were unable to contain Detroit’s dominance in the paint.
Cade Cunningham paced the Pistons with 27 points and 11 assists, while Marcus Sasser added a season-high 19 points. Detroit scored 74 points in the paint, repeatedly exploiting mismatches against Deandre Ayton and the Lakers’ undersized frontline.
Despite losing Tobias Harris to a first-quarter hip injury, the Pistons maintained control with strong ball movement and defensive discipline, limiting the Lakers to 45% shooting overall. Detroit improved to 25-8 and snapped their two-game losing streak on the West Coast, while Los Angeles fell to 20-11.
Detroit will host the Miami Heat Thursday, and the Lakers return home to face the Memphis Grizzlies.
