Luka Doncic addressed his ankle injury after Wednesday’s 129-99 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. “I kind of got scared… wasn’t a great feeling. Looking back at the video, I think I got a little bit lucky,” he said.
He explained how it affected his play. “Obviously it’s going to impact it a little bit, but I tried to go. Obviously wasn’t 100%, but I tried,” Doncic said.
The star guard reflected on the Lakers’ energy drop in the second half. “Everybody was a little low energy… those games are going to come, but we got to be way better than that,” he said.
Doncic acknowledged the court conditions in Cleveland. “Obviously Dru Smith here a few years ago… it’s the only court that’s like this. I guess it’s my fault, so I stopped jumping like that,” he said.
On the third-quarter collapse, Doncic noted, “First half was okay. Coming out of the locker room, they hit like four threes in a row… miscommunication,” which helped the Cavaliers turn a 57-55 halftime tie into a dominant third-quarter run.
He shared his perspective on LeBron James’ homecoming. “It was great… we all know what he wanted here and what it meant to this city. Just wish we could have got him a win,” Doncic said.
Doncic also commented on Bronny James’ reception from the crowd. “Yeah, it was great. Obviously he grew up here… same thing, fans really appreciated him,” he said.
Reflecting on athletes’ challenges with retirement, Doncic drew from his own experience. “My dad retired when I was a kid… you do this your whole life, it’s kind of hard to let it go,” he said.
Despite scoring a team-high 29 points, Doncic’s Lakers fell to 3-2 on their seven-game road trip. Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell added 25 points, Jaylon Tyson 20, and Jarrett Allen contributed 17 points and nine rebounds, leading the Cavaliers to their season-best fifth straight win.
The loss marked James’ first sub-20 point performance in 13 trips to Cleveland, while the Lakers struggled with rotations and floor chemistry. Doncic reflected, “I feel like everybody was a little low energy… got to be way better than that,” emphasizing the team’s need to respond on the next road game at Washington on Friday.
