Skip Bayless was one of those who watched as the Los Angeles Lakers succumbed to a 126-106 defeat against the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday. Luka Doncic kept the Lakers in the first half with 29 points and finished the game with an astonishing 45 points. With LeBron James out of the team, Austin Reaves and Doncic couldn’t do much to keep the home side at bay in the second half of the matchup.
Following the game, Bayless went right on his podcast to explain why Nico Harrison and the Mavericks were right to trade the Slovenian star.
“Tonight’s Lakers game at Milwaukee on national TV, was exactly why Nico Harrison and the Dallas Mavericks traded Luka Doncic and why I was good with it. Tonight, the Lakers played no defense, they don’t guard the three-point line, they just wave on defense and watch Luka shoot 3s on offense because here’s the problem with Luka, back to my point about why Dallas traded him.
“He is a high-volume, poor three-point shooter. Over time, you can’t win with that. Once the Dallas Mavericks got past Minnesota and made it to the Finals last year, they got shot in the foot by Luka!”
The Fox Sports analyst admitted that Doncic was impressive on the night, but told his viewers not to put their hopes in the former Mavs player. According to him, Luka is among the best in the NBA for three-pointers (119 3PM this season, 7-13 3P against Bucks), but ranks as one of the worst in efficiency (35.0%).
Skip Bayless Claims Luka Doncic Is Nothing Without LeBron James
Skip Bayless further said that without James (averaging 25.0 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 8.5 assists this season) on the team, Doncic (averaging 26.1 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 7.6 assists this season) cannot play effectively. He pointed out that James sets the tone for the Lakers’ defense and argues that Luka can’t lead the team if he doesn’t play good defense at a high level.
Bayless added on the podcast that he didn’t think both Doncic and James would become close in the team like they have at the moment.
“On national TV, we saw how much Luka Doncic is missing LeBron James. I could not understand when Luka got traded and Dirk Nowitzki had to come to LA to comfort him and his family for their opener with the Lakers. I’m like, ‘comfort him for what? He just hit the lottery!’ He should drop down to his knees and thank the Lord that he got traded to the Los Angeles Lakers featuring LeBron James.
“Now, I’ll be the first to admit, I didn’t think over the long term, they will vibe and click together, because they are exactly the same player with the same faults. But I will admit so far, I have been wrong because it has become the ultimate basketball joy for me to watch these two combine their genius on the basketball floor.”
But despite admitting that Doncic plays better alongside James on the court, the veteran journalist stated that the verdict over who the trade favored more between the Mavs and Lakers is premature. He argued that it will have to wait until stars like Anthony Davis and other injured Dallas players get back.
