Luka Doncic cut a frustrated figure in the third quarter of Saturday’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Chicago Bulls at Crypto.com Arena. Doncic received a technical foul for shoving Giddey after not getting a call on the play before and was seen complaining to the officials about it during a timeout.
“He hits me first, I’m gonna hit him back,” Doncic said. “That’s bulls***.”
Luka:
"He hits me first, I'm gonna hit him back. That's bullsh*t." 🗣️👀
(h/t @LADEig)
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) March 23, 2025
Here is the play in which Doncic shoved Giddey with his left arm.
Luka Doncic got a technical foul after pushing Josh Giddey out of frustration pic.twitter.com/M9jIP1dH2s
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) March 23, 2025
Giddey certainly didn’t do anything wrong on that previous play, so you’d assume Doncic was upset about something the Australian had done earlier. The Slovenian surely could have found a smarter way to retaliate, though, as he shoved Giddey right in front of the official.
Doncic was perplexed that he got a technical foul but he was probably the only one who couldn’t believe that call. It was a fairly simple one for the official to make.
Doncic was given another reason to be upset later in the night, as the Lakers were blown out 146-115 despite LeBron James‘ return. You can’t blame the 26-year-old too much for the loss, though, as he had 34 points (10-18 FG), eight rebounds, and six assists against the Bulls.
Giddey, meanwhile, had a great game too. He finished with 15 points (5-11 FG), 10 rebounds, 17 assists, and eight steals against the Lakers. Had the game been closer, he might have registered a quadruple-double, as head coach Billy Donovan took him out of the game with over three minutes remaining.
With this win, the Bulls improved to 31-40 this season. They are ninth in the Eastern Conference and look destined to make the NBA Play-In Tournament.
As for the Lakers, they dropped to 43-27 this season and are fourth in the West. This was their second straight defeat and they’ll look for a return to winning ways when they take on the Orlando Magic at Kia Center on Monday at 7 PM ET.
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