Luka Doncic is introduced as the newest member of the Los Angeles Lakers, at the UCLA Health Training Center, in El Segundo, California on February 4, 2025. TJ Manotoc, ABS-CBN News
Luka Doncic is set to join a historic franchise that has traditionally featured the best and brightest in basketball -- the Los Angeles Lakers.
From the likes of Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West, James Worthy, George Mikan, and Elgin Baylor, to some of the most recent ones in Shaquille O’Neal, LeBron James, Pau Gasol, and Anthony Davis -- the Lakers have always been a team bannered by superstars.
Also a part of that rich and extensive list is five-time NBA Champion and arguably, the greatest Laker of all-time, the late Kobe Bryant, and no other than Doncic is grateful to don the same Purple and Gold kits that the Black Mamba wore for the entirety of his playing career.
“Just for Kobe to know my name was amazing for me,” said the former Dallas Mavericks superstar during his introductory press conference to LA on early Wednesday morning, Manila time. “I’m excited about this new journey, and I’m happy to be here.”
The two previously shared a moment on December 30, 2019, less than a month before Bryant’s untimely passing, and this was when Luka first met the Los Angeles legend.
"He was talking Slovenian. He was talking in my language. I saw Kobe talking Slovenian and I was really surprised," said Doncic in a previous interview during that time.
READ: LeBron relishing 'special' Doncic double act
Now, the 2019 Rookie of the Year will play for LA after he was dealt from the Dallas Mavericks together with Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris in exchange for Anthony Davis and Max Christie, and Doncic admits that he hopes he could have shared this latest chapter of his young career with Kobe.
“First of all, I remember the exact moment that it happened,” said Luka on their previous meeting over five years ago. “It always stayed on my mind, and it was an amazing moment.”
“I just wish that Kobe and Gigi were here to see this moment,” he added of Bryant and his daughter Gianna who met their demise together with seven others in a fatal helicopter crash five years ago.
Despite this, Doncic knows that there is a way to honor Bryant and the legacy that he left in Los Angeles.
“Obviously, [I have something to prove], and that’s to win a championship,” he said. “You don’t come here for nothing else but championships. I have everything left to prove, and the goal is to win a championship.”
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