The Los Angeles Lakers were bounced from the postseason on Wednesday after they suffered a 103-96 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of their first-round matchup. While many expected the franchise to contend for their 18th title after acquiring Luka Doncic in a midseason trade, they fell well short of expectations.
The superstar’s defensive abilities were called out following the end of the Lakers’ season, as a former NBA player turned analyst stated:
“Luka Doncic is the worst defensive star that we’ve seen in the modern era of basketball,” ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins claimed on Thursday. “Period.”
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Doncic had a strong series in terms of his numbers as he averaged 30.2 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.0 steals and 0.6 blocks per game while shooting 45.2% from the field, 34.8% from three-point range and 89.1% from the free-throw line. Much of the attention, however, was on his defensive performance as there were plenty of claims that he did not put in any effort on that side of the ball.
Ahead of Game 5, The Ringer’s Zach Lowe claimed that the five-time All-NBA guard was helpless on the defensive end. The Lakers will enter the offseason with a clear plan to rebuild the roster around Doncic.
General manager Rob Pelinka acknowledged the need to add size to the frontcourt during his end of the season press conference. Their lack of rim protection following the Doncic trade — where Anthony Davis was shipped out — was exposed during the postseason. Starting center Jaxson Hayes played just 31 minutes in the series, while backup Alex Len played just 4.
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