getonscoop 
LOS ANGELES — Luka Doncic scored 14 points in limited playing time during his debut with the Lakers on Monday night, joining their starting lineup alongside LeBron James and immediately getting into the flow during Los Angeles’ 132-113 victory over the Utah Jazz.
Doncic got multiple standing ovations from a Los Angeles crowd wearing thousands of gold T-shirts with his name and No. 77 — including James, who warmed up before the game in the same shirt that was distributed to fans.
“I didn’t play in a long time … all the Luka jerseys, it was just a surreal feeling,” Doncic said.
He scored 11 points while the Lakers streaked out to a 25-point halftime lead, and he sat down for good with 3:07 left in the third quarter with the Lakers far ahead in their sixth consecutive victory.
The Slovenian superstar’s first bucket was a 3-pointer in the opening minutes on his second shot for the Lakers. Doncic finished with five rebounds and four assists — none prettier than a three-quarter-court strike to James for a layup late in the first half.
The game was Doncic’s first in nearly seven weeks since he strained his left calf on Christmas with the Dallas Mavericks, who shocked the sports world by trading their 25-year-old centerpiece and NBA scoring champion.
After a full week to settle in and to return to full strength, Doncic joined James, Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura and Jaxson Hayes as starters for the streaking Lakers, who had won 11 of 13 even before adding a five-time All-NBA selection to their lineup.
Doncic played only 24 minutes as the Lakers bring him back deliberately from his injury. His legs aren’t quite there yet — he went 1 for 7 on 3-point attempts in his debut — but his playmaking immediately meshed with his new teammates.
“I think he handled it well,” said Lakers coach JJ Redick, who played alongside Doncic for 13 games in 2021 with the Mavericks. “Knowing Luka, there was probably a little bit of nerves playing for the Lakers for the first time … I thought he’s handled it really well and he played really well tonight.”
Redick was among many in Los Angeles eager to see what Doncic would do in his much-hyped debut with his new team. Doncic didn’t disappoint: His first touch was an alley-oop assist to Hayes, and he hit his 3-pointer moments later. He was serenaded with “Luka! Luka!” chants at the first dead ball, and several times thereafter.
That crowd included Dirk Nowitzki, who overlapped with Doncic for one season in Dallas and served as his mentor. Doncic appeared to be the natural heir to the German Hall of Famer’s incredible run in Dallas — until current Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison decided otherwise.
“For him to show up, great friend, great mentor … I really, really appreciate it,” Doncic said of Nowitzki.
Doncic played the first 6:56 before checking out alongside James — likely a coincidence due to Doncic’s minutes restriction while he returns to full strength. The Lakers are expected to have one of their superstars on the floor at nearly all times when Doncic is up to speed.
“Feel like it’s best right now to ease Luka back in to playing NBA action,” Redick said before the game. “I think if it was up to Luka, he would probably play 48 minutes, but we’re thinking long-term and we want to be safe.”
Doncic returned with about eight minutes left in the first half, and he helped the Lakers on their way to a big lead with several key plays.
Doncic was followed by dozens of cameras as he warmed up for about 10 minutes before the game, and the Lakers’ arena played the Serbian music he favors for pregame workouts. The Lakers introduced him last before the game, giving him the spot normally reserved for James, which led to another standing ovation.
Doncic said James texted him about the player introductions Monday morning and offered to do whatever order Doncic wanted. Doncic said he appreciated the gesture to let him go last and that it’ll go back to James moving forward.
“He let me have my moment,” Doncic said of James, who returned from a one-game injury absence Monday when the Lakers began a home-and-home set with the Jazz heading into the All-Star break.
Doncic has watched three straight Lakers victories from their bench since arriving in Los Angeles a week ago. He began Monday by donating $500,000 to fire recovery efforts in his new community, making an immediate impression with his pledge to help with the damage caused by the rampant wildfires that devastated parts of Southern California last month — including Pacific Palisades, where Redick’s home was lost.
“It’s been so sad to see and learn more about the damage from the wildfires as I landed in LA,” Doncic wrote on his Luka Doncic Foundation’s social media channels. “I can’t believe it, and I feel for all the kids who lost their homes, schools and the places where they used to play with their friends. Today, my foundation is donating $500,000 to immediate recovery efforts. I am also committed to helping rebuild courts, playgrounds and fields that were destroyed, because every kid needs a safe place to play.
“To everyone affected by these fires: we’re here to help, now and for the long haul.”
Doncic signed his note: “Your new neighbor.”
Doncic’s initial donation is being made to the Community Foundation Wildfire Recovery Fund. He also plans to donate “significant additional funding over the next two years” with a focus on rebuilding children’s play spaces, according to a spokesperson.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
