He found out he was gonna be guarding Doncic, and he swore, "What the hell, you're gonna throw me in the fire?"

Los Angeles Lakers have yet to finalize their roster for the 2026/27 season, with Luka Dončić set to lead the team on the court. As the start of the NBA season approaches, teams must select 15 players with full contracts by Monday. The NBA directors have already written off Dončić's role. The Lakers currently have 16 players on their list, one too many. Several scenarios exist for resolving this issue, including swapping two players for one better, though no acceptable trades have been identified yet. It becomes increasingly likely that the Lakers will simply cross off one name from their list. One of Dončić's current teammates will soon be without a contract. According to The Athletic, the player in question is Dalton Knecht. They noted that Knecht's main issue is his inability to think quickly enough during games and his lack of instinct to follow others' ideas. He has already been on the "cut list." Shortly after Dončić's acquisition, the Lakers sought a center and chose Mark Williams from the Charlotte Hornets. Part of the deal was supposed to involve Knecht. However, since Williams failed his medical examination, the trade was canceled, leaving Knecht still in Los Angeles. "Since then, life has been very difficult for Knecht in the team. If he wants real chances for success, he should look for luck elsewhere," wrote The Athletic. Yaxela Lendeborg faced one of the toughest defensive assignments in the league. Before the matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers, assistant coach Frank Vogel told the Golden State reporter that his main task would be guarding Luka Dončić. Lendeborg's reaction was quite honest. "I was on the phone and venting when he came to me and said, 'Hey, you'll guard Luka tonight.' I thought to myself, 'What the hell?' You're just going to throw me into fire?" described Lendeborg's conversation with Vogel. Outwardly, he tried to remain calm, but inside, things were completely different. "I tried to act as if everything was fine and I wasn't scared. But I was really scared. That was crazy," he continued. Vogel did not exactly calm him down. Former Lakers coach, who is now an assistant to Steve Kerr at Golden State, did not exactly reassure his new colleague. "He told me something like, 'I think he scores 30 or 35 points per game. No one can stop him, so give everything.' After that, all sorts of thoughts ran through my head," Lendeborg added. To his relief, the showdown with Dončić didn't happen. Slovenian star skipped the Las Vegas exhibition game, and the Lakers lost to Golden State 89–101. "When we arrived at the arena, they told us he wouldn't play. At that moment, I had to completely change everything I had previously imagined," Lendeborg said. Instead of guarding Dončić, he faced a completely different challenge. He had to defend 218-centimeter-tall Walker Kessler. Although he had some difficulties in defense, he made up for it on the other side of the court. In 26 minutes, he scored 17 points, five rebounds, and four assists, adding two steals. Lendeborg was one of the biggest discoveries of the preseason. Warriors selected him in June after he won the NCAA title with the University of Michigan. On his first four preseason games, he averaged 15.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.8 assists. His performances were convincing enough for Kerr to include him in the starting lineup at the beginning of the regular season. That means he won't escape the assignment for long. Golden State and Lakers will meet again on October 21 in Los Angeles, when they begin the new NBA season with a match between them. If Dončić is on the court, Vogel will get another chance to throw Lendeborg into the fire. Slovenian basketball player Luka Dončić received a special recognition during the last training session. At the training, he was awarded the Handle of the Year. Ljubljana native was clearly surprised by the recognition. Teammates, except for one, applauded him. At the Lakers, there is obviously no downtime. And even at the last training session, nothing else happened, when Slovenian basketball star was surprised by a special recognition Handle of the Year, which he won within the official fan selection of the NBA. Luka was not expecting this award 😂 Luka Updates (@LukaUpdates) October 16, 2026 With which move did he impress? Mentioned recognition is part of the NBA ID Fan Favorites selection, in which basketball fans vote for the most attractive moves of the season. It is a move in which a basketball player shows his skill with the ball. And Luka impressed with a move when he sent the ball between the legs of the opposing player in a counterattack. The league revealed the winners of the fan selection on September 1, but the Lakers gave the recognition to the Slovenian national team member personally now. Dončić was clearly surprised and smiled. Players clapped for him and expected a speech from him. But one person did not clap for him. That was his good friend Austin Reaves, who of course joked about the 27-year-old Slovenian star. This is just another confirmation that Dončić impresses fans around the world with his attractive moves. Soon it will really start Los Angeles Lakers are still preparing for the start of the new NBA season. Their last preseason game will be played Saturday night, when they face Denver Nuggets. Their first game of the regular season will be on October 22, when they host Golden State Warriors at home. Move with which Luka Dončić impressed fans Getting flashy on the fastbreak ✨ Luka Dončić’s between-the-legs highlight is your 2025-26 NBA ID Fan Favorites Handle of the Year! NBA (@NBA) September 1, 2026