Austin Reaves Drops Shocking Luka Doncic Take After Historic Win
With LeBron James sidelined, the Los Angeles Lakers have turned into the ‘Luka Doncic Show’ to begin the 2025-26 NBA season. While Austin Reaves is still on the court and putting up All-Star-level numbers, Doncic has been busy breaking long-standing Lakers’ records.
In the team’s most recent win against the Minnesota Timberwolves in an early-season playoff rematch, Doncic finished with 49 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists in the 18-point win. With the performance,
Though just a fraction of the way through the year, Doncic is now averaging 46 points per game. When Reaves was asked if his superstar teammate could keep up his scoring numbers after his historic performance, the shooting guard gave a blunt response.
“Yes,” Reaves said when asked if Doncic could average 40 points per game over the entire season and contribute to the team winning. “Yes. He’s so good, it’s weird.”
Doncic also became the first player in Lakers history to score at least 40 points in the first two games of a season. It was also only the
Luka Doncic On His Historic Scoring Start
While the Slovenian did score a game-high 43 points in Los Angeles’ season opener against the Golden State Warriors, he was overshadowed by Stephen Curry, leading his team to the win. However, in the team’s second game of the season against the team that ended their playoff run last year,
Though the 1-1 start isn’t what he had hoped for, Doncic said he was happy he helped lead the team to a victory.
“I wish we won the first game, but obviously it’s a good comeback,” Doncic said postgame. “I think Minnesota is a great team. We had to do a lot to win today. But myself, I feel great. I want to win every game.”
Along with the 49 total, Doncic had 23 points in the first quarter alone, tying a Lakers quarter scoring record with Kobe Bryant and Kyle Kuzma. Regardless, despite a seeming motivation behind the scoring outburst, Doncic said it had nothing to do with the team’s
“Just want to forget about last season,” Doncic said. “I was trying to move on. I don’t really think about that first-round series.”
Just two games into the season, Doncic is off to a historic start. An average of 46 points per game across 82 regular-season games might be a tough mark to hit, but his
Lakers Coach JJ Redick Reveals Thoughts On Game
While Doncic still
Speaking after the game, Redick admitted he wanted Doncic to hit 50 points, which would have been his first time hitting the mark in a Lakers’ uniform. Despite multiple tries, Doncic was fouled and only hit one of his two free throws late in the fourth. He then was subbed out, but not after a solid effort by both him and Redick to reach a half-century in his home debut.
“I’m trying to get the guy 50, and yeah, I’d already given him three chances,” Redick recalled postgame. “I gave a fourth chance. He gets fouled, and then he blows that too
Redick also mentioned he was happy with how the roster as a whole performed against another top team in the West. Along with Reaves’ 25 points,
“I think for the first time in Lakers history, the other team called the first timeout in the third quarter,”
With James still out, Doncic will likely continue to shine in Los Angeles, with Reaves and the rest of the roster filling in the cracks.
Lions Get Bad News on Next Opponent’s Star Player
The Detroit Lions are locked in a tight race for supremacy in the NFC North, and could be facing a big challenge in their coming game against a division rival.
The Lions are in their bye week this weekend, a time they will use to rest and hopefully recover from some of the injuries that have been mounting, especially on the defensive side of the ball. But this week will also give the rival Minnesota Vikings the chance to get their starting quarterback ready for the matchup against the Lions next week.
Lions Expected to Face J.J. McCarthy in Next Week’s Game
As The Athletic’s Alec Lewis reported, McCarthy is in position to return to his starting position next week against the Lions. McCarthy has missed the last five games with a high ankle sprain, but Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell told reporters on Friday that the second-year quarterback is making good progress toward his return.
“He got some work today and he will hopefully get some work throughout the early part of the week, which will lead him into a full week of preparation,” O’Connell said.
O’Connell added that McCarthy would spend the bye week getting back into rhythm and rebuilding a rapport with his wide receivers.
“For J.J., it’s going to be about the commitment that he’s made throughout his rehab of getting back to those concrete fundamentals and techniques that allow his feet and eyes to work together and find completions to any one of our five eligibles, whether it’s a receiver or T.J. (Hockenson) or even Aaron Jones or Jordan (Mason) or Zay (Zavier Scott) out of the backfield,” O’Connell said.
The Vikings struggled with veteran Carson Wentz under center. The ailing veteran completed 15-of-27 passes for 144 yards with one touchdown and one interception in a 37-10 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, playing through some obvious pain.
The Vikings put a lot of faith in McCarthy, allowing veteran Sam Darnold to leave in free agency after he led the team to a 14-3 record last year following a season-ending injury for McCarthy. The second-year quarterback showed some promise in his start to 2025, but the high-ankle injury has raised new concerns about whether he might be too injury-prone.
Lions Could Get Some Help on the Injury Front
While the Lions will have to face McCarthy next week, they will also have some help on the way as their own players recover from injuries. Jimmy Liao of USA Today’s Lions Wire reported that Detroit will have several players returning over the coming weeks, including safeties Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph next week, with cornerback Terrion Arnold and running back Sione Vaki returning the next week.
They will have more returns in the weeks that follow, including cornerback DJ Reed, defensive lineman Marcus Davenport, and linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez.
While the returns will help bolster a Lions defense that has now faced two years of mounting injuries, the team could also look to bring in outside help. Some insiders predict the Lions will seek defensive help at the trade deadline, boosting depth in their secondary or defensive line.
