LeBron James will return soon and play alongside Luka Dončić again, who is off to a hot start in 2025-26.
On the surface, this looks like a case of basketball mathematics 101 without the need for a calculator:
Take a generational talent who can transform a team, plus a clever ball-handler and shooter who’s playing at a career-high level, then add an all-time great with multiple skillsets, and that equals … a team worthy of winning big?
The Lakers are hoping that math is mathing in the coming days and beyond when LeBron James finally reports to work, joins Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves and gives the Lakers what they haven’t had the last few years: a secure place among the mix of contenders.
Only if it were that simple, though. The best-case scenario is obvious, of course. But the reality is more complex and laced with potential mines that can derail dreams — and maybe eventually signal the end of James’ run in LA.
The Association crew breaks down the impact LeBron’s return will have on the Lakers.
That represents quite a drastic swing between extreme opposites, and like many situations, the truth will perhaps settle somewhere in the middle. This much is for certain: There’s plenty at stake when James returns from a sciatica issue and makes the Lakers complete for 2025-26.
If the commonly held belief rings true about a team needing three high-level players to prosper in today’s NBA, then count the Lakers in. Assuming James, who turns 41 next month, will reach and remain at last season’s level, then the Lakers will have three potential All-Stars, one of whom is an MVP candidate.
Keep in mind, in 11 games without James — and five without Dončić — the Lakers are currently 8-3 and enjoying the upstairs view in the West.
And yet, how far will the Lakers be from shrinking the gap between themselves and, say, the team they’ll face Thursday, the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder?
Here are the factors that will drop clues and lead to a conclusion about this Lakers season, which essentially starts in earnest once James laces up:
A lean Dončić will lead them. For those wondering whose team this is, the answer is obvious — this is Mark Walter’s team. If you’re not familiar, Walter recently assumed majority ownership from the Buss family in a historical transaction. Always remember the golden rule — he (or she) who has the gold, rules.
But from an on-court standpoint, then yes, the Lakers belong to Dončić. He’s the gold of the purple-and-gold, the player this team will build around here in the present and especially the future, because he’s in his prime and one of the top-five players in the world … and finally in great physical shape.
Dončić already led a team that was arguably lesser than these Lakers to the NBA Finals (Mavericks, 2024). And he was hauling a few extra pounds back then. The results so far from “Lean Luka” (37.1 points per game, 49.1% shooting, 9.4 rebounds per game, 9.1 assists per game) are supporting the early notion that this is the best version of Dončić we’ve seen.
Luka Dončić delivered 35 points and 13 assists in a key win vs. the Spurs.
“I think he’s out here proving something,” said Maxi Kleber, who came to L.A. in the Dončić trade. “It’s just fun to watch him, to see how the joy has returned. Obviously, it was tough to see how the trade went down, but it’s fun to see him smile and have a lot of fun again. Everyone else on the team wants to see him have joy, too, because it helps us.
“You can’t guard him one-on-one. If you do, he’s going to score. That forces teams to double and he has the ability to find open people and make the right decision 99% of the time.”
Reaves is ready for his close-up. From undrafted to underrated to no longer under-the-radar. Reaves is the real deal; everyone knows this by now. There’s a reason the Lakers didn’t include him in the blockbuster deal to get Dončić from the Mavericks last season, and what a smart move, as it turns out, in hindsight.
Reaves is capable of being an NBA lead singer on some nights. He showed as much when he had 92 points in consecutive games last month and took the keys when Dončić and James were missing. His ability to create off the dribble, draw fouls, cross up defenders and shoot with range is all improved.
And he can only get better when James returns, because defenders will be forced to pick their poison. Dončić will draw double teams and perhaps James will get the same respect. Do those defenders leave Reaves open?
Austin Reaves scored 51 points on 12-for-22 from the field in a Lakers’ road win earlier this season.
Also, there’s this: How will Reaves, now fueled by confidence, currently averaging 30.3 ppg and getting 19 shots per game, feel about returning to the third option?
“That guy is going to show up in the big moments,” predicts Lakers coach JJ Reedick.
Will James fit in or fit out? That reference is from James’ famous question posed to Kevin Love when the two were teammates with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Eventually, Love fit in, and the Cavs won a championship. It’s only fair to throw it back to James and how he sees himself with this team.
Dončić and Reaves are on the way up. James, if only because of the gravity of his age and miles on the body, is on the way down. How he adjusts to playing off the ball a majority of games and deferring to Dončić and, at times, Reaves, will explain a lot.
This is a strange question about a superstar who has meshed with stars in the past (Kyrie Irving, Dwyane Wade, Anthony Davis, Stephen Curry at the 2024 Olympics, etc.) and is one of the finest facilitators in NBA history.
It’s more about where James sees himself now, and being teammates with a player (Dončić) who is clearly superior, and about his future with the Lakers, which is unclear right now. Whether the “new” Lakers and an aging James work well will depend on James.
How supportive will the supporting cast be? This is the necessary ingredient in the stew, because any successful team requires solid role players. Even the Thunder, with a pair of All-NBA players last season, needed a Cason Wallace and Alex Caruso (also a valuable piece on the 2020 Laker title team).
It starts with Deandre Ayton, the maligned center and former No. 1 overall pick (drafted two spots ahead of Dončić). Two teams bailed on Ayton, who’s just 27. This is perhaps the crossroad of his career. A solid showing this season can change perceptions and a reputation and maybe the Lakers’ journey ahead; if nothing else, he sets a mean screen, which comes in handy with Dončić.
Also: Jake LaRavia has been a positive addition (37.8% from deep) and could enjoy a breakout season; he’s at career highs in points, rebounds and assists.
The Association crew discusses the impact that Jake LaRavia can bring to the Lakers.
Defense will spell success or downfall. The Lakers are currently a middle-of-the-pack defensive team lacking many true ball stoppers or rim protectors. The one player with a shutdown reputation, Marcus Smart, is 31 and has dealt with injuries the last few seasons, although so far, the former Kia Defensive Player of the Year seems a solid fit.
“The energy he has on defense, he does some things I’ve never seen … his leadership and communication on defense has been everything for us,” said Dončić.
So, who’ll join Smart? Dončić has issues and Reaves is constantly hunted by opposing teams. Then there’s James … when players age, the first to disintegrate is defense, which has been problematic for him at this stage.
Rui Hachimura’s perimeter defense has been an early revelation and, as a bonus, he’s averaging career highs in minutes, points and shooting percentage. Both he and Smart must maintain their defensive levels over an entire season, though, and inspire help.
Wait — what about last season? The Lakers had James, Reaves and Dončić couldn’t escape the first round of the 2025 playoffs, losing to the Minnesota Timberwolves in five games.
Certainly, Dončić had an injury-interrupted season and arrived late from Dallas, yet still, this same three-player core couldn’t elevate the team when it mattered most. And now James is a year older.
Not only that, the West this season is richer and deeper and ruled for the moment by a defending champion that hasn’t hit its stride.
The bar isn’t necessarily championship-or-bust for the Lakers, but they’re on the clock with James. From a title perspective, he could be one-and-done in L.A., all things considered, if the Lakers somehow don’t cash in next June.
Will he make peace with that, or will he devise an exit strategy, either this season or next summer, and ride out whatever’s left of his career someplace else?
Lots will depend on how the Lakers roll once he makes his season debut. It’s only a matter of days now; he has been cleared for contact and will practice with the Lakers’ NBA G-Leaguers first. The table seems set for LeBron, and for his transition into a nucleus that’s ready to have a voice in the West.
In that sense, maybe this is James’ team — he’ll determine the Lakers’ fate one way or another.
* * *
Shaun Powell has covered the NBA since 1985. You can email him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
