Doncic played 24 minutes in a blowout win in his debut and 23 minutes Wednesday in a sluggish loss — both against the lowly Jazz. “Yes, he was completely out of shape, and you could see he was gassed early,” Ryen Russillo said on his podcast while speaking with ESPN’s Tim Legler, the analyst for Doncic’s Lakers debut Monday.

Doncic also shut down rumors that have surfaced since the trade, including an unfounded claim from the Mavericks. Per ESPN's Tim McMahon, Dallas had 'major concerns' about his conditioning 'issues' and making a commitment to a supermax contract extension this summer.

With LeBron James on the brink of likely retirement in the near future, the illustrious Lakers found a way to secure another bona fide superstar player they can build around for years. The funniest part is they essentially did it for a comical price. They really got away with it again.