The Los Angeles Lakers have done plenty of business this offseason. While this has helped in improving their roster massively, they haven’t really added another bona fide superstar to play alongside Luka Doncic. There’s no doubt that right now, they have LeBron James to complement their Slovenian superstar, but the front office might want someone who could match Doncic’s timeline and maximize the Purple & Gold’s chances to win championships over the next decade or so. Or do we need to look at the Lakers’ situation from a different angle?

Although it’s pretty clear that L.A. needs another superstar, it begs the question: Why did they not make a move to sign superstars like Jokic or Giannis, especially after closely monitoring the Greek Freak’s situation in Wisconsin? Well, according to Lakers Insider Anthony Irwin, it’s none other than Luka Doncic himself who might’ve just pushed back his team’s aspirations of landing someone like Nikola Jokic or Giannis Antetokounmpo. Seems a bit weird, right? Yeah, because it is.

Anthony Irwin, while chatting with Jovan Buha, revealed that when he first heard about the Lakers looking for another superstar, such as Giannis or Jokic, he didn’t think that these two guys were leaving their current teams.

He also thought that Doncic’s incredible performance at the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 might’ve prompted Rob Pelinka and the rest of the front office not to pull the trigger just yet, when he said, “Now, the other theory I have in the notion of Luka applying some pressure here. I think Luka obviously had an incredible tournament. In my opinion, the best player in that tournament, from start to finish or from his start to his finish. And I kind of felt like he finished that tournament and said, ‘I’m feeling good,’…..I think it’s altogether possible that another thing that could’ve come of that is Luka finishing that tournament and being like, ‘I feel good. We gotta go for it while I feel this way. LeBron also looks great.'”

Well, there have been several names that have been linked with a move to Southern California; the biggest have been those of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokic. Both former MVPs have been rumored to be on the Lakers’ radar, but despite us being this close to the new season, no solid step has been taken in this direction. This, of course, comes after Milwaukee did everything in its power to hold onto its superstar forward for another season.

On the other hand, Jokic has never really looked likely to move away from the Mile High City. If you add this to the shrewd yet smart moves the Lakers have made this season – all the way from their acquisition of Marcus Smart to landing Deandre Ayton – it makes sense why they’ve decided not to force one of these superstars, especially the Greek Freak, to come join them. However, the most important factor of them all has to be Luka Doncic’s incredible showing at the FIBA EuroBasket.

The 26-year-old guard has had a phenomenal summer with his native Slovenia. Even though Doncic couldn’t guide his nation to a podium finish, it’s safe to say that he was one of, if not the best, player at the FIBA EuroBasket 2025. In fact, it was this string of staggering performances at the tournament that might’ve put pressure on the Lakers to hold their thoughts about signing a superstar and rather trust Luka for the upcoming season. But how well did Doncic actually perform to prompt the management to change their minds?

Luka Doncic had a staggering campaign at the FIBA EuroBasket 2025

There was a lot of talk surrounding Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic as he entered the FIBA EuroBasket 2025, but despite not getting a medal, the 26-year-old managed to shut down his critics through his stunning performances at the competition. The five-time All-NBA guard’s journey started with back-to-back defeats, but despite those early setbacks, he and Slovenia made a massive turnaround, and he did so in some fashion. Doncic put up a triple-double in the third game to register Slovenia’s first win against Belgium.

The point guard scored 26 points along with 10 rebounds and 11 assists, wrapping up a fantastic win for his nation. Since then, Luka Doncic didn’t not look back, putting up highlight performances one after the other. So much so that despite crashing out of the quarter-final stage, Doncic finished as the scoring leader, averaging an insane 34.7 points per game. If that wasn’t enough, he also finished second on the assists chart after dishing out 7.1 assists per game. Not to mention, his incredible rebounding that saw him placed eighth in the rankings with 8.6.

So, this stunning stat line should give you an idea of just how great a tournament Luka Doncic has had this summer. Moreover, it should also help you understand why the Insider thinks that Doncic is a huge reason why the Purple & Gold have decided to push back their plans of signing Giannis Antetokounmpo to maybe the next summer or so. Well, by the looks of it, can you blame them? It seems like Doncic, alongside, of course, King James, should give plenty of hope to the front office for the upcoming season.