The Thunder didn’t just lose—OKC got rolled over at home, and it wasn’t even close. The Lakers walked into town and lit them up, especially Luka Doncic, cruising to a 126-99 win that never felt in doubt. It was the kind of beatdown that makes you forget this team was chasing 70 wins not too long ago.

What made the difference? Depth. Dorian Finney-Smith and Gabe Vincent stepped off the bench like they had something to prove. They gave the Lakers that jolt of energy and kept OKC scrambling. And just when the Thunder thought it couldn’t get worse, LeBron turned it up in the second half, casually dropping 19 points like it was nothing.

But let’s be real—you were probably watching for Luka. After the blowout win, the 5x All-Star spoke to reporters about what sparked the team’s aggressive energy on both ends of the floor. With recent returns from key players like Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura giving the Lakers a much-needed boost, Doncic credited head coach JJ Redick for lighting the fire.

“Just amazing,” Luka said postgame. “Like, we suffering to start, and JJ said, you know, we need to be physical, and we need to go out on this game aggressive. And that’s all with that. So that was our goal. And, you know, we shot pretty good. We got a lot of open looks. So, the game was flowing.”

That physicality paid off. The Lakers were locked in defensively, moved the ball with purpose, and showcased Redick’s fingerprints all over their execution. But even Redick wasn’t ready for one jaw-dropping moment from his star guard.

“JJ Redick said postgame that he yelled once for Luka to make this play off this coverage,” reported Los Angeles Times insider Dan Woike. “Only for Doncic to rabbit-out-of-the-hat it, leading assistant Greg St. Jean to say ‘Oh, he sees it.’”

The play in question? It was one of those “did he really just do that?” moments. The Slovenian barreled into the paint, drawing defenders like a magnet. Then, without even glancing back, he launched a two-handed, behind-the-head pass that hit Vincent perfectly in rhythm on the wing. Vincent didn’t hesitate—he let it fly and nailed the triple, stretching the Lakers’ lead to 64-42.

That dime wasn’t just a highlight—it was a reminder of everything Dallas fans used to cheer for.

Luka Doncic all set to be back at Dallas but in a different jersey this time

Now here’s the full-circle moment—Luka Doncic walking into Dallas, but this time wearing purple and gold. Yeah, it’s weird just typing that out. Wednesday marks his first game back as a Laker, and you better believe the energy in the arena’s gonna be different.

That blockbuster deal? It flipped the script. Luka ended up in L.A., Anthony Davis packed his bags for Dallas, and Utah played middleman in the shake-up.

Dwight Powell, one of Luka’s closest on-court partners, is gearing up for an emotional showdown. He opened up to RG’s Grant Afseth about their bond—one built on shared seasons, international hoops battles, and plenty of memories both inside and outside the lines.

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“We spent a lot of years together and shared a lot of great memories,” Powell said. “We had great times on the court, obviously, and great times off the court as well…”

Let’s not forget what Luka left behind—422 games, nearly 29 points a night, five straight All-Star nods, five All-NBA selections, and a Finals appearance with Kyrie. The man left a legacy.

“He’s a very special player,” Powell added. “He did an amazing job of creating opportunities for everybody around him… it’s fairly easy to play with a guy like that.”

So yeah, when he steps onto that court in a Lakers jersey, expect some noise. A few boos maybe—but a lot more respect. Dallas hasn’t forgotten what he gave them.