Sports
'Everybody had my back.' Lakers forge tighter bond supporting Luka Doncic in Dallas
DALLAS — For any other road game, Luka Doncic would’ve arrived at the arena on the team bus. For this on, he pulled up in an Apocalypse Hellfire, a six-wheeled mini-tank.
See for Doncic, this wasn’t really a road game. It wasn’t really a home game either. It was just a 26-year-old star stuck in this strange in-between world after he was traded from a team and city he loved to the Lakers, his life upended in a single phone call that left no time to empty his garage.
So instead of riding the bus, he drove the tank.
Doncic pulling into Wednesday’s game in Dallas by himself was fitting.
Luka Doncic sits on the bench and fights back tears while watching a video his former team, the Mavericks, played in his honor Wednesday night in Dallas.
(LM Otero / Associated Press)
The anticipation for the moment had been building since the blockbuster trade on Feb. 1, his return to a fan base that has openly mourned and protested his departure with a mixture of sadness, anger and abandonment of the Mavericks. Outside the arena, a bar served shots for $7.77 in honor of No. 77 while a runner took 77 laps around the American Airlines Center to raise money for Doncic’s foundation.
The shirts draped on the seats said Hvala za vse — “Thanks for everything” in Slovenian.
It was going to be all about him.
But something else happened Wednesday as the Lakers won 112-97 to clinch a top-six seed and playoff spot.
Doncic’s moment? It became about the Lakers as a whole, the group crying the same tears, fighting off the same emotions and celebrating with an exhale that can propel them into the playoffs.
That feeling bubbled throughout the night, from the pregame tribute video to the final horn, and it was cemented after Doncic’s final basket, a flat-footed three-foot push shot that might’ve been the easiest two points of his 45.
As he walked to the bench after Dallas called time out to surrender, Rui Hachimura met him with a huge smile. Austin Reaves howled and bumped chests with Doncic. Dorian Finney-Smith and Doncic did their choreographed handshake.
And, finally, LeBron James met him with the biggest hug he could deliver.
“I’ve been in a lot of moments in my career. I’ve played against some former teammates. I’ve played against former teams. I’ve been booed, I’ve been cheered, I’ve been whatever. Everything. I’ve seen it all,” James told The Times. “And one thing you can’t ever undermine is just the emotion behind a human. And, as much emotion that was going on tonight, as much hoopla was going on and how much the game of basketball wrapped around it, the human side kicked in.
“Not only for Luka, but for our ballclub and for me.”
It was no longer a Doncic moment; it was a Lakers moment.
That embrace had been building since the moments just prior to the game when the Mavericks played a two-minute tribute video on the scoreboard before they announced him as a visiting player for the first time.
Doncic sat alone on the bench, looking from the video screen to the towel he used to hide his face. And while he watched, Lakers coaches and players watched Doncic, drawn into nakedly exposed emotions.
“Coach said after the game when he saw Luka crying, he started crying,” Reaves told The Times. “[Assistant coach Greg St. Jean] started crying. And to be honest, I didn’t wanna look at him because I was over there looking up and I was getting chills. So I was like, ‘If I look at this man and I see the emotion, like I’m probably going to get upset.’
“So I think everybody in the locker room had the same feeling.”
James was there for a pregame embrace after Doncic was announced, another moment for him to share with his new teammate.
And then he brought apocalyptic hellfire, scoring 31 points in the first half.
Laker Rui Hachimura hugs teammate Luka Doncic and celebrates his success during an emotional win over his former team, the Mavericks, Wednesday in Dallas.
(LM Otero / Associated Press)
“It’s a beautiful moment,” coach JJ Redick said. “I thought the video was great, but I think just his ability to then go perform…
“Lights turn on. He’s teary-eyed still as we walk out on the court for the tip ball. To have the emotional resolve to then go put on that kind of performance, it’s superhuman.”
In their push for prime playoff position, the Lakers (49-31) have shown great moments of on-court connection, particularly in blowout wins in Denver and Oklahoma City. Those bonds seemed to only tighten Wednesday as they rode the emotional roller coaster with Doncic instead of leaving him to face it alone.
“Everybody had my back, from coaches to players,” Doncic said. “And we’re trying to build something special here and that was really, really, really nice to see.”
He had to have felt it after walking off the court in the fourth quarter, the crowd and his teammates all chanting his name as the Lakers’ huddle bounced with excitement. Redick said he and St. Jean noticed that embrace with James first.
“It can bring you together. It can bring you closer. You never know. NBA is a fickle thing. Greg and I were talking as that moment was happening, both kind of fighting back some emotions. And Greg said to me, ‘This is gonna be awesome for our group to go through this with him, and for him to go through this with them.’
“Does that mean we’re gonna win an NBA championship or get to the conference finals? I don’t know. But it was an awesome moment for everyone.”
“I think it just, it shows in a short period of time, it shows how much that we care about one another,” Reaves said.
It wasn’t just a night for Doncic; it was one for his team days away from beginning a playoff chase for a championship. And it was a night for James and Doncic as they strengthen their partnership heading into their first postseason.
“For him to have the game he had,” James said, “for me to be a part of it, for me to be a part of helping him win the game — ‘cause I know how important that was even more than anything — it was just another step in our journey.”
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Austin Reaves nearing return for Lakers as Luka Doncic remains out indefinitely with hamstring strain: report
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In early April, with just five games remaining in the regular season, the Los Angeles Lakers announced that star guard Luka Doncic would be sidelined at least until the NBA playoffs.
Doncic’s setback was a Grade 2 left hamstring strain, an MRI confirmed. The reigning NBA scoring champion sustained the injury during an April 2 game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Lakers also entered the playoffs without another key member of their backcourt, Austin Reaves.
The shorthanded Lakers upset the Houston Rockets in the opening game of their first-round Western Conference series Saturday. Ahead of Game 2 on Tuesday, the Lakers reportedly received a clearer update on the health of at least one of their injured stars.
Lakers guard Austin Reaves brings the ball up court against the Washington Wizards in Los Angeles on March 30, 2026. (Ryan Sun/AP)
Reaves, who was diagnosed with an oblique strain, appears to be progressing toward a return later in the first-round series if it extends to six or seven games. If the Lakers advance sooner, he could be on track to return for the Western Conference semifinals.
According to ESPN, Reaves recently returned to the practice court for 1-on-1 drills. The 27-year-old will still need to progress to 2-on-3 and then 5-on-5 work before he can be cleared for playoff action, but he appears significantly further along than Doncic, who remains out indefinitely.
Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers controls the ball against the Orlando Magic at the Kia Center on March 21, 2026. (Nathan Ray Seebeck/Imagn Images)
Doncic is unlikely to play in the first round, regardless of the series length. ESPN footage showed him on the practice court on Tuesday, though the six-time All-Star was not doing high-intensity work.
2025-26 NBA PLAYOFF ODDS: SPREADS, LINES FOR FIRST-ROUND SERIES
The Rockets, despite being widely favored in the opening round playoffs series, also contended with key injuries. Kevin Durant missed Game 1 with a knee contusion. He was cleared to play in Game 2 on Tuesday night.
Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. shoots the ball against the Lakers during Game 1 in the NBA playoffs at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, on April 18, 2026. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
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LeBron James scored 19 points, while Luke Kennard led Los Angeles with 27 in Saturday’s win.
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Watching junior right-hander Fabian Bravo of Sun Valley Poly High pitch for the first time, there was something strangely familiar about his windup.
When he turned his back to reveal he was wearing No. 32, everything made sense.
He had to be a fan of Sandy Koufax, the 1960s Hall of Fame left-hander for the Dodgers.
Two friends sitting next to me refused to believe it.
“No way,” one said.
“Kids today have never heard of Sandy Koufax,” another piped in.
Only after Bravo threw a three-hit shutout to beat North Hollywood 3-0 was my belief vindicated.
“I come into the back with my arms and it’s a little bit like a Sandy Koufax kind of thing,” he said. “I wear 32 too. He was the starting pitcher for the Dodgers and was good in the World Series.”
Koufax was perfect-game good on Sept. 9, 1965, against the Chicago Cubs at Dodger Stadium, striking out 14.
Bravo started learning about No. 32 when his parents would bring him to Dodger Stadium as a young boy.
“I always saw No. 32 retired on the wall,” he said. “Once I got to know him, I was able to see who he really was. I felt I could really copy him and get myself deeper into history.”
Bravo is no Koufax in terms of being a power pitcher. He’s 5 feet 10 and 140 pounds. Since last season, when he changed his windup to briefly emulate Koufax’s arms going above his head, he has a 12-3 record. This season he’s 3-1 with a 1.50 ERA.
“I saw his windup and he looked like he was calm and composed and I tried it. I felt more of a rhythm. I was able to calm down and pitch better,” he said.
After Bravo’s arms go up over his head in his windup, he also does a brief hesitation breathing in and out before throwing the ball toward home plate.
“My dad always taught me to breathe in, breathe out before I do anything,” he said.
Nowadays, teenagers seemingly don’t pay much attention to greats of the past, from old ballplayers to Hall of Fame coaches. Ask someone if they know John Wooden, kids today probably don’t. He did win 10 NCAA basketball titles coaching for UCLA. And who was Don Drysdale? Only a Dodger Hall of Fame pitcher alongside Koufax from Van Nuys High.
Bravo is fortunate he’s seen Dodger broadcasts mentioning Koufax at the stadium and on TV, motivating him to learn more, which led to seeing his windup on YouTube.
His older brother also wore No. 32, so no one was getting that uniform number other than a Bravo brother at Poly.
There is another Bravo set to arrive in the fall. Julian Bravo will be a freshman left-handed pitcher and wants No. 32.
“While I’m there he’s going to have to find a new number,” Fabian Bravo said.
Julian might also want to help his big brother gain a few pounds at the dinner table.
“My brother takes food from me,” he said.
As for recognizing Bravo’s Koufax connection, it was No. 32 that provided the clue. How many pitchers in the 1970s were choosing No. 32? A lot. And it’s great to see a 17-year-old in 2026 paying tribute to one of the greatest pitchers ever.
Emulating Koufax is hard, but forgetting him is unforgivable.
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Eli Manning retired in 2019 and missed out in his first year of Hall of Fame eligibility in 2025. He was passed over again earlier this year but still fired back at a fan who claimed one of his contemporaries was the better quarterback.
On Tuesday, a social media user floated a theory about former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. Ryan, who now oversees football operations as the team’s president, last played in an NFL game in 2022. He announced his retirement in 2024, making him eligible for Hall of Fame consideration beginning in 2028.
“Matt Ryan was a better QB than Eli Manning… people just worship rings. Agree or nah,” the post read.
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New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning greets Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan after their game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, on Oct. 22, 2018. (Jason Getz/USA TODAY Sports)
Manning caught wind of the suggestion and weighed in, pointing to the two Super Bowl-winning teams he was part of during his standout run with the New York Giants.
“I will ponder this while I play with my rings…,” Manning wrote in a quote-tweet.
Ryan’s statistical production surpasses Manning’s, at least on paper. He was named NFL MVP in 2016, an honor Manning never earned. Ryan is also the most accomplished player in Falcons history and finished his career with more than 62,000 regular-season passing yards, compared with Manning’s 57,023.
NFC head coach Eli Manning leads a huddle during a practice session before the NFL Pro Bowl at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev., on Feb. 4, 2023. (Michael Owens/Getty Images)
Both quarterbacks were selected to four Pro Bowls, but the key difference lies in championships. Manning won the Super Bowl in 2007 and 2011, while Ryan reached it once but fell short. Manning threw for a single season career-best 4,933 during the run leading up to the second Super Bowl title.
Ryan threw for 284 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions to help the Falcons build a 25-point lead in the championship game — a matchup remembered for the New England Patriots engineering the largest comeback in Super Bowl history.
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan passes the ball against the Buffalo Bills during the second half at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., on Jan. 2, 2022. (Rich Barnes/USA TODAY Sports)
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The Falcons have reached the Super Bowl twice in franchise history, first in 1998, but the team is still chasing its first elusive championship.
The Giants marked their 100th season in 2024, winning four Super Bowls over the franchise’s century-long history.
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