An ideal offseason for Lakers fans would have featured a refocused Luka Dončić improving his conditioning after so much was made of it upon his exit from Dallas.
Well, the wait for that may not have been long.
Over the weekend, Luka attended a Real Madrid basketball game, the club he once played for in Spain. And while it was some still images and one video, Luka sure looked thinner!
How much do you want to put into a couple of pictures and videos? Well considering how poorly things went to end the season, probably quite a bit!
And if you’re looking for more reasons to believe, there was already a recent report that Luka was taking his conditioning more seriously this summer, too. This sure seems to be evidence of him doing that.
Now, realistically, is it possible he lost that much weight in the three weeks since the season ended? Almost certainly not. Is the more rational response that this is either a flattering angle or he wasn’t actually out of shape and it looks more the case in these photos? Absolutely?
Do I intend on being rational about this? Not a chance.
A refocused Luka in great physical shape is about as terrifying a proposition for opponents as possible. He has all the motivation in the world to come back with one of the best seasons of his career.
Hopefully, this, then, is the first sign of that type of season coming this fall.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.
