"Luka Doncic doesn't feel like it's his team yet" - NBA insider shuts down Lakers as legit 2025 contenders over one critical factor

After acquiring Luka Doncic, the future looks bright for the LA Lakers. With a 25-year-old star who has already proven himself as one of the best players of his era, the team's window for a championship has been extended. The way NBA insider Brian Windhorst sees things is that the window will really open up starting next year.

After missing over a month of action after exiting the Dallas Mavericks' Christmas Day game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Doncic has played just two games. Although he's still working on getting his legs back under him and is getting himself in game shape, Windhorst thinks it will take some time for Doncic to acclimate in LA.

On Thursday's "First Take," he spoke about the situation and the lack of frontcourt depth for LA, saying that although Doncic is capable of elevating a team like LA that's lacking defensively, he isn't putting any expectations on the Lakers.

"Even before they traded Anthony Davis, this was not a team that defended great in the paint. ... They had the fourth highest percentage for opponents shooting in the paint. So, I'm giving them a free roll this year. Whatever they accomplish I am not putting any expectations on him," Windhorst said.

"Luka has the ability to lift his team up to be more than it can, and so I will watch him do that. I think the second part of this season is really going to be about figuring out how they got to play with Luka, because last night, as I watched them, I could tell Luka really doesn't feel like it's his team yet."

Windhorst said Luka Doncic has been playing through both LeBron James and Austin Reaves; however, he's at his best when leading the dance offensively.

Luka Doncic speaks about the Lakers' postseason chances heading into a much-needed All-Star break for the young star

After going 1-1 against the Utah Jazz over the past two games, the LA Lakers and Luka Doncic are now headed into the All-Star break with a week of rest ahead. Following a tough outing on Wednesday, Doncic spoke with members of the press postgame, where he discussed a wide range of topics.

At one point, while responding to a question about the remainder of the season, Luka Doncic said that he thinks the team can go far. However, he knows he must return to 100% on the court. After missing over a month, he revealed that he felt a bit rusty, citing his five turnovers in LA's 131-119 loss to Utah and his 1-for-5 outing from the free throw line.

"I think we can go very far. Obviously, today I felt a little bit rusty, you know two games in after my injury turnovers, mis, free throws so I gotta do way better," Doncic said. "But now, we're approaching this break, so we gotta rest. For me, I think it's more mental rest than anything else. But still gotta work. So. I'm excited about this break, and I can't wait to go back to play."

As he stated, although spending time with family to mentally reset will be important, he plans to continue his workouts as he works his way back to game shape.

Currently, LA is sitting in fifth in the Western Conference, 2.5 games ahead of the LA Clippers, giving the team a bit of a buffer in the standings while the team irons out the kinks after the acquisition of Luka Doncic.