After spending the first 2.5 years of his NBA career with Luka Dončić, Jaden Hardy reunited with the Slovenian this offseason when the Washington Wizards and Los Angeles Lakers executed a trade sending Hardy back to the Western Conference. With Quentin Grimes as the lone other former Dallas Mavericks teammate of Dončić’s on the roster — and they were only together for half a season — that gives Hardy the most experience of any Laker playing and being alongside Dončić.
Early on in their second stint
together, Hardy believes Dončić, now 27 years old, has leveled up as a leader, focused on ensuring everyone is communicating and working toward a common goal.
“I mean, obviously, Luka’s always been a great leader ever since I’ve been with him. I feel like he’s just taking it to another step with that,” Hardy told reporters. “Just trying to lead this group, have everybody on the same page and having a tightened connection with everybody. So I feel like that’s good and I feel like Luka, he’s always just himself. When he’s out there, he’s going to tell you things and he’s going to try to make you a better player.”
This season will mark Dončić’s second full campaign with the Lakers and first without LeBron James. It seems entirely plausible James’ departure has thrust larger leadership responsibilities on Dončić (and Austin Reaves) that the superstar point guard is growing into as he becomes increasingly comfortable in Los Angeles.
The Lakers’ roster is built in his image rather than being caught between trying to optimize both him and James simultaneously. They re-signed their high-level secondary creator in Reaves, with whom Dončić shares a strong connection on and off the court. They acquired a defensive-minded, play-finishing center in Walker Kessler, whom Dončić was eager to land. They added a mix of floor-spacers, defenders and tertiary ball-handlers to complement him on both ends.
Now equipped with a sensible roster for Dončić, the Lakers are expecting a tremendous season out of him as he presumably enters his prime years. While the on-court output is most impactful and vital, it also sounds like he’s taking another step forward in how he leads this group, at least according to his longest-tenured teammate.
You can follow Jackson on Twitter at @jackfrank_jjf.
