"I was like yo, 'He knows cars'": Lakers' $16,208,000 starter stunned by LeBron James and Luka Doncic's motor skills in a Porsche

The LA Lakers haven't played an official game yet, but they're clearly taking this season with a different approach.

While J.J. Redick wants everybody communicating and in the best shape in their careers, Luka Doncic has taken a big step forward as a leader, as he showed with his latest gift.

As reported by ESPN insider Dave McMenamin, Doncic organized a team bonding event after practice. He took his teammates to the Porsche Driving Experience, giving all Lakers players a chance to test out three different cars to test out on the tracks.

With that in mind, new Lakers big man Deandre Ayton, who just signed a $16,208,000 contract to join the team, gushed about the present while also being in awe of LeBron James' driving skills:

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“I truly appreciate Luka for that. I’ve never done that before, where the star players really look out for the team like that," Ayton said. "Seeing LeBron in a sports car pushing, I was like, ‘Yo, he knows cars.’”

This might sound like a simple thing, but that's the type of team-bonding plan that could end up having a huge effect on the Lakers. A team that likes each other on and off the court is more likely to play hard and compete for one another.

Luka Doncic put in the work

Notably, that's not the only thing Doncic has done this summer to prove that he's fully committed.

Besides signing a very lucrative contract extension, he also slimmed down and hit the gym hard. That's why LeBron tipped his hat to him in the latest edition of his 'Mind the Game' podcast:

"He just looks obvious a little bit quicker, a little bit more functional," James said. "But I think more importantly, what a lot of people will not see is the recovery now. I think when your body is in top-tier shape and you feel so much better—it's not like Luka's game is gonna change. I think for him personally, what's gonna change is he's gonna see how he wakes up the next day after three, four nights. I'm super, duper proud of him."

At the end of the day, the Lakers will now be Luka Doncic's team. He's the younger superstar, and he's going to get a bigger workload and more responsibility going forward.

James is entering the end of his career, and while he can still play at a high level, the Lakers might only get as far as Doncic can get them know.

Edited by Ernesto Cova