"Too Slow": Luka Doncic Draws Unexpected Criticism From Lakers Legend After Win Over Spurs

Lakers legend Robert Horry didn't hold back on critiquing one part of Luka Doncic's game during his 35-point, 13-assist night on Wednesday against the Spurs. While Doncic led the Lakers to their fifth straight win after stuffing the stat sheet, Horry wasn't a fan of his pace on offense.

The former Lakers player advised Doncic to pass quickly to his teammates who have rhythm rather than slowing down the game. Horry specifically mentioned Rui Hachimura, who scored 15 points on 5 of 9 shots, including 2 of 3 from deep.

Here's what Horry, now a Spectrum SportsNet analyst, said after the game (via Lakers Daily on X):

"Sometimes he plays too slow .... when sometimes he needs to just go 'cause you saw how Rui was shooting the ball. ... Just go at Rui's guy, kick it to him. ... They gonna double team you, so that's the way to get your guys into the game."

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Doncic took 27 attempts and made only nine shots, including four from 3. He went 1 of 9 from the floor in the third quarter when the Lakers got outscored 37-28 and saw the Spurs take a 12-point lead before LA cut it to six after Smart, Doncic and Hayes made a pair of free throws each.

During that lopsided frame, Hachimura, who had made 4 of 5 shots, had zero attempts. Doncic played all but nine seconds in that quarter and controlled the offense by himself.

Nevertheless, Doncic shared the ball more in the fourth and got Hachimura four shots. Both made key 3s down the stretch at different junctures. Hachimura nailed one, assisted by Doncic, with 5:15 left to cut the Spurs' lead to two.

Luka Doncic hit arguably the biggest shot of the night with 2:31 left to give the Lakers a 113-112 lead. LA never gave up the advantage after that point and won the game 118-116.

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Lakers' Luka Doncic gets honest on the "only good thing" he did vs. Spurs

Luka Doncic didn't hide the flaws in his offensive performance against the Spurs on Wednesday. The Lakers star didn't shoot well for most of the night, while committing four turnovers. However, he was near flawless on the defensive end.

In a game against Defensive Player of the Year Victor Wembanyama, Doncic emerged with five steals and two blocks, which drew plenty of praise all around. Doncic gave an honest reaction to it after the game, saying (via Spectrum SportsNet):

"That's the only good thing I did today."

Luka Doncic is playing a key role on defense as a low man. He's responsible for placing everyone in the ideal positions, which enables the Lakers to execute their defensive schemes.

On Wednesday, he was guarding his opponents and didn't faze out, leading to his best defensive game as a Lakers player.

Edited by Arhaan Raje