“That Was On Me”: Luka Doncic Accepts Blame on Deandre Ayton’s Lack of Involvement 

Luka Doncic delivered an outstanding performance in his first game of the 2025-26 NBA season. However, it wasn't enough to lift the LA Lakers past the Golden State Warriors, as they lost 119-109 on Tuesday.

Some of the blame fell on Deandre Ayton, who struggled on both ends of the floor in his first official game under JJ Redick's tutelage. He finished with just ten points on seven shots, adding six rebounds and one block.

Per Doncic, however, it was his responsibility to make sure the former No. 1 pick feel comfortable in the offense.

“I think he prefers that pocket pass I haven’t played I don’t think with a center like that," Doncic said (per TalkBasket.net). "I have to do a better job just talking to him like what I want, what he wants and today it was on me and I didn’t give him enough touches."

There will naturally be an adjustment period, but it was still concerning for the Lakers. Ayton has often been criticized for lapses in defensive intensity and offensive focus, and the Lakers need to ensure those issues don't linger throughout the season.

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Luka Doncic assesses the Lakers after first game of the season

The Lakers were close, trailing by just one point at the end of the second half. However, as the Warriors often do, they stretched the lead in the third quarter. While the Lakers made a late run to make things interesting, it simply wasn't enough.

Per Luka Doncic, that should be a point of emphasis going forward, as they had a tendency to get off to slow starts before the second halves last season.

“Honestly, I would say that the third quarter, the start. I think we had this problem last year too, so I think that was most of the problem,” Doncic said.

Doncic was dominant throughout the course of the whole game, and hinted at taking a more aggressive approach on offense this season.

“Just attack the paint and then I think when I attack the paint better things happen for our team,” Doncic added.

The former Real Madrid star finished the game with 43 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds on 12-of-27 from the floor, 2-of-10 from three, and 7-of-10 from the free-throw line, and he'll have to do a lot of heavy lifting with LeBron James set to miss several weeks while he continues to nurse a sciatica injury.