Basketball top star Luka Doncic goes full of optimism into his first NBA play-offs with the Los Angeles Lakers. “I think we have a great team,” said Doncic before the start of the first round series against the Minnesota Timberwolves. “We have guys who are ready to go to war. Everyone stays together. The chemistry is good.” He thinks that the team “certainly has a chance” for winning the championship.
He himself likes “big games”, emphasized the Slovenian, who was troubled by the Dallas Mavericks during the season: “The play-offs are a great time. Everyone plays 100 percent. It’s just fun being out there.” The series against Timberwolves begins in the night from Saturday to Sunday (2:30 a.m./CET) with a home game. “You have many boys who can play, many boys who can guard. So they are very, very interesting,” emphasized Doncic.
Meanwhile, he does not have worried about a direct duel with Center Rudy Gobert, a four -time defensive player of the Year in the NBA. “Since I got into the league, I like to play pick-and-roll,” said the 26-year-old: “I like it when you put a center on me.” His coach even sees a special incentive: “He believes that there is no one all over the world who can protect him,” said JJ Redick. That is why Doncic takes the Matchup with Gobert particularly “seriously”.