Robert Horry had some blunt comments about Luka Doncic's defense

USA Today

06-06-2025

Robert Horry had some blunt comments about Luka Doncic's defense
There has been plenty of criticism directed at Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic lately, and a good amount of it has centered around his lackluster one-on-one defense.
While he can be an effective team defender at times (he averaged a career-high 1.8 steals a game this season), he has trouble staying in front of an opponent who has the basketball in his hands. Some of his defensive troubles could be attributed to his lack of conditioning, but there is also a feeling that he simply needs to adopt a different mentality on that end of the floor.
Former Laker Robert Horry went on "The Dan Patrick Show" and not only said that the Slovenian needs to improve his defense, but that unless he does, his problems on that end of the floor will negate his greatness on offense (h/t Fadeaway World).
"It's so weird that people talk about his weight, but yet he's still giving people 30 points," Horry said. "I tell people, I don't care about his weight. You need to get him in a gym and teach him how to play defense.
"You know, that's the thing, because you can give someone 40 points, but if you're giving up 35 on the other end, those 40 points don't mean anything.
"Because it's about wanting to. You know, he's never had to because he's always had people behind him to erase his mistakes. You think about now, there was no AD, no center. Nobody erased his mistakes in L.A.
"He getting blown by, you know, they're getting layups. You know, if you watch stretches of games where Luka just stayed in front, because he's a big body, the offensive players are bouncing off him. You just stay in front.
"And I think that is the key. And I think also he needs to want to play defense, because so many times he saves his energy for the offensive end.
"I tell people all the time, if you can move your feet and get past and blow by people, that means you have some fast-twitch muscles. You can move pretty fast. So there's no reason you cannot play better defense on the other. You just got to want to. And I think a lot of times he doesn't want to. He'd rather just point."
Opposing teams have taken to targeting Doncic when he's on defense, especially ever since he came to the Lakers, since the Lakers lack rim protection behind him. This was especially apparent in the first round of the NBA playoffs, when the Minnesota Timberwolves manhandled them in five games.
He did average 28.2 points, 8.1 rebounds and 7.5 assists a game as a member of the Purple and Gold during the regular season. But the team was lacking defensively, not just in the paint but also on the perimeter. Improving that defense seems to be a priority for the franchise this offseason.
While it could acquire better perimeter defenders, everyone will need to adopt a defensive mentality if L.A. is to become a legitimate championship contender. That begins with Doncic and LeBron James, who have the luxury of sharing the burden of facilitating the team's offense and scoring, which frees them up to expend more energy on the defensive end.