The Lakers have made Luka Doncic their biggest priority<\/a>, more so than LeBron James. And this offseason, Doncic has shown his relationship with the Lakers is quite strong.<\/p>\n Doncic leveraged his relationship with Deandre Ayton<\/a> to bring him to the Lakers. The two top-three picks in the 2018 NBA Draft have always wanted to play together, and thanks to Doncic, now they will.<\/p>\n But he didn\u2019t even stop there. Doncic also helped recruit Marcus Smart to the Lakers<\/a>. After his buyout from the Wizards, Smart was moved after Doncic called him multiple times<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, there is some concern about his future. Doncic is yet to sign a contract extension with the Lakers<\/a>. But one NBA expert thinks his actions this summer show that there is no reason to panic.<\/p>\n Dave McMenamin, ESPN\u2019s Lakers beat reporter, spoke on NBA Today about Luka Doncic\u2019s future with the team.<\/p>\n Despite Doncic not signing an extension, his efforts to recruit players show that he is, at least for the next few years, locked in with the Lakers.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was ownership by Luka this off-season to stamp down that he wants to be part of the Lakers moving forward, and he wants others to join him.<\/p>\n \u201cSo he makes calls Deandre Ayton, the guy who came into the draft with him, as the number one pick. Now, he\u2019s the center for the Lakers.<\/p>\n \u201cMakes calls to Marcus Smart, needs to fill the point of attack defender spot that Dorian Finney-Smith occupied last year.<\/p>\n \u201cI think as we look forward, we look at that August 2 date when the Lakers can offer an extension to Luka Doncic worth four years $220 million, up to that figure.<\/p>\n \u201cI would say if you\u2019re a Laker fan, you shouldn\u2019t have any worry about Luka coming to some sort of extension or agreement with the Lakers.<\/p>\n \u201cWhich means he won\u2019t just be in line for next season, won\u2019t just be a Laker for the season after that, but I think at minimum we\u2019re talking about a three-year extension.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n LA Lakers can offer $222 million contract extension<\/p>\n In an in-depth piece<\/a> he did about the LA Lakers signing Marcus Smart<\/a>, McMenamin reported that the Lakers can offer Doncic a four-year, $222 million contract extension on August 2nd.<\/p>\n \u201cThe fact that Doncic was so vigilant in his pursuit of Smart is certainly a good sign for how he views his long-term allegiance to the franchise.<\/p>\n \u201cDoncic has two years left on his contract with L.A., including a player option for 2026-27. However, the Lakers will be able to offer the 26-year-old superstar a four-year, $222 million extension as of Aug. 2, according to ESPN\u2019s Bobby Marks.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n![\"Luka](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-2212935452-864x627.jpg\")
Photo by Harry How\/Getty ImagesDave McMenamin says Luka Doncic has shown commitment to LA Lakers<\/p>\n