Luka Doncic remains on minutes restriction

Following the Lakers’ 108-95 victory in which Doncic had a subpar performance, missing all six of his three-point shots while scoring 19 points, Bryant greeted the budding superstar by saying, “My Man! What’s up brother?” Doncic replied, “I was like, ‘Who is talking Slovenian?’” They shared a laugh, another handshake and a hug. Doncic posed for a photo with Gianna, then for another with Bryant. A month later, Bryant and Gianna were among the nine people who died in a helicopter crash in the hills above Calabasas on Jan. 26, 2020. Doncic now is a member of the Lakers after a trade that redefined the meaning of surprising. And to no one’s surprise, a mural that captures that 2019 meeting of Bryant and Doncic already is complete. -via Los Angeles Times / February 18, 2025

In front of Carrera Cafe on Melrose Avenue between Harper Avenue and North Sweetzer Avenue in Beverly Grove, the mural is the latest in a social media favorite wall-scape across from the well-known Paul Smith pink wall. Kobe’s beanie is Lakers gold and his jacket Lakers purple in the mural, but the close-cropped beard and mustache he sported that night is accurately portrayed. So are the grins Bryant and Doncic wore during their short meeting. The mural was painted by Arutyun Gozukuchikyan, known as ArToon. The Armenian artist’s first mural of Bryant was painted a week after his death, on the side of an exotic car rental company along Ventura Boulevard. Bryant and Gianna, then 13, are smiling and looking skyward. -via Los Angeles Times / February 18, 2025

Had he remained in Dallas, Dončić would have been eligible to sign a five-year, $345 million contract. The estimation from the outside, one that The Athletic confirmed once the trade was completed, was that he wanted to re-up with the organization for the long term in July. Dončić said as much when he arrived for his introduction in Los Angeles. But there was one twist: The Mavericks were never going to offer Dončić that mega-deal, league sources said. And a general manager identifying one star to trade, negotiating with only one GM he knows and trusts and targeting only one player who he’s worked with before and whose character he can vouch for — just as Harrison did with Dončić, Pelinka and Davis — was no accident. -via New York Times / February 18, 2025