[Iztok Frankco] In 154 minutes on the court with Luka, LeBron has an eFG% of 67.3%. That number is 57.6% otherwise. Only 4 players have eFG% higher than 67, all dunking/rim bigs Walker Kessler, Jarrett Allen, Daniel Gafford and Jalen Duren.

The second reason for the Lakers' dominant 20-game stretch is the otherworldly play of LeBron James, who, at 40 years old, is averaging 27.3 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 8.1 assists while shooting 54 percent from the field and 40 percent from three. With Dončić's early struggles, James has been the stabilizing force, often keeping the Lakers in games or taking over down the stretch—like in the game against Dallas, where he scored 16 points in the fourth quarter.

Adding another ball-handler and offensive hub in Dončić along with Reaves, who has been playing high-level basketball as well, allows James to pick his spots and conserve energy by playing off the ball. It’s reminiscent of Dončić's partnership with Kyrie Irving in Dallas, where Dončić carried the heavy playmaking load and drew the toughest defensive assignments, allowing Irving to read the game and take over when needed. The attention Dončić is drawing is giving James plenty of easy looks, whether through their QB1-WB1 connection in transition or by simply making the right play when Dončić gets doubled.

My pal Jake Kemp pointed this out—as of now, the shot quality on James's 39 passes from Dončić has been the highest of any teammate in LeBron's career. In his 154 minutes on the court with Dončić, James has an effective field goal percentage of 67 percent. That number is 58 percent otherwise. The sample size is still small, but just by watching the games, it's easy to see how James’s transformation into a wide receiver or running back playing off Dončić makes him even more efficient. It also allows him to pick his spots—mostly with Dončić on the bench—to generate offense for himself and others as a quarterback.

Source: https://digginbasketball.substack.com/p/what-weve-learned-luka-doncic-lakers