By Rory Carroll
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -The Los Angeles Lakers have signed five-time NBA All-Star guard Luka Doncic to a three-year, $165 million contract extension, securing the long-term future of one of basketball’s brightest stars, the team announced on Saturday.
“I just signed my extension with the Lakers,” Doncic wrote in a social media post.
“Excited to keep working to bring championships to LA and make Laker Nation proud. Grateful to the Lakers, my teammates and all the fans who’ve shown so much love since day one. This is just the beginning.”
Lakers President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Rob Pelinka called it a “monumental moment” for the franchise.
“Luka Doncic’s future is with the Los Angeles Lakers,” Pelinka said in a statement.
“Luka is one of the game’s most transcendent players, and his on-court dominance and passion is without compare.”
Doncic, 26, was acquired by Los Angeles in a blockbuster trade in February that sent Anthony Davis to the Mavericks in a move that stunned the sports world.
Since joining the Lakers, he has averaged 28.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.6 steals over 28 games to close the regular season, helping lift the Lakers to the third seed in the Western Conference.
The Slovenian guard, who was the third overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, boasts career averages of 28.6 points, 8.6 rebounds and 8.2 assists across seven NBA seasons with the Dallas Mavericks and Lakers.
Doncic, who has been selected five times to the All-NBA first team, led the league in scoring during the 2023-24 campaign with 33.9 points per game and recorded a career-high 73 points in a single contest.
He ranks third all-time in regular season scoring average and has notched 82 career triple-doubles, fourth among active players.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles)
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