Lakers stars LeBron James and Luka Dončić put on a show Tuesday night. Los Angeles’ duo put up 30 points apiece as the Lakers won their third straight game with a 111-103 victory over the Pelicans in New Orleans.
Both put incredible highlights on display, none better than a wild three-pointer Dončić drained while he was falling out of bounds behind a screen from James with just two minutes left in the game as the Lakers clung to a six-point lead. Check out the circus shot below that dropped as the shot clock expired:
LUKA, ARE YOU KIDDING???? pic.twitter.com/FROpH9YqpM
— NBA (@NBA) January 7, 2026
NBA fans have seen “Luka magic” on display for years, but the eighth-year superstar guard continues to wow us all each time he’s on the floor. Even James, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, can only smile at the ridiculous shots Dončić somehow gets to drop.
“It’s still fun, especially in crunch [time] like that,” James said postgame via SportsNet. “He does it all the time, so there’s not one shot on the floor that we don’t think he can make no matter if there’s 24 [seconds] on the shot clock or at the end of the buzzer.
“We know he’s Luka magic for a reason.”
"He does it all the time, there's not one shot on the floor we don't think he can make... we know he's Luka Magic for a reason."
— NBA (@NBA) January 7, 2026
LeBron James on Luka Dončić's WILD shot tonight!
The duo combines for 60 as the @Lakers win their third straight 👏 pic.twitter.com/WOP0kn2Vak
It wasn’t just Dončić putting on a show Tuesday, as vintage James was on display in New Orleans. The 41-year-old threw down one of his signature windmill slams after a steal as the Lakers trailed:
LEBRON JAMES WINDMILL JAM 🤯 pic.twitter.com/7mQafYoKVU
— NBA (@NBA) January 7, 2026
Dončić found James with a lob for another jam on a slick baseline cut while multiple defenders attended to Dončić:
Luka Magic finds LBJ! ✨
— NBA (@NBA) January 7, 2026
Luka and LeBron combine for 31 of the Lakers’ 51 first-half points!
Tap to watch: https://t.co/ws3UN4WwZm pic.twitter.com/21CK9wikmi
With 60 points from the pair, the Lakers were able to secure the win despite a 42-point outburst from Pelicans forward Trey Murphy III. Prior to the three-game win streak, the Lakers had lost four of their previous five games, now finding a groove tied for third place in the Western Conference at 23-11.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as LeBron James Describes ‘Luka Magic’ After Wild Three-Pointer From Lakers Star.
