LeBron Told Luka To ‘Fit The F**k Out’ Before Lakers Debut

Luka Doncic made his debut for the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night and it was as weird to see him in a Lakers jersey alongside LeBron James as everyone imagined when the trade sending him to L.A. was announced nine days ago.

While it took some time for the eyes to adjust, it didn’t take all that long for Doncic, James, and Austin Reaves to get the Lakers offense humming, as they jumped out to a 72-47 halftime lead over the Utah Jazz. Even when accounting for the opponent, it was about as good of a start as the Lakers could’ve hoped for with their new star, as he and James seemed pretty comfortable sharing the floor together.

In the starting lineup intros, Doncic came out last to a roaring ovation from the L.A. crowd, but it was still James that took command of the huddle. In that huddle, he had one final message to Luka — “be your f**king self. Don’t fit in, fit the f**k out.”

If that sounds familiar, it is the exact opposite thing he demanded of Kevin Love almost 10 years ago to the day, as on February 7, 2015, he tweeted his frustration at Love’s performance (5 points on 2-of-8 shooting) in Cleveland with the now legendary “fit out” line.

I have absolutely no doubt that LeBron knew exactly what he was doing here, and, while poetic in a sense, it also feels like an important declaration. A decade ago, the Cavaliers were LeBron’s team and anyone that came into that locker room needed to fit their role around him. Now, at age 40, James seems to understand that adding Doncic is not a move to complement him, and this felt like his way of acknowledging that and telling Luka that they’ll adapt to him as much as he adapts to them.

That’s the only way this partnership works and James understanding that is a big deal. This time around, at age 40, James isn’t going to look to influence his new teammate via subtweets, but is being much more direct with his communication, which bodes well for the Lakers in this new era. I would love Kevin Love’s reaction here, because while it’s the right approach from James now, Love probably wonders where this was a decade ago.