The Los Angeles Lakers are fully focused on building their future around generational superstar Luka Doncic. After pulling off a blockbuster trade with the Dallas Mavericks to get him ahead of the trade deadline last year, Doncic has taken over for LeBron James as the team's franchise player.

According to Charania, Luka Doncic played a direct role in the acquisition. The report revealed that the All-NBA guard personally reached out to Smart and helped recruit him to Los Angeles. “Lakers All-NBA star Luka Doncic reached out to Smart and made it clear that he wanted to play with the two-way stalwart,” Charania wrote.