Lakers’ LeBron James Dethroned by Luka Doncic in ‘NBA2K’ Ratings Twist
Michael Gallagher covers national trending news across the NFL, NHL, NBA, WNBA, college football and entertainment for Newsweek.
He brings over a decade of writing and editing experience in sports journalism, has won multiple Tennessee Press Association awards, and covered several notable events including an AFC Championship game, a Stanley Cup Final, an NHL All-Star Game, and an NHL Stadium Series.
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Michael Gallagher Contributing Sports Writer
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In his 22 years in the NBA, Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James has accomplished many career firsts.
However, James’ latest historical accomplishment is one he likely never wanted to achieve.
In a long list of prestigious career accolades, which includes 21 All-Star appearances, 13 All-NBA first-team selections, five All-Defensive First-Team selections, four NBA championships, four NBA Finals MVPs, and four league MVPs, James has always been considered the best player on his team.
That can no longer be said heading into next season after the ratings for the 2025-26 season were revealed for the “NBA2K” video game, and James is no longer the highest-rated Laker in the game.
That honor now belongs to $165 million point guard Luka Doncic, who bested James’ 84 rating with his own rating of 95, according to Legion Hoops.
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Doncic is the fourth-highest rated player in the game behind Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (98), Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (98), and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (97).
Conversely, James is tied with Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry, Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, and San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama for the sixth-highest rating.
Though James may no longer be the face of the Lakers, that didn’t stop fans from hitting the comment section on social media to applaud him for his run of dominance.
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Luka Doncic #77 and LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers look on against the LA Clippers at Crypto.com Arena on March 02, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. Luke Hales/Getty Images
“Actually crazy that LeBron has been that good for that long, and is still a 94. His dominance over time has never been seen before and never will be seen again,” one fan wrote.
“That aint even the crazy part. He still a 94 overall at 40 😂,” another fan added.
“For that to happen in his 22nd season is kinda crazy, also he should’ve been a 95,” a third fan declared.
“Only took 23 years & it’s by 1 point 😂,” one user replied.
“Bron never being under 90 ovr explains a lot,” remarked another user.
Though Doncic only played 28 games with the Lakers last season after being acquired from the Dallas Mavericks in February along with Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris in exchange for Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick, that didn’t stop him from quickly establishing himself as the focal point of L.A.’s offense.
The 26-year-old Doncic averaged 28.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 1.6 steals per game — all team highs — and his 7.5 rebounds per game was second-best on the team behind only James (8.2).
Doncic also comminated in the postseason, averaging 30.2 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.8 assists, and 1.0 steals per game in the Lakers’ five-game series against the Minnesota