Monday night ranks among the most important events in Los Angeles sports history. Luka Doncic — the Slovenian NBA superstar — made his highly-anticipated debut for the L.A. Lakers, joining LeBron James and ushering in a new era of purple and gold. And in attendance was Los Angeles Rams star wideout Puka Nacua.
Nacua was not around the Rams when they etched themselves in L.A. sports history by winning the Super Bowl at the end of the 2021 season. But he has now seen the L.A. Dodgers win the World Series, made two postseasons as a Ram and now Doncic’s debut. He has been up close to many historic Los Angeles sports moments.
And on Monday night, he got the true superstar treatment. After the Lakers won in Doncic’s debut — their sixth consecutive victory — Nacua got to go back into the tunnels at Crypto.com Arena and meet both Doncic and James, via the Rams and ESPN Los Angeles:
.@AsapPuka 🤝 @luka7doncic pic.twitter.com/iJpieGER1N
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) February 11, 2025
Puka 🤝 LeBron #RamsHouse x #LakeShow pic.twitter.com/ReTED9pTHc
— ESPN Los Angeles (@ESPNLosAngeles) February 11, 2025
Los Angeles sports currently has an abundance of superstar talent and personality. Nacua getting the opportunity to meet with Doncic and James on Monday night could have been a surreal experience, as it shows that the Rams star is in the same conversation of the biggest names in L.A. sports. He is also known to be a huge fan of James, and that admiration is mutual.
In a city that is home to Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Matthew Stafford and countless others, Nacua is firmly nestled into that discussion.
And it may not be long before Luka and LeBron find themselves at a big Rams game at some point in the near future together.
Matthew Stafford comments on Cooper Kupp’s Rams departure
Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp have been the heart and soul of the Rams for the last few years, but that duo is about to be broken up.
Kupp announced that the Rams intend to trade him this offseason, likely marking an end to his successful tenure in L.A.
Stafford’s future is also up in the air as although he plans to play in 2025, his contracts situation needs to be sorted out.
It would be a shock if Stafford is not back with the Rams though, which means he will be on a different team than his best fried Kupp. With that being the case, Stafford spoke to CBS Sports about how difficult it is to lose a close friend and teammate and what Kupp has meant to him and the Rams organization.
