Fortified by acquisitions of various degrees, the lords of the rings find themselves back in the hunt for title No. 5, leaving us wondering how deep LeBron James and Stephen Curry can pull from their respective reservoirs to make it to June — one more time.

The trade for Luka Doncic and immediate connection he made with LeBron James has transformed the Lakers into legitimate title contenders.

Doncic and James played in 23 games together. The Lakers went 15-8 and Doncic and James put up strong numbers. Doncic averaged 27.7 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.3 assists with James, while James averaged 23.7 points, 7.8 rebounds and 6.7 assists with Doncic.