Luka Dončić is the first Lakers scoring champion since Kobe Bryant

LOS ANGELES — Oct. 15, 2026 — Luka Dončić enters his second full season with the Los Angeles Lakers as the reigning NBA scoring champion. He averaged 33.5 points per game in 2025-26, the best mark in the league by 2.4 points, and became the first Laker to win the scoring title since Kobe Bryant in 2006-07, per Basketball-Reference.

It was his second scoring title in three seasons. He won the first with the Dallas Mavericks in 2023-24 at 33.9 points per game, and that history puts him in very small company.

The 2025-26 scoring table

The top five in points per game last season, per Basketball-Reference:

• Luka Dončić, Lakers: 33.5
• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder: 31.1
• Anthony Edwards, Timberwolves: 28.8
• Jaylen Brown, Celtics: 28.7
• Tyrese Maxey, 76ers: 28.3

Dončić also led the league in total points with 2,143 in 64 games, edging Gilgeous-Alexander’s 2,117. Gilgeous-Alexander had won the 2024-25 title at 32.7 points per game, a season in which Dončić played only 50 games split between Dallas and Los Angeles after the February trade.

Scoring titles with two franchises

Going through every NBA scoring champion, only three players have won the title with two different franchises:

• Wilt Chamberlain: the Warriors (five straight titles from 1959-60 through 1963-64) and the 76ers (1965-66), with his 1964-65 title coming in the season he was traded from San Francisco to Philadelphia
• Shaquille O’Neal: the Orlando Magic (1994-95) and the Lakers (1999-00)
• Luka Dončić: the Mavericks (2023-24) and the Lakers (2025-26)

He is also the fifth different player to win a scoring title for the Lakers franchise, after George Mikan in Minneapolis, Jerry West (1969-70), O’Neal (1999-00) and Bryant, who won back-to-back in 2005-06 and 2006-07. His 33.5 is the highest scoring average by a Laker since Bryant’s 35.4 in 2005-06.

How he got there

The volume was enormous. Dončić led the NBA in field-goal attempts per game (22.8), three-pointers made per game (4.0), three-point attempts per game (10.8), free-throw attempts (645 total, 10.1 per game) and usage rate (38.1 percent). He made 10.8 shots a night, tied with Gilgeous-Alexander for the league lead.

The efficiency held up under that load: 47.6 percent from the field, 36.6 percent from three and 78.0 percent at the line in 35.8 minutes. He added 7.7 rebounds, 8.3 assists (third in the league) and 1.6 steals, and finished fourth in MVP voting with a first-team All-NBA spot.

What to watch in 2026-27

No player has won back-to-back scoring titles since Joel Embiid in 2021-22 and 2022-23, and Gilgeous-Alexander, Edwards and Brown all finished within five points a game of Dončić last season. The other number to watch is games played: he reached 64 in 2025-26, and staying on the floor will decide whether he can defend the crown. WhyNBA’s league-leaders and stats pages will track the 2026-27 race from opening night.