Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic appears to have a little Johnny Manziel in him.
Like the former Texas A&M Aggies star quarterback, Doncic appeared to break out a money gesture with his hands during a play in Sunday's game between the Lakers and the New York Knicks at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
With the Lakers up by 11 points with under five minutes in the third quarter, Doncic lost the ball, which Knicks guard Landry Shamet picked up. The Knicks then went on the attack, with Shamet passing the ball to Mohamed Diawara.
Playing defense, Doncic tried to get a charge from Diawara, who passed the ball to Josh Hart for an easy finish at the rim. Doncic, however, was sent to the floor after a failed attempt to draw an offensive foul from Diawara. Immediately after Hart's bucket, Doncic turned to a referee and seemingly rubbed his fingers as though he was making a money celly.
Did Luka Doncic just signal what I think he signaled with his hands? 😬 pic.twitter.com/FKGgJpj5kd
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) March 8, 2026
Meanwhile, fans have shared their reactions to what Doncic did.
“He does this like every game and never gets fined but if a Clipper says a single curse word they’re suspended 600 games,” said a fan.
“$$ Incentive for playing defense? lol,” another one commented.
“Luka should be the last one complaining about not getting calls,” shared a social media user on X, formerly Twitter.
“I’m sure he’ll get fined 75k just like Rudy last year 🙄,” a comment read.
“It’s a Slovenian sign for good luck,” said a different social media commenter.
In any case, it's a behavior his critics can use against him.
Doncic still must be loving the result of the game, as his 35 points on 11-for-25 shooting did not go to waste, with the Lakers topping the Knicks, 110-97. The former NBA scoring champion added eight rebounds, four assists and two steals in 38 minutes of work for the Lakers, who improved to 39-25.
