In the NBA, “accountability” is a clean word for a messy reality. Coaches preach it in training camp. Veterans demand it in film sessions. Fans weaponize it after a bad loss. But once the ball goes up, there’s an unspoken clause that lives above every scheme: if a star is carrying your offense, the line between correction and confrontation gets blurry fast.
That’s the tension Carmelo Anthony and P.J. Tucker circled when they started talking about Luka Dončić’s defense on 7PM in Brooklyn. Anthony, with Tucker next to him, framed it in locker-room language, not analyst-speak, aimed directly at the pressure point in Los Angeles:
“JJ wants to hold the motherf**kers accountable, but he know can’t really hold this motherf**kers accountable like that because he’s giving me 40.”
Melo: “The Lakers, because of their scheme & strategy, you can’t hide Luka anymore.”
PJ: “I’ve been on teams where our whole offensive scheme is going at one dude.”
Melo & PJ get real on the Lakers defensive woes and teams attacking Luka 😳 pic.twitter.com/wzxlMGLVRM
— 7PM in Brooklyn (@7PMinBrooklyn) January 16, 2026
