"AI does not know sports" - Nick Wright blames AI for fake info on Luka having a 42-inch vertical in the Draft Combine originally appeared on Basketball Network .
Fox Sports' Nick Wright blamed AI for the confusion caused by a claim in the featured article in the latest issue of Men's Health magazine spotlighting Luka Doncic .
The Los Angeles Lakers superstar guard is on the cover of the latest "Men's Health" release, and as such, the issue has a special piece dedicated to him. However, while the story was well-written overall, a part claimed that Luka's vertical jump was recorded at 42 inches during the 2018 Draft Combine, which was outrageous, and Wright was quick to call it out.
"Aside from the fake news in it that Luka's vertical leap is 42 inches at the combine, which is not correct, it's AI slop that the author got wrong. Well, the problem with this is this: Luka didn't go to the combine. So that's the first thing," explained Wright.
In 2018, Doncic played for Real Madrid, and when the Draft Combine took place from May 16-20, 2018, in Chicago, Real Madrid was playing in the EuroLeague Final Four, which happened from May 18-20, 2018. Luka led Real Madrid to a 92-83 win over CSKA Moscow with 16 points in the semis on May 18th and then posted a 15-3-4 stat line in the May 20th title game to lead Real Madrid to an 85-80 victory over Fenerbahce Istanbul.
"For kids out there, if you Google Luka Doncic's vertical, the first result is an AI Overview that says Doncic has a 42-inch vertical at the combine because AI does not know sports. And it was Donte DiVincenzo. I guess they were like white guy with the 'cio' in his name, we're going to use it," added Wright.
According to NBA.com , only two players registered a standing vertical leap of 42 inches during the 2018 NBA Draft combine: current Houston Rockets forward Josh Okogie and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo . AI most probably mistook DiVincenzo for Doncic and gave the author wrong information.
Google launched the AI Overview last year so that its search users would get a quick overview of a searched topic while at the same time getting links to learn more. An article published on Google's website a couple of months ago said that AI Overview is responsible for driving more than 10 percent of the increase in Google usage for such queries that AI Overview shows. While it's a great tool to use for writers, it's not always right, as this incident proves.
"Luka Doncic's vertical leap was officially measured at 42 inches during the 2018 NBA Scouting Combine. He believes that his vertical is now even higher, stating that he thinks it has increased since then. While he hasn't been officially measured this year, he feels his offseason training has improved his athleticism, including his jumping ability," per AI Overview.
The Google search result has since been corrected, and so has been the part about Luka's vertical on the "Men's Health" article. But it may be true that his vertical today is higher than what it was in previous years because he's in better shape and much lighter on his feet now. But yeah, imagine if Doncic did really have a 42-inch vertical. The rest of the league is surely glad that it was fake news.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 29, 2025, where it first appeared.
