Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
The trade of Luka Dončić from the Dallas Mavericks to the Los Angeles Lakers in February raised more than a few eyebrows. The five-time NBA All-Star and 2024 NBA scoring champion is widely regarded as one of the best basketball talents in the world and is still just 25.
While Mavericks GM Nico Harrison believes trading Dončić for a more defensive-minded player in Anthony Davis will improve the team’s immediate and future chances of winning, there are many who would disagree.
On the Court
Despite Harrison’s affirmations that this was the right move for the team, bookmakers disagree. Though sports betting operations remain prohibited in the state, offshore Texas betting alternatives have the Mavericks priced with odds as long as 1000/1 to pull off a miracle and win the NBA Championship this season. Compare that with Dončić’s new team, who are 9/1 fourth favorite, and you can begin to understand the frustration among Mavericks fans.
While Dončić had been out injured for a spell, the Mavericks’ form since the move has been patchy and included a 107 to 99 loss away to the Lakers on February 26th, with Dončić rubbing salt into the wound by scoring 19 points, getting 12 assists, and 15 rebounds.
While Dončić’s ability was never in question, his calf strain saw him sidelined before his trade, and this allowed the Mavericks to play without him. The return of Dante Exum following wrist surgery was a big bonus, and a focus on defense will be key to any future success.
Fans Fury
Though Mavericks officials are claiming the move is best for the club, fans do not agree with protests about the move coming before and during matches. Many fans are calling for Nico Harrison to be fired from his position, and news that season ticket prices are set to be increased has not helped matters.
Announcing that season ticket prices are to increase by 8.61% around a month after trading fan favorite Dončić might not have been the best PR for the Mavericks. Despite many supporters seeing the trade as weakening the side, the price increase is being put down to team investment and fan engagement.
Things might have been different had Dončić made it clear that he wanted to move and became a disruptive influence in the team, but that is far from what happened.
In reality, the news that Dončić was being traded to the Lakers came as big of a shock to him as it was to fans.
In fact, the Slovenian star was so settled that he splashed out $15 million on a new house in Dallas the week before he was traded. Chandler Parsons also made it public that Dončić broke down in tears when he first heard the news.
He had been with the Dallas Mavericks for his entire NBA career, joining from Spanish basketball side Real Madrid in 2018. He was the third overall pick of the 2018 NBA Draft, joining the Atlanta Hawks before being traded to the Mavericks.
In his first season with the Mavericks he averaged 21.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 6 assists per game, and this was enough to secure his Rookie of the Year award. His best season points-wise came with a 33.9 average in the 2023/24 season where he helped the Mavericks to the Championship final where they eventually lost out to the Boston Celtics.
Fans would have found it hard to take anyway, but the fact that he has slotted right in at the Lakers makes it an even more bitter pill to swallow. A 23.8 point, 8.1 rebounds, and 8.1 assists average from his 10 games show his value at a rejuvenated Lakers side who now feel they have what it takes to challenge for this season’s championship.
Cuban Comments
It is not just the fans who are worked up over the trade, with former Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban having his say. The former Shark Tank star was known on TV for trying to get the best deals from budding entrepreneurs, and he feels the Mavericks board should have been doing something similar when working on this trade.
Losing Dončić for Anthony Davis, who is good but is injury prone, Max Christie, and a first-round pick in 2029 is not the kind of deal Cuban thinks the Mavericks should have been aiming for. The minority stakeholder even spoke out against the trade, but an agreement was already in place.
While it’s easy to make these statements from the sideline, Cuban has a point that a better deal would have softened the blow and made fans a bit more understanding.
Had the Mavericks gone on a winning streak, people might have looked at this move as a touch of genius, but poor form and Kyrie Irving’s ACL injury have dampened the mood.
