Most NBA trade deadlines tend to be inactive, with only smaller deals occurring. Even in circumstances where stars request big trades, they don’t end up having as seismic of an impact on the league as people would like to believe. A prime example of this is the Ben Simmons/James Harden trade in 2022; while people believed it to be a blockbuster deal at the time, the Nets disbanded in a few short years, and the 76ers still aren’t any closer to winning a championship. However, this year has seen a lot of big trades, with three of them moving major superstars. The deal forefront on everyone’s mind, however? The Luka Doncic/Anthony Davis swap.
This trade is without a doubt the largest, wildest, and most unexpected deal in NBA history. It’s had such a monumental impact that it’s taken over all the headlines in the week leading up to the Super Bowl…and the NBA is always second fiddle to the NFL.
Now that I’ve had quite a few days to process this trade and listened to the rationale, on both sides, I’m going to offer the perspectives of each team, my own perspective, and trade grades. Similar articles will be coming out soon for the De’Aaron Fox/Zach LaVine deal along with the most recent blockbuster: Jimmy Butler to the Warriors.
Even if for a short time, The NBA Blog is back! Let’s jump in:
The Lakers Perspective
The Don donning Los Angeles’ purple and gold is something I never expected to happen…and he didn’t either! Poor Luka just made a significant real estate investment in Dallas days before the trade, buying a $15 million house. While we know this isn’t what Luka wanted, the situation could be a whole lot worse. He’s getting to play with his idol, LeBron James, and on arguably the most prestigious franchise in the NBA.
For the Lakers, this deal was a no-brainer. Both Davis and Doncic have had injury issues, but AD’s have been far more severe. Plus, Luka’s only 25; get him the right set of nutritionists, trainers, and teammates, and those problems can be fixed. His pure talent and scoring prowess is something that can only be matched by a few of the NBA’s elite.
While the Lakers are going to try and win now with Luka and LeBron, this move is clearly a long-term one. Luka is 25 years old, and can be the face of the Lakers franchise for the next 10 years. LeBron is likely retiring in the next year or two, and people wondered what the next steps for the franchise would be; now we know. It’s the Luka show.
Having to only give up Anthony Davis, Max Christie, Jalen Hood-Schifino, and a 2029 first-round pick was an absolute steal. If the Mavericks had shopped Luka around the league (which we’ll get to why they didn’t in a little bit), he could’ve warranted the largest package for a star ever. If Mikal Bridges and Rudy Gobert are worth five first-round picks, imagine how much a prime Doncic is!
The deal got done for the Lakers because Rob Pelinka (Lakers GM) and Nico Harrison (Mavericks GM) are long-time friends. The Mavericks proposed this deal to the Lakers, and it was clear that they wanted Luka gone quickly and quietly. Pelinka had all the leverage in this situation, and he successfully pulled off the heist of the decade.
Mavericks Perspective:
The question is obvious: why did the Mavericks trade Luka? He was their franchise cornerstone and a generational superstar, only the second in Mavericks history (with the first being Dirk Nowitzki). All the non-Dallas decision-makers hated it. Fans are staging protests. Season ticket holders are cancelling their orders and getting refunds.
Why?
It all comes back to Nico Harrison. Harrison used to work for Nike, and was hired as the Mavericks GM because of the connections he had with players. His moves up until this point have been solid too, even when the public has doubted him (such as trading for Kyrie Irving in one of the rare impactful deadline moves). Of course, he’s not perfect; after all, he’s the same guy that let Jalen Brunson walk in free agency and the reason why Stephen Curry signed with Under Armor instead of Nike.
Still, this might’ve been where he crossed the line.
In Harrison’s words, Luka wasn’t a “championship player,” meaning he didn’t think Luka could lead Dallas to the promised land. There were also problems with Luka’s conditioning, and he’d been injured on and off throughout this year. Ultimately, Harrison decided to make a “win-now move” by bringing in AD.
Harrison was well aware of how unpopular this decision would be, however; that’s the reason he got rid of Doncic in the middle of the night as quietly as possible. While the Mavericks could’ve received a better deal if they had shopped Luka around, word would’ve gotten out that he was on the trading block. All the public outrage would’ve come even earlier, and who knows what else teams may have tried to pull. Instead, Harrison kept as quiet as he could about this deal for as long as he could. He made the trade with Pelinka, a close friend of his who he knew he could trust to keep quiet.
My thoughts:
Ok. The first thing that needs to be acknowledged is that the Mavericks aren’t in the finals without Luka Doncic. Regardless of how he carries himself, Luka is extremely consistent with his on-court performance.
One theory that got floated around on The Mismatch (which I agree with) is that Nico Harrison’s perspective is tainted. When he was first starting out in basketball, he spent a ton of time around Kobe Bryant, who was the epitome of a hard worker. Bryant showed up first, was the last one to leave, and put in more work than any other guy in the NBA. That’s Harrison’s perspective of a championship-caliber player.
While there’s no doubt Kobe is everything a GM could possibly want in a star, that doesn’t mean that’s the standard of what it takes to become a first-option on a championship team. Kobe wouldn’t have load managed like Kawhi Leonard in 2019, or been as laid back about basketball as Nikola Jokic was in 2023. Yet, both of them were still the best players on championship teams. To say that Luka–because of his conditioning–isn’t a championship caliber player after just leading you to the NBA Finals is ridiculous.
Future considerations:
The funny thing is that despite this being such a lopsided trade for the Lakers, the Mavericks still field a better roster currently. They have a duo of Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis that can reck havoc on the NBA. They have Klay Thompson, who may not be in his prime but is still a great shooter. They have incredibly young big men in Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively; while this might seem redundant, we have to remember that Anthony Davis does not like playing center. Getting to play next to a true five will allow him to stretch the court and play the way he wants to.
Despite giving away one of the five best players currently in the NBA, the Mavericks are still a very good playoff team (in my mind, a second-round exit). They still have a few more years of relevance and being good; however, none of their players are getting younger. AD is already injury-prone and 31 years old, Kyrie is 32, and Klay is 34. Their window has gotten a lot smaller without Doncic.
Overall Grades:
Lakers: A-
Mavericks: F
If you made it all the way to the bottom, thanks for reading! More trade deadline content will be coming your way soon, so stay tuned!
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