Many fans of the Dallas Mavericks believed Luka Dončić could become one of the best players in franchise history.
Instead, the organization traded the superstar guard to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis and a first-round pick in what has become one of the most shocking trades in NBA history.
Dallas also received Lakers guard Max Christie in the trade while sending Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris to Los Angeles, with the Utah Jazz stepping in to collect salary filler and second-round draft selections.
NBA fans have grown accustomed to the trade deadline being filled with rumors and the occasional notable trade that has been discussed for weeks, but that is not what happened in this situation.
Trading Dončić was seemingly out of the question for the Mavericks since the moment he was drafted in 2018, making the agreement with the Lakers one of the most confusing deals in recent memory.
Dončić is just one year removed from the best season of his career with the Mavericks, averaging 33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 9.8 assists per game, leading Dallas to the NBA Finals.
Although he has struggled to stay on the court this season due to injuries, there was little indication that Dončić could not recreate last year’s postseason magic and make another deep playoff run.
Davis is one of the most disruptive players in the NBA on defense and a former NBA Champion, but Dončić is in the argument for a top three player in the league and was expected to be the face of the Mavericks for the next decade.
The most concerning aspect of this trade is that Mavericks General Manager Nico Harrison approached the Lakers with the trade proposal, meaning Dallas was actively looking to move off of Dončić this season.
An inside look into this trade from The Athletic detailed how the Mavericks approached the Lakers and one other undisclosed team two weeks ago about a potential trade for the Slovenian guard.
Mavericks General Manager Nico Harrison said that, following the trade, the team is “built to win now and in the future” and expects to continue competing at the highest level in the coming years.
“I believe that getting an All-Defensive center and an All-NBA player with a defensive mindset gives us a better chance. We’re built to win now and in the future,” he wrote in a statement to ESPN’s Tim McMahon.
Harrison also noted that the Mavericks had “major concerns” about Dončić due to his “constant conditioning issues” and ongoing injury concerns, according to The Daily Mail.
However, this trade does not alleviate these concerns, as Dallas acquired a player in Davis who also deals with a large number of injuries and consistently misses time during the season.
While Davis managed to play 72 games for Los Angeles last season, that was just the second time in his Lakers career that he played more than 60 games in a single regular season.
Davis is also dealing with an abdominal injury that will likely keep him sidelined for the coming weeks, while Dončić is looking to return to the court before the February 14 NBA All-Star Break.
This trade will also have major ramifications on the Mavericks’ future, as this team has now gotten much older without a path forward and has almost no control over their first-round draft selections.
Dončić was just 25 years old and was expected to help the Mavericks franchise maintain relevance for the next decade, but that relevance is far more unlikely now that the team swapped him in exchange for a 31-year-old big man.
While Dallas does have full possession of its draft picks in 2025 and 2026, the issues come further down the line, with the team not having full control of its first-round draft picks from 2027 to 2031.
The Mavericks’ 2027 first-round draft pick was sent to the Charlotte Hornets with a Top-2 protection in the trade to acquire PJ Washington.
Dallas’s 2028 first-round selection was used to facilitate a trade to acquire Daniel Gafford last season, with the Oklahoma City Thunder being allowed to swap selections with Dallas in that draft.
Dallas also owes the Houston Rockets their 2029 first-round draft pick and has a pick-swap with the San Antonio Spurs in 2030.
This means that the Mavericks will not have any control over their first-round draft picks until at least 2031, raising even more questions about the decision to trade away a 25-year-old superstar.
Dallas also acquired the Lakers’ 2029 first-round pick in this trade, but Los Angeles is now much more likely to be competing for a championship with Dončić leading the way in the future.
Now, Dallas will commit to one or two seasons with the current roster and hope this group has enough juice to reach the highest point in the sport.