Luka Doncic was the center of attention in February, as the 26-year-old former Dallas Mavericks superstar was featured in a blockbuster trade sending him to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis.
As a member of the Lakers, Doncic has shown promise as the franchise’s future, helping Los Angeles reach the 50-win mark last season and earn the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference.
Doncic also enjoyed sweet revenge on the organization that shipped him away midway through the 2024-25 season, as he notched 45 points, grabbed eight rebounds, and dished out six assists on the road against the Mavericks in early April.
Doncic is already off to a blazing start to the new NBA campaign. The ex-No. 3 overall pick is averaging 34.6 points, 9.0 assists, and 8.5 rebounds on a Lakers squad that boasts an impressive 8-4 record.
Nine months after the shocking trade, questions still remain regarding Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison’s foolish decision to cut ties with his future Hall of Fame point guard and acquire a big man who has problems staying healthy.
On Wednesday, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon revealed the real reason why Harrison traded Doncic to the Lakers for Davis.
"Harrison built his case from a business perspective," MacMahon wrote. "Doncic would be eligible to sign a five-year, $345 million supermax contract extension in the summer."
"That deal would be an awful investment, Harrison told Dumont, pointing to Doncic's conditioning concerns, poor off-court habits and recurring calf strains, predicting that his body would break down.”
"Doncic's camp and Harrison had several disagreements regarding the recovery process from the calf strain that sidelined the superstar at the time, which the GM portrayed to Dumont as proof that Doncic was not fully committed to the Mavs.”
“He (Harrison) pitched Dumont on his vision of building the league's best defense around Davis, who Harrison had been close with since Davis was a teen playing on the AAU circuit.”
Essentially, Harrison was sold on the fact that Doncic’s poor shape/ commitment issues and Davis’ elite interior defense/rim protection would make for a brilliant mid-season swap (despite Davis’ injury concerns).
However, the one thing Harrison didn’t account for is the fact that conditioning problems can be corrected, while injury issues are typically out of a player’s control.
In other words, during the summer, Doncic proved he could improve his fitness before the start of his first full season with the Lakers.
On the contrary, there isn’t much Davis could have done to avoid suffering another significant injury on the hardwood (calf strain) and missing an extended period (Davis was frequently injured with the Lakers).
If Harrison had allowed Doncic to take his conditioning to the next level, there’s a good chance the five-time All-Star would still be a Maverick today.
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