No matter how you look at it, the Mavs’ process in dealing Luka Dončić makes little sense

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As everyone with a smartphone and just a modest interest in the NBA knows, Luka Dončić is now a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, and Anthony Davis will run the floor alongside Kyrie Irving with the Dallas Mavericks after a blockbuster Saturday night trade.

The trade has drawn worldwide headlines, and fans are flabbergasted at the modest return Dallas got for the 25-year-old Dončić, who is just entering the prime of his career.

Davis, Max Christie and a 2029 first-round pick is all Dallas received in the deal, which has left fans — and pundits — scratching their heads at exactly how that came to be.

Fortunately, courtesy of Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News, we have some insights as to how it all went down, as Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison laid it all out.

“I understand why they would be shocked, initially,” Harrison told the DMN regarding the overall reaction to the stunning deal.

“But I do believe that we positioned ourselves to win now and also win in the future.”

Harrison then got down to the actual conversation between himself and Lakers head honcho Rob Pelinka as they began discussing the parameters of this trade over a month ago.

This is where things take, uh, quite a turn.

“Then all of a sudden we’re like, ‘Would you ever do this?’

‘Nah, you’re joking, right?’

‘Hmm. Interesting. Maybe I would.’”

Added Harrison: “And then it just built over time over the last three weeks.”

The Mavericks and Lakers were thus in heavy dialogue about Dončić for weeks and ended up making a deal.

This raises some crucial questions: Were the Mavericks even discussing Dončić-oriented trades with other teams? Or were the trade communications strictly with the Lakers?

Nico just said Luka gave no indication he wanted out or wouldn’t sign an extension moving forward. He also said the Lakers were they only team he talked to.

He’s saying this directly into a microphone.

— Jason Gallagher (@jga41agher) February 2, 2025

The Athletic’s Sam Amick reported that Dallas approached at least one other team about a Dončić trade, but when dealing a player of Dončić’s magnitude and skill-level,…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/no-matter-how-you-look-at-it-the-mavs-process-in-dealing-luka-doncic-makes-little-sense-201815743.html

Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2025-02-02 20:18:00

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