USATSI
Dallas Mavericks GM Nico Harrison stunned the NBA world by trading star player Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis. Harrison told The Dallas Morning News that he texted and left a message for Doncic when the news broke Saturday night, but as of Sunday, they have not spoken directly yet.
“My guess is he probably doesn’t want to talk to me,” Harrison said.
Doncic is not the only one shocked by the decision. The NBA world was up late on Saturday night trying to understand the move.
“I understand why they would be shocked, initially,” Harrison said.”But I do believe that we positioned ourselves to win now and also win in the future. And that’s ultimately the goal and why we’re here. It’s one of those things where it’s my job to make the tough decisions that put our goals first and foremost.”
According to The News, Harrison had been talking to Lakers GM Rob Pelinka for more than a month, and Harrison had the full support from team governor Patrick Dumont weeks ahead of the trade.
Doncic has spent all seven years of his NBA career with the Mavs and at 25 years old, is considered one of the top players in the league. He led the team to the 2024 NBA Finals, and the five-time All-Star is leaving Dallas with the third highest scoring average in NBA history (28.6 ppg).
However, there are a few factors that led to the trade decision. Per multiple reports, the Mavs were concerned with Doncic’s constant conditioning issues. He has only played 22 games this season while dealing with a left calf strain.
The team was also looking to improve defensively, according to Harrison, and first-team All-Defensive player Anthony Davis seemed like the answer.
Of course, the timing was also intentional. This offseason, Doncic was eligible for a five-year, $345 million supermax extension, but he is no longer eligible after the trade.
“We really feel like we got ahead of what was going to be a tumultuous summer, him being eligible for the supermax and also a year away from him being able to opt out of any contract,” Harrison said. “And so we really felt like we got out in front of that. We know teams, they’ve had it out there, teams have been loading up to try to sign him once that comes available.”
