The Dallas Mavericks’ decision to trade Luka Doncic is one they are going to have to live with.
Luka Doncic was projected to be on the Dallas Mavericks for life. At just 25-years-old, the Mavs have given up on the Slovenian superstar.
Doncic has been traded to the LA Lakers, a move that sent shockwaves through the whole NBA, with Anthony Davis moving in the opposite direction.
Speaking to ESPN, insider Brian Windhorst said the move was a ‘rebuke’ from the Mavericks towards Luka, amid injury and defensive concerns.
Luka Doncic helped the Dallas Mavericks reach the NBA Finals last season, where they were defeated 4-1 in a series with the Boston Celtics.
Speaking to The Hoop Collective, Brian Windhorst says he spotted a sign the Mavericks were displeased with Doncic at the Finals.
He explained this came after he issued some heavy criticism of Doncic’s performance after game three, a 99-106 win for Boston.
Windhorst says that while his words generated angry reactions from Mavericks fans, nobody from the team organization attempted to pull him up on it, a sign he feels suggested they did not strongly disagree.
He said: “I ripped the hell out of game three last year. Well, the reason I was so frustrated at the moment was that he basically torpedoed his team, and I’d seen him do it before on the international stage several times.
“I showed up the next two days, and I got jeered by the fans, said all kinds of crazy bleep to me, chanted my name or whatever. After Luka was great game four, I heard nothing from the Mavericks.
“Nothing from ownership, through the front office to the coach. I was standing in the arena for two days on end.
“I wasn’t dodging anybody. I went to the press conferences. I was in Luka’s press conference. I was standing on the court. Nobody said anything.”
Windhorst has operated around the league long enough to see how teams and players can be sensitive to criticism, especially when they feel strongly about a player.
And in this case, he clearly felt it was missing. While nobody was projecting a Luka Doncic trade months later, Windhorst included, all these little signs are part of a larger puzzle that begins to make sense now we piece it together.
Dallas Mavericks acquire:
- Anthony Davis
- Max Christie
- 2029 first round pick
LA Lakers acquire:
- Luka Doncic
- Maxi Kleber
- Markieff Morris
Utah Jazz acquire:
- Jalen-Hood Schifino
- 2025 second round pick
- 2025 second round pick (via Clippers)
