On February 1, 2025, the Dallas Mavericks traded Luka Dončić to the Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis. This trade shook the NBA, with other players like LeBron James, Devin Booker, and even Chiefs’ Quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, reacting to the shocking trade.
Nobody thought for even a second that a young player who’s the face of the team, led his team to the finals, and a five time All-NBA first team would get traded, but then, Mavericks General Manager, Nico Harrison, thought otherwise.
Harrison said he had no idea how much Dončić meant to the Mavericks fan base, which is kind of impossible when as a general manager, you operate players on the team. You know which players are your star talent, which equals more popularity among fans. Insiders inside the NBA revealed that Harrison wasn’t happy with Dončić’s conditioning on and off the court.
Dončić, who occasionally drinks and smokes, did not fit the culture that Harrison wanted for the team. Harrison used to be Kobe Bryant’s Nike representative and was surrounded by that “mamba mentality” that Kobe had. Harrison was concerned that any minute, Dončić’s body would shut down. The Mavericks organization tried repeatedly to get Dončić into shape, even going as far as to make up an injury for him in order for him to get in shape, but ultimately failed, and that was Nico Harrison’s breaking point.
Harrison knew that he had to move on, and he made a secret deal with Lakers vice president and general manager, Rob Pelinka. Pelinka knew he could trust Harrison after knowing each other since 2003, and together they discussed the trade in a little café and made it happen behind the scenes, leaving the rest of the league in the dark about Dončić being available in the market, which is rare for big names. League executives from teams like the San Antonio Spurs and the Brooklyn Nets didn’t even have to offer their top players for Dončić as the Lakers did. Everyone knew Harrison to be a risk taker, and this was one of his biggest.
Harrison believed Anthony Davis was a better fit for the Mavericks’ culture and represents their values that Harrison wanted to achieve with the Mavericks. In a press conference, Harrison has stated he has no regrets trading Dončić and that defense wins championships, referring to Davis being a defensive forward. He also told skeptical fans that once the Mavericks start winning, they’ll change their mind on the trade. After trading Dončić, the Dallas Mavericks went 13-20 through their next 33 games, and ironically, Anthony Davis got injured in his debut game with the Mavericks. Nico Harrison was fired nine months later.
To Mavericks fans, it didn’t make sense to trade for a player who’s 6 years older and who has a long history of injuries, something that Harrison was so vocal about with Dončić. Fans showed up outside of American Airlines Arena, where the Mavericks play, and protested Dončić’s trade. Fans brought poster signs saying “Fire Nico” and even brought caskets to commemorate Dončić’s career in Dallas.
On the Lakers’ side of things, Anthony Davis had no clue he was going to be traded. He had texted Lakers players congratulating them on a win that night against the New York Knicks. He was excited for the next game against the Los Angeles Clippers, but Davis didn’t get a chance to play. Claims were made that Davis was unhappy with things on the Lakers but wasn’t necessarily looking for a trade. Some people claim that Lebron James, a player who has a vocal voice in the Lakers front office, wanted Davis off the team due to growing frustrations between the two. There are also claims that James knew about the trade, though James claimed he didn’t know because he was at dinner and was shocked for two days by the trade.
Ultimately, this was a trade no one saw coming. Questions to ask are, will they be able to recover with former Duke standout Cooper Flagg now leading the way? Will the team be able to bring in pieces to play around him? Will he be able to get farther than Doncic and win a championship? I think the most important question was whether it was fair for Harrison to do a backroom deal with Pelinka instead of Doncic being able to hit the open market.
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