Just over three weeks ago, a shocking trade in the NBA saw Luka Dončić join the Los Angeles Lakers, leaving the Dallas Mavericks to cope with the aftermath. In a recent game against the Lakers, Dončić excelled, achieving a triple-double, yet he grappled with emotions regarding the trade. Meanwhile, Mavericks fans expressed outrage, mourning the loss of their star, while team officials faced criticism for their handling of the situation. The trade has ignited conspiracy theories and concerns about the franchise’s future.
Just a little over three weeks ago, the NBA witnessed an unprecedented trade that left fans and players alike in disbelief. The reverberations of this shocking move are still felt today. As Luka Dončić prepares to vie for a championship alongside LeBron James in Los Angeles, the Dallas Mavericks find themselves grappling with the fallout of this monumental decision.
In what has been dubbed the most surprising trade in NBA history, the scene remains hard to fathom: one of the league’s brightest stars, abruptly donning a new jersey mid-season. This week, in the highly anticipated clash between the Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers, Dončić showcased his brilliance in a thrilling 107-99 victory, recording a remarkable triple-double with 19 points, 15 rebounds, and 12 assists, all while casting knowing glances at the Mavericks’ bench. Notably absent were interactions with Mavericks’ manager Nico Harrison and former coach Jason Kidd. Observers of Dončić recognize the turmoil he faced internally. For enthusiasts of ‘revenge games,’ this matchup was a spectacle.
“I’m just relieved it’s over,” expressed the visibly relieved point guard just days ahead of his 26th birthday. “It was incredibly strange, those moments made me feel disoriented.” When asked about his feelings regarding the trade, Dončić responded with emotion, stating, “I think it will take time for me to come to terms with this. It’s not ideal. I’m filled with emotions, but each day it gets a little better.”
The Kübler-Ross Cycle in Dallas
As Dončić navigates his new life in California—currently residing in a hotel with his fiancée and their one-year-old daughter—the Mavericks are entering a new chapter. In Dallas, the club and its supporters have found themselves entrenched in the Kübler-Ross cycle of grief for weeks. Initially, there was denial – the disbelief that such an outrageous trade could be real. This was swiftly followed by anger from the fans and bargaining from team officials.
Furious supporters gathered in downtown Dallas to mourn collectively. A memorial plaque at the towering statue of franchise legend Dirk Nowitzki outside the Mavericks arena read, “LOYALTY NEVER FADES.” Fans raised significant funds for billboards demanding the dismissal of Harrison and the sale of the team. During the first home game post-trade, hundreds of fans protested, donning Dončić jerseys, holding signs, and even bringing a coffin.
Ironically, those who booed were ejected from the arena while Harrison and his son-in-law Dumont, who has effectively taken the helm since the club’s acquisition by billionaire Miriam Adelson, attempted a PR campaign to undermine Dončić and distract from their inadequacies. Harrison repeatedly cited culture and conditioning issues, while Dumont, lacking any sports background, made questionable claims regarding work ethic and winning mentality.
Hubris and Arrogance
It’s not just the trade itself that has left basketball fans and analysts in disbelief; it’s the arrogance exhibited by Harrison and Dumont as they attempt to rationalize their decisions. The trade’s absurdity has even spawned wild conspiracy theories, including suggestions that the Adelson family is attempting to alter Texas laws to facilitate a new casino/arena in Dallas, allegedly threatening to relocate the franchise to Las Vegas—an economically dubious proposition.
It appears that Harrison has never been a fan of Dončić, believing the Slovenian’s free-spirited nature clashes with his strict views on fitness and discipline. Since Dončić joined the Mavericks three and a half years ago, the franchise has systematically distanced itself from everyone associated with him, including physiotherapists, PR personnel, assistant coaches, and teammates like Jalen Brunson. According to an ESPN insider, Dončić lamented, “They send away everyone I like.” This pattern now looks less like coincidence and more like a prelude to the eventual rift between Dončić and the Mavericks.
Reportedly, Dumont and Harrison had no intention of offering Dončić the supermax extension he would be eligible for next summer—a deal that would have secured him $345 million over five years. Even if this trade was solely motivated by financial considerations, the manner in which Harrison and Dumont handled the situation will likely haunt the franchise for years to come.
Cutting at Dirk’s Monument
Neither Harrison nor Dumont were present when Dallas finally clinched the NBA title in 2011 after a long 30-year wait, nor were they there for Dončić’s draft in 2018 when he inherited the franchise’s legacy from Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki. Observers watched as a determined Dončić played through injuries last season, logging the most minutes in the league, scoring the highest points, and leading Dallas to the NBA Finals. “I was just as shocked and surprised as everyone else; I really couldn’t believe it,” Nowitzki remarked in a Dallas radio interview.
Dončić commenced his NBA journey in the 2018/19 season following a remarkable European career with Real Madrid, coinciding with Nowitzki’s final season in the league. Although Dallas missed the playoffs that year, it marked the perfect transition from one franchise icon to another. The Mavericks had been fortunate not once but twice: first in 1998, acquiring a little-known German power forward through a legendary draft-day trade, and again in 2018, when they selected Dončić after he fell to them in the draft. Over his six and a half seasons with Dallas, Dončić participated in 85 percent of available regular-season games, scoring 12,089 points—the fifth most in the franchise’s history—and becoming the first scoring champion in the club’s legacy, making the All-NBA First Team five times before turning 26—outpacing Nowitzki’s record in six years.