While the day-to-day analysis of the Luka Doncic trade has largely subsided, with the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks set to meet in Dallas for the first time since the controversial deal, we’re about to hear a lot more about it again.
On Wednesday, Doncic will return to Dallas, where he played the first six-and-a-half seasons of his NBA career. The reaction he will receive will likely be overwhelmingly positive, something that cannot be said if Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison shows his face before, during, or after the game.
Harrison was roundly criticized for the haul (or lack thereof) he got in return for Doncic, a perennial MVP candidate. In exchange for Doncic, Maxi Kleber, Markieff Morris, and cash, the Mavericks acquired Anthony Davis, Max Christie, a 2029 first-round pick, and cash.
As part of a long article detailing what every other team in the NBA could have given the Mavericks in a Doncic trade back in February, ESPN’s Bobby Marks, who worked as the assistant general manager of the Brooklyn Nets, improved the theoretical deal for Dallas and Harrison.
Instead of just Davis, Christie, and a first-rounder, Marks suggested a return of Davis, Austin Reaves, a pair of first-round picks (2029 and 2031), and a first-round pick swap in 2030, essentially wiping out the Lakers’ remaining draft capital.
With how Reaves has played, particularly in the back half of this season, the deal likely would have looked a lot better for the Mavericks. However, although Davis is one of the very best defenders in the NBA, he is six years older than Doncic and, more importantly, has struggled with injuries throughout his career. In fact, Davis went down with an abdominal injury in his very first game with the Mavericks, which kept him out of action for a month and a half.
So even if Reaves ended up replacing Christie, a fine young player, the Mavericks very well may have had to deal with the injuries of not only Davis, but the season-ending torn ACL of Kyrie Irving, who went down in early March.
At the time of Irving’s injury, NBA insider Tim Bontemps suggested Harrison blow up the team’s roster considering Irving would be out for a considerable chunk, if not all, of the 2o25-26 season, potentially closing the proverbial championship window of the Mavericks.
At 48-30, the Lakers are currently in third place in the Western Conference, seven spots ahead of the Dallas Mavericks, who are 38-41 and 2.5 games ahead of the Phoenix Suns for the final Play-In spot.
