The Los Angeles Lakers have been the hottest team in basketball since acquiring Luka Doncic in a blockbuster trade from the Dallas Mavericks. They have won eight straight and are in a heated contest with rival Boston Celtics as of this writing.
The Dallas Mavericks, on the other hand, are heading in the other direction. They have lost four straight, sit in 10th place in the West, and lost Kyrie Irving for the rest of the season due to injury. Anthony Davis also may be done for the season after playing a total of 31 minutes for the Mavs.
Former majority owner (still a minority owner) of the Mavs, Mark Cuban, finally spoke out about the now infamous trade, and he essentially sides with the thought of everyone: The Mavs should have gotten more in return.
“If the Mavs are going to trade Luka, that’s one thing,” Cuban said in an interview with the Dallas ABC affiliate. “Just get a better deal. No disrespect to Anthony Davis, but I still firmly believe if we had gotten four unprotected No. 1s and Anthony Davis and Max Christie, this would be a different conversation.”
Mark Cuban On Luka Doncic Trade: “Get A Better Deal”
Cuban still owns 27.7% of the team, but he is no longer a factor in any of the team’s decision-making. If he was, I doubt this trade would have happened, as he was the main proponent of getting Doncic on draft night in 2018. And if it had, you’d have to think the return would have been much greater.
He was asked this point blank, and he responded, “I’m not going there, it doesn’t matter.”
In exchange for Luka Doncic, Dallas received Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick. The main scrutiny of the trade is the minimal return that Dallas got. It’s actually shocking when we take a look at some recent blockbuster trades.
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Two years ago, the Phoenix Suns traded for Kevin Durant. They had to package Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Jae Crowder, FOUR unprotected future first-round picks, and a pick swap in 2028.
Back in 2019, the Los Angeles Clippers acquired Paul George for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (now an MVP candidate), Danilo Gallinari, two pick swaps, and FIVE first-round picks.
Based on these past trades, the bidding for Luka Doncic probably should have started at four first-rounders. Adding Anthony Davis to the mix could have then removed one or perhaps two firsts. But that would have still left Dallas with 2-3 firsts and Anthony Davis. Instead, the Lakers got away with only sending one future first-round pick.
It really is stunning and a tough pill for Mavs fans and Mark Cuban to swallow.