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Want to put into perspective how bizarre this Luka Dončić trade is? He ended up 161 games shy of passing Shawn Bradley on the Mavericks’ all-time games played leaderboard, played fewer minutes than Sam Perkins and scored fewer points than Michael Finley. 
The Lakers Did It Again
How did they suddenly get a 25-year-old Dončić?
Late Saturday night, the most surprising and possibly biggest trade in NBA history hit us out of nowhere. The Mavericks (26-24) traded Luka Dončić with Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris to the Lakers. The Lakers sent Anthony Davis, Max Christie and an unprotected 2029 first-round pick to the Mavs. They attached two second-round picks to Jalen Hood-Schifino and sent him to the Jazz (11-36). Dončić is no longer eligible for the five-year, $345 million supermax extension.
The most bewildering thing about all of this is Dončić did not request a trade – neither did Davis. LeBron James didn’t demand a big change like this. This wasn’t some Klutch/Rich Paul power broker move at all. It appears to have been a secret between Mavs executive Nico Harrison, Lakers executive Rob Pelinka and the teams’ owners for as long as that secret could be held.
People seem to have a lot of questions about this — because of course! Let me break down what we know by talking to myself in Q&A format:
Why did the Mavs do this? Friend, I don’t know. After the trade, Harrison said this was about fitting the vision and culture of the team:
“There are levels to it, and there are people that fit the culture, and there are people that come in and add to the culture. Those are two distinct things, and I believe the people that are coming in are adding to the culture.”
We can read between the lines on what that means, but Harrison clearly wanted a defensive-minded team. And since then, the internet has inferred plenty about what that must say about Dončić, his conditioning and everything else the perennial MVP candidate might come up short in. Post-Dončić deal, Harrison also added this framing of the Mavericks’ “future” timeline:
“If you pair him [Davis] with Kyrie and the rest of the guys, he fits with our time frame to win now and in the future. The future, to me, is three, four years from now. Ten years from now, I don’t know. They’ll probably bury me and J(ason Kidd) by then. Or we bury ourselves.”
That last sentence might be foreshadowing. 
Is this a proper haul for Dončić? Absolutely not. Yes, Davis is incredible as a star player. But to get a 31-year-old (will be 32 next month) All-NBA guy with just one first-round pick for a 25-year-old perennial MVP candidate is not enough. It’s why I gave the Mavs a low grade when assessing this, because they should have demanded the 2031 first-round pick the Lakers held onto and any available pick swaps.
Is this the best offer the Mavs could get? Well, here’s the tricky part about that. The Mavs didn’t let anybody know Dončić was on the market. Harrison approached Pelinka about this within the last month and convinced Pelinka he wasn’t being pranked. When you have to convince your trade partner this isn’t part of “Impractical Jokers,” you know you’ve made a good offer. Dončić wasn’t totally on the market.
What do you mean he wasn’t on the trade market? I’m serious. The Mavs didn’t want to disrupt this potential move. Harrison has a previous working relationship with Davis from his time working for Nike. He was dead set on bringing in Davis. That’s it.
How are Mavs fans taking this? Well, yesterday, Mavs fans held a mock funeral for the Dončić era near the American Airlines Center. Our own Tyler Batiste snapped some photos of the Victory Park neighborhood funeral, and let us know the fans were chanting, “N-I-C-O! Nico, Nico has to go!”
I checked in with my friend, Shane Torres. He’s a comedian and, more importantly, a diehard Mavs fan. This was our interaction late Saturday night, when the news slapped the internet in the face. He’s been better.
I checked back in with Shane today after the dust settled on the Dončić trade to see if he’s taking it better. I’m sure it’ll be fine in Dallas! Go see Shane perform!
So, the Lakers won this trade? In the long run, yes. In the short term, this roster doesn’t make any sense. Dončić and LeBron together could and should make for an amazing offense when they figure out the balance. Um … but this team already sucked defensively and just removed Davis. And the only option the Lakers have at center is Jaxson Hayes. They still have that 2031 pick and 26-year-old Austin Reaves to move if they want roster upgrades, but this was a long-term play for passing the torch from LeBron to someone who will take it.
Will Dončić leave as a free agent? I don’t think he’s going to pull a 2013 Dwight Howard, but you never know. Although the Lakers couldn’t discuss the trade with Dončić and his agent prior to it happening, the Lakers have to feel good about their history of keeping stars.
What does this mean for LeBron in Los Angeles? We still don’t know how much longer he wants to play in the NBA, as a 22-year veteran. But we do know he isn’t waiving his no-trade clause. Dončić wasn’t the only All-Star/All-NBA guard dealt this weekend, though.
Swipa and Wemby
The Kings sent star to Spurs in three-teamer
On Sunday, the Kings finally decided to move De’Aaron Fox after deciding to start hearing offers last week. They moved him to the Spurs (21-25), as widely expected. It’s a three-team deal that also involves the Bulls (21-29). Here are the details:
- Spurs receive: De’Aaron Fox, Jordan MacLaughlin
- Kings receive: Zach LaVine, Sidy Cissoko, three firsts, three seconds
- Bulls receive: Kevin Huerter, Zach Collins, Tre Jones, 2025 first
If you missed the trade grades I threw down on all aspects of this deal last night, miss them no more! But let’s ask and answer some quick questions about what this trade means for each team.
Is there any reason not to love this deal for the Spurs? There’s always the chance that Fox decides he doesn’t want to be there and finds his way out via free agency in 2026 or before. But as I wrote last week, this is a good pairing with him and Victor Wembanyama.
The Kings are moving De’Aaron Fox to the Spurs in a three-team deal that brings Zach LaVine to Sacramento with a gaggle of draft picks, and Kevin Huerter will head to the Chicago Bulls along with a couple role players.
Trade grades by @talkhoops ⤵️https://t.co/kuQGQdJDr2 pic.twitter.com/ek7No8dmwL
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) February 3, 2025
Did the Kings receive a proper haul for him? Imagine the Bulls from a couple years ago, but you replaced Nikola Vučević with Domantas Sabonis. That’s what you get with the LaVine-DeMar DeRozan reunion. I don’t mind LaVine here. The Kings need a point guard, though. And the 2025 first-round pick from Charlotte is top-14 protected this year before becoming two future second-rounders. The 2027 first is from San Antonio, so it shouldn’t be high. The 2031 first is from Minnesota, and we could see some real value there in six years? Who knows?
Are the Bulls better off with this return than having LaVine? I think so. They got their own top-10 protected pick back, which they sent San Antonio for DeRozan. We long thought LaVine’s contract was untradeable, and they now have three solid role players with zero contracts running past 2026. I’d like to see them re-sign Jones this summer, though.
For NBA trade deadline news, keep a tab open with our live updates!
The Last 24
The trade that stunned the entire sports world
📲 Collective shock! Nobody could believe Dončić got dealt to the Lakers. NBA and NFL players reacted.
🏀 More bad Pelicans news. Dejounte Murray tore his Achilles’ tendon this weekend. He’s gone for a long time.
🤔 Now what? So, what exactly is happening with the Jimmy Butler situation? Where is he going?
📺 Don’t miss this game tonight. Rockets (32-16) at Knicks (32-17), 7:30 p.m. ET on NBA TV or Fubo (try for free). These two teams have been brilliant this season.
📺 Big Bucks test. Bucks (26-21) at Thunder (38-9), 8 p.m. ET on League Pass. OKC has been dominant, but maybe Giannis Antetokounmpo can break that.
Stock Report!
The Lakers were already trending up!
The Lakers’ recent play already had them slotted into this list, and then, they traded for Dončić over the weekend. But who else joins them in the upward trending graphs? Who is heading in the wrong direction right before the deadline? Let’s check the latest NBA Stock Report!
📈 Lakers (28-19): Going into Saturday night, the Lakers had won eight of their last 10 games. Now, we’ll see when Dončić actually plays for them and how it works with LeBron. It remains to be seen how they survive Hayes as a starter, but the Lakers were trending way up.
📉 Hawks (22-27): Remember when we decided to buy into the Hawks? There’s a reason you never trust them. They’ve now lost eight straight, with two coming against Toronto. I should’ve known better.
📈 Knicks (32-17): OG Anunoby injured his foot, and we’re still waiting to find out how serious is it. But outside of that, the Knicks have been trending up big time. They had won five straight games before losing to the Lakers, with big wins over Memphis (33-16), Sacramento (24-24) and Denver (30-19).
📉 Kings (24-24): After the initial high of Sacramento winning 10 of its first 12 games under interim coach Doug Christie, it has now lost four of five. The good news is the Fox trade drama is over. The bad news is he’s not on the team anymore.
📈 Blazers (20-29): Break up the Blazers! They’re on fire! They’ve won seven of their last eight games, including five of them by double digits. Scoot Henderson has been incredible. Deni Avdija has been on fire. And coach Chauncey Billups may have saved his job.
📉 Magic (24-26): Eight of their last nine games have been losses, and the Magic have opened this six-game road trip with three straight losses to Miami, Portland and Utah. They have their two stars back, but it’s not turning into winning as expected.
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(Top photo: Rocky Widner / Getty Images )
