EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — The Los Angeles Lakers are preparing for what they anticipate to be an emotional game in Luka Dončić’s first matchup against his former team, the Dallas Mavericks, on tonight in Los Angeles.
And they want to make it clear they have Dončić’s back as he continues to grapple with the fallout of the trade and his new normal.
“I think he’s going to be excited,” said Dorian Finney-Smith, who played with Dončić for almost five years in Dallas before reuniting with him in Los Angeles. “But everybody in the locker room is excited. We got his back.”
Lakers coach JJ Redick, who has said multiple times over the past three weeks that he can relate to the emotions of being traded, though not in the same context of Dončić, expects his superstar to handle the moment well.
“I think he’ll be fine,” Redick said. “Every day that he’s been with us it’s becoming a little more normal. I’ve been there. The first time you play your old team, particularly this close in time duration, it’s going to be weird. But he’ll be OK.”
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Lakers coach JJ Redick on Luka Dončić’s first game vs. Mavericks after trade: ‘It’s going to be weird’
