LUKA MEETS LEBRON IN A SHOCKING DEAL, WHICH COULD LEAD TO TITLES … OR WOE
The sports world is stunned after Dallas sent Luka Doncic to the Lakers, where LeBron James loses Anthony Davis and gains a shotmaking, playmaking genius who must lose weight and stay healthy
No man or creature or unicorn ever has played better basketball at 40. Then please give LeBron James the most savage teammate in NBA dealmaking history, a crazy and trailblazing move that brings life to the league, grace to a wounded Los Angeles and a shot for the Lakers to make a championship run.
Luka Doncic is his shocking, chunky and moody accomplice, in a trade announced around midnight in the East after James offered 33 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds in a 16-point rout of the Knicks. Doncic is the next sports luminary in southern California, a multiple-future MVP who carried the Dallas Mavericks to last year’s Finals. Imagine his all-time shotmaking and playmaking accompanied by James, who continues to be the best story in the sport by toppling Father Time.
“Wait what?” posted Patrick Mahomes, America’s biggest athlete.
He responded the way the rest of us did.
Those who think James runs the franchise should realize he was unaware of the trade. Or so he says. He claimed to hear about it at dinner in New York, stunned the Mavericks accepted All-Star big man Anthony Davis, who is playing well but remains vulnerable to injuries. The craziness happened anyway. The first move for LeBron is keeping Doncic away from the food line and bartenders, as the Mavericks grew tired of his double chins and chubby midriff. It was stunning to hear why they made the deal, knowing he played only 22 games this season on a strained left calf with a sprained right wrist. They were sick of his act, watching him approach 270 pounds after his weight had dropped in training camp.
He is an astonishing player even when his conditioning is doubted. In the sun, by the beach, Doncic could thrive at 25 when a legend 15 years older will hound him about his shape. The new coach, JJ Redick, also will be on him and remind him that his house burned down in Pacific Palisades. That should haunt Doncic, who hasn’t played since Christmas Day. When he’s atop his game — and the fans aren’t taunting him — only two players ever have scored more in one night than his 73 points last season.
Wilt Chamberlain and Kobe Bryant.
Let’s see how the Lakers handle a sensitive matter involving Doncic’s contract, who is not eligible after the trade for a five-year, $345 million contract. Doubt the magnitude of the exchange? Never have two reigning All-NBA players — Doncic and Davis — been dealt for each other at midseason. The teams will meet Feb. 25 at Crypto.com Arena. Before the game at Madison Square Garden, James grew angry when a CBS Sports reporter suggested he was “frustrated” with Davis’ injuries.
“You a fkn lie!!!” he posted.
Owner Jeanie Buss pushed the button, with basketball boss Rob Pelinka, when the Lakers appeared to have no future when James retires. Instead, they gave him one more chance to contend in the Western Conference against the kids in Oklahoma City. This is exactly what the league needed when commissioner Adam Silver is dealing with issues — he’d like to shrink quarters to 10 minutes, Terry Rozier is being investigated for gambling, and Caitlin Clark blew off a chance to shoot three-pointers with Stephen Curry at the All-Star Game. Now, we’re back to basketball. Maybe Charles Barkley will stop complaining about too many three-point shots and discuss LeBron and Luka.
And why Dallas dumped him, sending Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris to the Lakers in a three-team exchange while Max Christie joins the Mavs. Dallas fans are furious with Harrison and new owner Patrick Dumont — of course, Mark Cuban is in the mixture — in relinquishing a breathtaking attraction. Davis won’t stay healthy and might not be fond of Kyrie Irving. Dirk Nowitzki, who had a Hall of Fame career in Dallas, left a sad emoji.
“I believe that defense wins championships,” Mavs general manager Nico Harrison told ESPN. “I believe getting an All-Defensive center and an All-NBA player with a defensive mindset gives us a better chance. We're built to win now and in the future.”
Turns out the general managers have a firm bond. Pelinka was Bryant’s agent when Harrison was Bryant’s marketing manager at Nike. For the Lakers, Luka becomes hope in a city where the rival Clippers built the magnificent Intuit Dome in Inglewood. Interest returns to the downtown arena from the Dodgers, who remain baseball’s financial monster. Will he be another number on the big wall?
Or will the weight stay on, which isn’t the way life works in Los Angeles?
The league is shocked. Phoenix star Devin Booker said he was told about the trade by a fan in the stands. “They said Luka. I said, ‘Luka Garza?’ ’’ he said. “It’s crazy man. Luka being a guy that everybody claims is untouchable and untradeable. The NBA shows you again. Can’t predict. It’s a business. They’re always having a conversation about you. So don’t think you’re safer than you are.”
Said teammate Kevin Durant, who has moved often in search of more championships: “This has got to be the biggest trade I’ve seen since I’ve been in the league, or since I’ve been watching the sport. This was insane. Insane,” he said. “It’s crazy. Crazy. Damn, would have never thought Luka Doncic would get traded. At his age, midseason, the NBA is a wild place, man. If he can get traded, then anybody is up for grabs.”
At that point, Durant began to wonder about loyalty. He’s the guy who left Oklahoma City for Golden State and then Brooklyn before a trade to the Suns. “Players are held to a different standard of loyalty and commitment to a program, but the organizations don't get held to that same standard from the outside world, whether it's from the media members or fans,” he said. “We all should be held to that same standard. (Now), every other team might get the confidence to say ‘F--- it’ I’ll trade a few of my top players if this isn’t working. I’m still shocked.”
Maybe Tristan Thompson, involved in his share of rumors, put it best. “Luka getting traded from Dallas has to have a deeper story behind it,” he said. “This just doesn’t happen on a random Saturday night.”
It did, as heads swirled everywhere, including the beach bike path where Luka will be seen jogging.
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Jay Mariotti, called “without question the most impacting Chicago sportswriter of the past quarter-century,’’ writes general sports columns for Substack while appearing on some of the 1,678,498 podcasts and shows in production today. He is an accomplished columnist, TV panelist and talk/podcast host. Living in Los Angeles, he gravitated by osmosis to film projects.