NBA fans still have a lot of questions about the Dallas Mavericks trading Luka Doncic.
Dallas stunned everyone by sending its 25-year-old superstar to the Los Angeles Lakers. The Mavericks received Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick for Doncic, Maxi Kleber, and Markieff Morris in a three-team trade involving the Utah Jazz.
Just as stunning as the trade itself was the way it blindsided everyone. Nobody had reported that the Mavericks were looking to move last year’s leading scorer. According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Doncic and Davis were also completely unaware of a deal that “materialized in the shadows.”
Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison held a press conference to discuss the seismic blockbuster. He confirmed not speaking to any team other than the Lakers about dealing Doncic.
Harrison told reporters he had three to four weeks of “intense conversations” with Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka.
“It started out as a coffee,” Harrison said, via Grant Afseth. “It was more of a ‘Hey, would you ever?’ … ‘Uh, I don’t know. Would I?’ … We kept it between us. We had to.”
Harrison added that Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd also didn’t know about those conversations.
“I know the type of players that he likes without actually talking to him,” Harrison said of Kidd, who was sitting next to him at the podium.
Fans will all wonder the same thing in light of Harrison’s admission. Why? It seems like a no-brainer to at least explore all offers and drive up the price if making the controversial decision to trade an All-NBA superstar.
Harrison likely had his heart set on Davis and wanted to keep trade talks concealed. However, his admission will give ammunition to conspiracy theorists who think the league forced their hand.
“I’m sorry they are frustrated,” Harrison said in response to angry fans, via The Athletic’s Christian Clark. “It’s something we believe in as an organization that’s going to make us better. We believe it sets us up to win not only now but in the future. And when we win, I believe the frustration will go away.”
Yet in regards to helping the franchise’s future, Harrison said he’s focused on a tighter timeframe.
“The future to me is three to four years from now,” Harrison said. “The future 10 years from now, I don’t know. They’ll probably bury me and [Kidd] by then. Or we’ll bury ourselves.”
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