Every. Single. Day.
Dallas Mavericks v Los Angeles Lakers | Katelyn Mulcahy/GettyImages
Almost 24 hours have passed and the NBA world is still in a state of shock, reeling from the massive overnight blockbuster trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Lakers and Anthony Davis to the Mavericks. There are a million things to unpack from one of the most astonishing trades in the history of the league.
BREAKING: The Dallas Mavericks are trading Luka Doncic, Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a 2029 first-round pick, sources tell ESPN. Three-team deal that includes Utah.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 2, 2025
The basketball fallout is fascinating with the Lakers and the Mavericks, but there are also trickle-down effects all across the NBA. The Nuggets have been in competition with both of these teams in recent years; they’ve played – and eliminated – the Lakers in the playoffs two seasons in a row and the Mavs just took Denver’s crown as West champions.
Now Denver will have to totally reconfigure how to play both of those teams as they’ll have completely new looks, trying to restructure their teams on the fly around two great, but wholly different superstar players.
Nuggets lucky to have stability of a superstar like Nikola Jokic
But in terms of off-court impact, this trade is even more incredible. Doncic has been the face of the Mavericks’ franchise since being drafted. He’s been first-team All-NBA five times, just led the Mavs to the Finals, and he’s still just 25 years old. Mavs fans likely thought they would be rooting for Luka in Dallas for the next decade or so.
This is a stark reminder of the cutthroat business that the NBA can be. Sometimes it’s the player, like in the case of Jimmy Butler. And sometimes it’s the organization, as this Doncic situation appears to be.
For one reason or another, stars don’t stay with one team very long. Being able to draft a generational talent is one thing, being able to hold them through the prime of their career is quite another. It’s a rarity, especially in this generation. The Mavericks thought they had one with Doncic, and now in the blink of an eye, it’s gone.
This also provides yet another reason why Nuggets fans should be grateful for their superstar, Nikola Jokic. Nobody could ask for a more consistently reliable player with less baggage or drama. Jokic has shown up and worked hard since day one, focused on winning basketball. He’s racked up MVP awards and led the Nuggets to a championship. And still, there’s never been a peep of a rumor about any departure from Denver.
It’s a rare marriage that seems to come with almost zero negative discourse. Jokic is beloved, and by all accounts, loves Denver. Say what you want about Calvin Booth and ownership, but they have taken care of the stars on this team and made sure to keep them around.
That includes Jokic first and foremost. So, enjoy and appreciate what you have in the Joker and how steady his Nuggets tenure has been. We can only hope that it will continue and Jokic will end his illustrious career in Denver, but as this trade should remind us, it can all change at any moment in the NBA. Appreciate every single day.