Luka Dončić acted on Lakers from Mavericks against Anthony Davis in the NBA blockbuster

By Jovan Buhha, Christian Clark, Tony Jones, David Aldridge and Alex Andrejev

Athletics has a living reporting about the 2025 NBA trade period.

The Los Angeles Lakers acquired Luka Dončić as part of a blockbuster late Saturday evening, who sent shock waves through the NBA, from the Dallas Mavericks against Anthony Davis, as the teams announced on Sunday.

The breathtaking step sends Dončić, a five-time NBA All-Star, to one of the top markets in the league to compete alongside LeBron James in the probably decreasing years of the James’ Hall of Fame career. It is the first team as Dallas for which Dončić-a selection will play in the first round 2018-in his seven-year NBA career.

The 25-year-old Dončić was entitled to a contract extension of five years by $ 345 million with the Mavericks this summer. All the characters pointed out that before this abrupt step he stig on the paper on this historical deal with Dallas.

Mavericks players were blind by trade. According to a source, a player believed that Dončić would accompany Dallas on his five-game road trip.

Instead, Dončić, who was often injured this season, appears to Los Angeles. He played in just 22 games and achieved an average of 28.1 points, 8.3 rebounds and 7.8 assists in these competitions, and he has not started a calf underwear since it was received.

For Davis (31 with eight-time all-star Kyrie Irving in Dallas.

The Lakers Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris will also land in the multi-team deal, which includes jazz in Utah, while the Mavs Max Christie and a selection will be acquired in the first round in 2029.

The jazz gets Jalen Hood-Schifino and several picks in the second round, these picks are a 2025 Los Angeles Clippers two-man rider and a 2025-Mavericks-Zweitreiter.

Lakers land Dončić with a view of the succession plan

For weeks there has been speculation about what the next step by the Lakers with the deadline of the deadline would be or not.

League and team sources suggested that the expectations to be allocated, since the Lakers only have overwhelming medium-sized salaries and two picks in the first round, which they appreciated very much.

Nobody saw it coming.

In a seismic step that determines the direction of the franchise for the coming years, the Lakers have acquired the next face of their franchise in Dončić. They are set up as good as possible for the time to James.

I can no longer say what is real and wrong in these apps. Luka really goes to the Lakers or close?

– CJ McCollum (@cjmcCollum) February 2, 2025

The costs were steep: Davis, her best player and the next face of the franchise, an emerging 3-and-D wing in Christie and her pimples of the first round in 2029. The Lakers will defensively take a remarkable step back and do not have as deep as before. You clearly also need a starting center – something for which Davis was clamped before trade.

But the price in Dončić, a talent for generations, which was often compared to James due to its unprecedented mix of evaluation, games and basketball -iq in size. He was already in the conference finale and in the NBA final. James is the type of mentor that can show him how to overcome the championship hump.

The offensive of the Lakers will skyrocket as soon as he is healthy, and when James finally decides for his future in the coming seasons, Dončić can take the coat of the next big laker.

As has been the case with the Lakers in the past, you will always find your next superstar. – Jovan Buhha, Lakers Beat Writer

What this trade means for the MAVS

Only eight months that are from an NBA final appearance are the Mavericks swap their superstar -wachmann, which they aim at in the 2018 draft.

Dončić, a child prodigy in teenage, who won Euroleague MVP at the age of 19, was appointed all-star in his second NBA season. In 2022, Dončić’s playoff heroes helped the Mavericks to surprise the final of the Western Conference.

Last spring, Dončić Dallas brought back to the conference finale together with the Laufmad Irving. This time Dallas got in to the NBA final. Dončić achieved an average of 32.4 points, 9.6 rebounds and 8.2 assists in the five-game series victory of Dallas against the Minnesota Timberwolves. His game -winning shot about Rudy Gobert in game 2 was a crucial moment of the series.

The Mavericks joined championship cars this season. They had won 15 out of 17 games that went against the Timberwolves. Dončić left this game in the first half with a left calf pollution and has not been able to play since then. It was expected that he should return at some point before the all-star break.

Nico Harrison, General Manager of Mavericks, is expected to address the team against the Cleveland Cavaliers before the game on Sunday to explain why Dallas made this trade, said league sources.

Luka Dončić shoots a 3 against Rudy Gobert in 2024 in game 2 of the Western Conference Final.

Last summer, the Mavericks Klay Thompson acquired in one sign and trade. In addition to Irving and Dončić, Thompson signed a three-year contract worth $ 50 million. This trio played together in 20 games before Dončić was injured and then acted.

Dončić, who will be 26 years old this month, is currently entering his main years.

Davis is in his 13th NBA season. He remains one of the most productive large men in the league. He achieves an average of 25.7 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.1 blocks.

Davis expressed the desire to play alongside other centers in Los Angeles. If the Mavericks want to play Davis forward, you can either insert Daniel Gafford or Dereck Lively II next to him.

Davis is under contract in the 2026-27 season. He has a player option in 2027-28 for $ 62.8 million.

The move of Dončić increases the cargo that Irving has to bear offensive. The 32-year-old is in the middle of a strong season, while he has to do with a plump pane. Irving has the decision to make his future this summer. He has a 44 million dollar option for the next season. – Christian Clark, Mavericks Beat Writer

Was that the right step for Utah?

The jazz in the middle of a reconstruction is located in salary assembly mode and, according to the league, will continue to lead to the trading period in the days.

This is Utah’s second trade in the day. You have previously concluded a contract with the clipper and picked up a second round and the salary of Mo Bamba and PJ Tucker. According to the league, jazz will continue from Bamba in the near future in the near future.

The question is why jazz would work to help the Lakers. Utah has Los Angeles’ 2027 first round picks, top 4 protected. This is a trade that should make the Lakers a better team and maybe even a championship team. This can certainly devalue the choice a little. – Tony Jones, Jazz Beat Writer

LA gets a young superstar, but where does the Dallas leave?

How do the Lakers move consistently, decade after decade?

They got Kareem in his heyday. At the beginning of his career they got Kobe. They got Shaq in his heyday. They got Pau petrol in his heyday. They didn’t get James, if not in his heyday. You have … Davis in his heyday.

And now they get Dončiċ, who was five years in a row of the first team of the first team and only led his good but hardly impregnable franchise to the final last year when he enters his heyday. You now have the post-Lebron era ready to go. When Luka Ball-Dominant is looking in the dictionary “Heliocentrical”, and his picture is still a great talent and other great talents will want to play with him.

The part of this trade of the lakers is easy to understand. This season doesn’t matter. They had to prepare for the next decade without LeBron. You only have.

But I try to process this from the perspective of the MAVs. If you accept the nominal value that you still had problems with the conditioning of Dončiċ and had obtained himself because of his long-term future-and did not want to commit him to him this summer in the amount of $ 345. However, I don’t have the time to do it now because they sign it into the Supermax and still have at least 15 to 20 teams that would be aligned with and trying to make a deal for him. It is Luka Dončiċ. He is a superstar. Superstars his age never be available via the trade. But ok. You want to act now.

But if that’s the case … don’t call the Miami heat and ask about Bam Adebayo? Don’t you call the Memphis Grizzlies and ask about Jaren Jackson Jr. and Desmond Bane? Don’t you call the cavaliers and ask about Evan Mabley? You don’t call … the Milwaukee Bucks … and ask about Giannis? Do you only focus on Davis?

I have reported the NBA for 37 years. Almost nothing that happens – deals, free agent signings, coach hirings/shots – rises to the level, as the great Ben Bradlee called her “holy s -t” corten. They only get used to the unexpected.
This is a “Holy S -T” faction.

– David Aldridge (@Davidaldridgedc) February 2, 2025

Davis is still a great player. This season he may be an all-NBA selection of the first team. But he is a 31-year-old great player with injuries, and her remaining co-star in Dallas, Irving, is 31. With a future round.

The Knicks only gave up five First runner … for Mikal Bridges!

What’s going on in the name of Al Bianchi?

According to all reports, Dončiċ had no idea that this was briefly available and had not issued a trade request internally. So it doesn’t matter whether he would have been reorganized with the team that has now acquired him. There is no guarantee that he will also be signed with the Lakers, and LA still pulled the deduction. Because they pull the deduction for Luka Dončiċ! And you will find out the rest later! Other teams with younger superstars would also have deducted the deduction for Luka. He is so good.

You have to ask yourself whether this would have happened if Mark Cuban had still been the main owner of the franchise. Lord knows that Dončiċ and the MAVs have had their problems over the years, and if you have the idea that New Orleans Pelicans with Zion Williamson have passed with his injury, at least they start looking at why Dallas no longer thought, Luka is worth the effort.

But Lord. You are better off. – David Aldridge, NBA columnist

– Marcus Thompson, Fred Katz and Mike Happy have contributed to this report.

(Photo: Tim Heitman / Getty Images)