Nico Harrison shared L.A.’s initial reaction to a Luka trade after the blockbuster went down.
Liam McKeone | Feb 2, 2025
In this story:
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Dallas Mavericks
The NBA world was blown away on Saturday night as the Los Angeles Lakers traded Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks for Luka Doncic as part of an earth-shattering trade that redefines the championship landscape both now and into the future.
Mavericks GM Nico Harrison spoke to Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News to explain some of the thinking behind the massive transaction. In the process, he revealed the Lakers didn't take him seriously when talks first began.
Harrison said he began having "basketball conversations" with L.A. general manager Rob Pelinka over a month ago. Then he detailed the first exchange the two GMs had about possibly exchanging Doncic and Davis.
"Then all of a sudden we’re like, ‘Would you ever do this?’" Harrison told the Morning News.
‘Nah, you’re joking, right?’
‘Hmm. Interesting. Maybe I would.’
“And then it just built over time over the last three weeks," Harrison said.
A pretty understandable response from Pelinka and the Lakers brass. A player of Doncic's caliber and age simply does not get traded. What's more, it's very rare to see All-NBA talents get swapped for one another, and especially in the middle of the season. This whole situation is varying levels of unprecedented and it sounds like the Lakers reacted to the idea accordingly—with laughable disbelief.
But, it's true. The Mavericks were willing to offer up a first-team All-NBA player, at 25 years old, on a silver platter for Los Angeles.