By Bernardo Moreno
Recently, we witnessed one of the strangest trades in the world’s most important professional basketball league, the NBA: Luka Dončić went to the Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis. Just last year, Luka Dončić led the Dallas Mavericks to the Finals, posting impressive playoff stats: 28.9 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 8.1 assists. He’s considered one of the top five players in the league and was undoubtedly the Mavericks’ franchise player. So, why make this trade? It’s true that his defense isn’t his strongest suit, it’s true that he’s not in his best physical shape, and it’s true that he seems to lead an easy lifestyle—smoking and drinking. But it’s also true that he’s one of those rare generational talents. Isn’t he?
Anthony “Glass” Davis is a great player and the best defender in the league when he wants to be. He played a key role in the Lakers’ championship win in 2020 alongside LeBron James—the title won during the pandemic in the Disney “bubble” created for the playoffs in Orlando. Now 31 years old, Davis has a long history of injuries. In fact, living up to his nickname, he got injured in his debut with the Mavericks. On the other hand, Luka, at 26, has had an immediate impact on the Lakers’ gameplay, making them one of the top contenders for the league title.
The masterminds behind this operation were Rob Pelinka, the Lakers’ general manager, and Nico Harrison, his counterpart with the Mavericks. The trade seemed straightforward: a swap that benefits both teams. However, there’s no comparison between these two players. Nico Harrison was hired as the Mavericks’ general manager in the summer of 2021. He worked at Nike for about 20 years, eventually becoming vice president of basketball operations, where he collaborated with several basketball stars. He managed to sign standout players like Kyrie Irving, an unparalleled scorer, Daniel Gafford, a power forward, and PJ Washington, players who complement the team well with their defensive skills. That same summer, Jason Kidd was promoted to head coach. It was a fresh and bold project, with a committed owner like Mark Cuban, and they catapulted the Mavericks to the Finals last year. But everything changed when the Adelson family acquired the team.
The Adelson family has amassed their fortune through hotels and casinos in Nevada, particularly in Las Vegas. The NBA has mentioned that if the league expands, Las Vegas—known as “Sin City”—would be a top candidate. The Adelsons have acquired a majority stake in the Mavericks and are establishing a strong presence in Texas. They’re also pressuring state lawmakers to relax gambling laws to allow casino-related businesses.
NBA viewership has declined by 48% since 2012, while other leagues are hitting record audience numbers. Some reasons cited for this decline include: frequent rest days for superstars, an over-reliance on three-point shooting, rules that favor offense over defense, the near-absence of post play, and a lack of physicality. Additionally, the league’s current top five players are not American: Nikola Jokić, Luka Dončić, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Victor Wembanyama. This might explain why American fans don’t feel as connected to them.
Therefore, it seems like a major win for the league that the NBA’s most iconic team, the Lakers, has acquired Luka to pair with LeBron, hoping to reverse the declining viewership trend. On the other hand, the Mavericks avoided having to offer Luka a maximum contract of around $345 million for five years, which he would have been entitled to next season. That’s why the deal was kept under wraps—no one knew of it until it was done. The disappointment in Jason Kidd´s and Luka Dončić´s faces during their respective press conferences after the announcement only confirm this.
