Star point guard Luka Doncic clearly thought Dallas would be his forever home until the Mavericks sent him to the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night.
On a Monday episode of FanDuel’s “Run It Back,” analyst Chandler Parsons, a former Dallas Mavericks shooting guard, said Doncic bought a $15M house last week and cried after he was traded to L.A.
“My biggest issue is, professionally, respectfully, how [the Mavericks] handled it,” Parsons said. “Most of these star players have a dynamic and a dialogue with [their front office], with ownership, on what’s gonna happen.”
Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison and Lakers GM Rob Pelinka kept the Doncic trade under wraps for the past month.
In a piece published Monday, ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne and Tim MacMahon reported Harrison and Pelinka started discussing a deal at an Ascension Coffee in Dallas on Jan. 7.
In his Sunday news conference, Harrison said not even Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd knew Doncic was on the trade block.
In the three-team deal — which also included the Utah Jazz — the Lakers sent forward/center Anthony Davis to the Mavericks. Harrison said the 31-year-old increases their title odds. On paper, though, the Lakers won the trade.
Doncic hasn’t played since Christmas Day because of a calf issue, but the 25-year-old has averaged 28.1 points per game, 8.3 rebounds per game and 7.8 assists per game in 22 games.
Davis, meanwhile, has logged 25.7 points per game, 11.9 rebounds per game and 3.4 assists per game in 42 games.
Doncic may want Harrison to look even more foolish when the Lakers host the Mavericks on Feb. 25.
