The NBA trade deadline has a reputation for being one of, if not the craziest trade deadline in American professional sports. Just in the last handful of seasons, we’ve seen landmark deals like James Harden to the Los Angeles Clippers, Kevin Durant to the Phoenix Suns, and more.
However, it seems likely that at least for a while, nothing will compare to the 2024-25 trade deadline, which just came to a close last week on Feb. 6. The reason for that?
The Dallas Mavericks traded superstar guard Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis.
There’s a multitude of reasons why this deal was so unprecedented, beginning with Dončić’s pedigree as a player. At just 25 years old, he is already a five time All-NBA first teamer. The only year of his career that he didn’t receive that distinction was his debut season, where he settled instead for the Rookie of the Year award.
Last season, he led the entire NBA in scoring (33.9 points per game) and was the lead man in Dallas’s run to the NBA Finals, a 22-game stretch where he averaged 29-9-8. Prior to the NBA, he was even the MVP of the EuroLeague (Europe’s highest level of pro basketball) as a teenager.
The conclusion? Players of Dončić’s caliber simply do not get traded. Players of Dončić’s caliber instead receive blank checks every few years to make sure they spend their entire careers with the teams that drafted them.
So then what happened here? According to an article from ESPN, the Mavericks had grown concerned with Dončić’s conditioning and dietary regimen, and his lack of defensive production.
“I believe defense wins championships” was the first thing Mavericks General Manager Nico Harrison told ESPN after making this stunning decision. But how valid are these concerns?
Let’s start with the conditioning. It is absolutely true that Dončić doesn’t have the most impressive physique and fitness level in the NBA. For all his greatness, he has never been characterized as a “freak athlete” in the way LeBron James or Giannis Antetokounmpo are. He’s also endured his fair share of injury struggles. Dončić has never played a full season in his NBA career, and hadn’t played this season prior to the trade since Christmas Day when he suffered a calf strain.
But there are other factors to consider here. Though he’s never played a full season before, Dončić has also never played less than 60 games (that will change this year). Though he is not as physically imposing as some of his peers, he has remained one of the most prolific players in the league year over year. It seems shortsighted to cut loose a player like Dončić over concerns that have never significantly hindered him from finding immense success for himself and his team.
Then there’s the defense argument. Undoubtedly, the Mavericks are making a trade that is a massive improvement for them individually on the defensive end of the floor. Dončić has always been somewhat of a net negative as a defender, while the newly acquired Davis is a five time All-Defensive player and three time blocks leader. But in the NBA, defense has always been more of a team issue rather than relying upon individual players.
The league has a history of offensive-minded stars leading the way while the rest of their team carries the defensive load. Look at Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets, who won the finals in 2023. Look at Steph Curry, who has won four championships in the last decade with the Golden State Warriors despite being an undersized and ineffective defender.
And it’s not even as if the Mavericks had a bad defense around Dončić last season. After making trades for players like P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford, the Mavericks had the fifth best defensive rating in the league.
The more you look into it, the more difficult it is to justify this trade from a basketball perspective. The full deal included Dončić and role players Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris to the Lakers, while the Mavericks received Davis, young guard Max Christie and the Lakers’ 2029 first-round draft pick.
Davis is a terrific player in his own right, but he turns 32 next month and has a much more tumultuous injury history than Dončić. Christie has shown promise in his brief career thus far; but to only get one first-round pick for Dončić is inexcusable.
For instance, last offseason, the Brooklyn Nets traded forward Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks. Bridges is a high level defender and impactful role player in the league, but has never been an all-star. The Nets got five first-round picks for him, among other assets.
Everywhere you turn, more questions pop up. Barring an unforeseen run to a championship, it seems likely that Mavericks fans will be rueing the day Feb. 6, 2025 for years to come.
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