Now that everyone has had some time to process the Luka-AD trade, do you still feel the same way you did when you first heard it last night? I find myself coming over to the Mavs side of it a bit more. Here’s why:
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This is bad for basketball. It always feels like the Lakers can get whomever they want - damn be the rules - and as good as AD is, the Lakers got Luka dirt cheap and didn’t have to give up anything. That’s not competitive balance - that’s some LA shit.
Mavs being done with Luka is understandable what I don’t get is why they got so little for him, he’s 25 and led a not-particularly-impressive team to the Finals last year, you’d think one of the other 28 NBA teams might have been willing to offer a lot more
I love Luka for the Lakers as the building block for the future. Dallas got older with their top players on the wrong side of 30. LBJ should be able to help Luka with conditioning and Luka will have a Texas sized chip on his shoulder.
Coming over to Mavs side in justifying that it's OK to trade Luka or this specific deal? Logic is fine if you want to deal him, better players than Luca have been traded, but this deal makes no sense solely from the fact they didn't maximize his value. Only speaking to one team is negligent.
If their goal was a defensive dynamo big guy that could score to build a win-now duo w/ Kyrie, I wouldve gone for Giannis 1st, but maybe they did & the Bucks had no interest. Not many other guys fit that mold.
But they’re not going to win now. AD gets hurt all the time, and even if he is healthy, the roster is poorly constructed to accentuate what Kyrie and AD do well. They’re worse than they were before the trade and will be much worse off in the long run. This isn’t complicated.
Davis has missed 3 playoff games out of 63 as a Laker, the Day to Davis stuff is overblown. Playing the 4 more w/ Gafford/Lively should protect him. Kyrie/Christie/Klay/Washington/Davis closing line up is VERY good. Probably need some more reliable perimeter depth, but its a competitive team.
They may be stupid and I think their long term prospects are now much worse.
But who’s a better win now player that they could’ve realistically acquired? AD is a top 10 player right now and has played more games over the last two years than Luka. Probably the best two way player in the game.
Every team in the league would want Luka. If you don’t think they could have gotten a better deal, regardless of “win now” considerations, I don’t know what to tell you. If you actually want to win now, you don’t trade away a top 3 player for poor return.
AD is a top 10 player & winning now was clearly their goal
What other top 10 player that would fit w/ Kyrie would be available. Would that team feel confident re-signing Luka in 18 months when he opts out? I wouldnt have traded Luka at all, but within those parameters it makes sense.
But it’s not “regardless of win now considerations,” that’s the whole point lol. If they want a rebuild, then yes, there are plenty of better draft packages they could’ve got.
But what other top player is both better than AD and would be available. Not Giannis, Tatum, Shai.
Not for $70 mil a year for 5 yrs they wouldn’t…maybe Wizards, Hornets or Raptors…Luka is an old 25 yr old player because he played for Real Madrid since he was 15…he’s no spring chicken
Have to take into consideration what team would feel confident re-signing Doncic in 18 months. I posed Giannis as a better target, but thinking about it, I bet the Bucks feel much more confident in Giannis staying in the city he grew up in.
Giannis is also the only player that came to mind as being a better win now, two way player. Obviously, Giannis would be a better piece than AD, but I can’t see Milwaukee making that trade for the reason you mention. Giannis is most likely to stay.
AD is a DPOY candidate that just put up a 40 pt 20 rebound game…meaning AD plays BOTH sides of the ball…Lebron will definitely miss him…no teams win chips without defense…
i would think the not-shop went with the no-leaks as an attempt to avoid media circus.
i also think AD is quite possibly the best fit they could possibly get for kyrie irving and, when they were able to get a yes, they would just be happy to get it done.
Seems short-sighted for DAL. Maybe I'm not thinking of this the right way...but what happens after this season? The Mavs got SO LITTLE in return. From LA's side...if what we've seen is an "unmotivated" Luka...then the potential for LA to be the spark he needs is worth the risk.
If Luka wasn’t motivated to be more professional with a $345M supermax deal on the table, then the likelihood of him “growing up,” seemed unlikely. He’d still be productive but would the bad conditioning + piss-poor defensive effort + immaturity undermine his true potential?
If you watched you know his defense has been good when tested in games that matter the most. Even statistically he was #1 in guard points given up in isolation, and #2 in steals per game before his calf injury. Also the teams defense was significantly better when he was on the court
The Mavs, on paper, are a threat to win the west this season. They’ve already beaten OKC 3 out of 4 times this season WITHOUT Luka. Now they’ve added more defense and Kyrie is more than capable of being the sole maestro for this team.
This was a gutsy move and I respect it. Luka is going to take this personally. This will be like watching your ex get their shit together for someone else after they went through all their terrible growing pains with you. Dallas decided to be OK with him being great with someone else.
If Luka stays with the Mavs and doesn’t change, he runs the risk of only being this version of himself. Luka should actually see this as a blessing. He now has a chance to lead one of the top franchises in all of sports. Use this as fuel. Become the next great Laker.
Luka has immense talent. If he had committed to improving his physical and emotional health, he could have an MVP and championship already. For people thinking the Lakers can fix him, nope, he has to commit to fixing himself. Haven't seen any signs of that happening.
I give the Mavs credit for understanding no action they could take would motivate him to be more vigilant about his conditioning, and rewarding Luka with a super max don’t feel right.
Wonder if the Sixers see a Joel Embiid similarity…
I feel for Mavs fans, but that org has changed coaches & players to accommodate for Luka, so there must be some internal bitterness. How Lakers can continue on with no interior big fella & their leading rebounder being 40 years old is…something
This is all fine. You can MAYBE convince me they can field a better basketball team without him than with him. Where you lose any argument, though, is taking one of the 3-4 most valuable assets in the sport and not generating any sort of bidding war for him. It's organizational malpractice.
Thanks for this grounded perspective. Mav’s org had to have grounds for this decision— albeit it’s still a WILD one. As a lifelong Laker fan, I certainly hope Luka is the next great Laker. So, what happens to LeBron?..
i would imagine them leaving something on the table - as people complain about - is in no small part due to the desire to complete it quickly before there could be leaks.
I’m not saying you’re wrong, but Dallas could have gotten a better deal if they reached out to other teams. Maybe they didn’t want it to become known, but what they got in return for Luka seems insufficient.
Luka is at worst the 4 th best player in the world. AND he’s only 26. I saw a post on her earlier” if you’re worried about the conditioning of a superstar , trade him for and aging big who’s always injured. “ awful trade for mavs
1) the Mavs built their team around Luka and short of blowing it up, AD fills an odd hole for them that Lively/Gafford occupied. Curious what other moves they have to make now
2) the haul back is laughable. One 1st makes my brain actually hurt
Haven't seen this case put together quite like this. Yeah, you've swayed me a bit as well.
What holds me back from full support is that Luka is easily a top 3 player *with* all of his flaws. He's only 25. He can stay on his BS for the duration of a supermax and will still ball out.
And they didn't try to maximize the asset. Looking at the preposterous hauls teams have gotten for Bridges, KD, **Gobert**... Why the rush to make a trade for 25 cents on the dollar?
But they lost the generational talent that just took them to the Finals. And could have gotten more than a 32 year old with a history of injuries. AD is awesome, but they didn’t get enough.
Was meditating on the idea that competing with Bronny for touches would forge the maturity in Luka we’ve all anticipated. Then I shot Crown and Coke out of my nose laughing and my eyes are burning. I may never recover.
Gutsy yea...but a lot of big ifs. And listening to Kenny Atkinson's press conference, he's talking about continuity and the importance of teams not being too quick to make a move.
if they could get/keep them healthy, having lively+gafford be available to be 5s would keep AD happy and would make their inside defense/rim protection really good.
i think kyrie is happier being no 1 and AD is happier being no 2 so it's a better match, too.
That sounds about right. AD wanted to play at the 4 and not the 5, plus his injury history probably factored in. With the Mavs, he will be a 4 because they have 2 5's.
I agree with your general points but one question… WHY THE LAKERS?!?! Out of all the NBA teams, there are many others that have younger/better (room to grow not better right now), as well as multiple draft picks to offer up. It seems like the Lakers traded nothing to get Luka who’s a gen talent.
Insanely disrespectful to say this about a guy that just dragged a mediocre team to the finals while averaging 30/10/10. It doesn't matter what the Mavs thought would happen in the future, everyone knows the entire league would be begging to send that type of package plus 2 or 3 more picks for luka
I don’t think it’s meant to be that way (disrespectful) just true. KD has everyone thinking defense doesn’t matter. If Luka played even a little defense he would have drug a mediocre team to a championship (see LeBron Cavs 2016)
Well now instead of losing in the finals the Mavs can lose in the second round for the next decade or more and never worry about coming up just short. And hey, at least they don't have the fat white boy, right?????
Not sure where the fat white boy came from but ok! It’s just fundamental basketball. Luka has been a sniper his whole career just imagine if he played just a little defense. I think this will actually be good for him and AD isn’t a scrub. Give it a chance.
Last night: shocked.
After hearing the presser live, that the coach didn't know, coach still hasn't talked to Luka, buzzwords about defense, zero on why Luka doesn't fit anymore, but yes, concerns about his contract structure, I think they didn't want to pay.
Now I'm shocked and angry.
As a Mavs from Dallas I hate to see Luka go and I don't think I'd have the guts to pull it off. But I think it works for us. We should have a top defense, with AD at the 4 he should dominate every 4 in the league since the best big on most teams is the center. No more guarding Joker, Gobert, Wemby
The return was abysmal for Luka. Teams will line up for him now (which mavs didn’t shop him for a better deal), or after he signs the super max. Mavs should have gotten 1 all nba guy, 1 young guy with all star upside, and a ton of picks
Yep, I think you nailed it. The fear of the super-max and Luka's aversion to defense and "being in professional shape" factored into the trade. Dallas can be dangerous with the ball in Kyrie's hands and AD at the 4. The West is more interesting.
Great points. Gilbert Arenas was on the Bomani Jones podcast talking about money not being a great motivation after a certain point and Luka is well past that. I do think playing with LeBron however will be. I still think the Lakers win out long term having their next Franchise player.
It still makes no sense. It is more of a swap than a trade. A real trade would have been getting at least 3 first round picks. See Suns trade for Kevin Durant for reference.
The Mavs have no side. Even if they had justification to trade Luka, Lakers had nothing to give. AD is 31 years old and they already have 3 bigs. There is something doesn’t smell right.
Assuming it makes sense to trade Luka, the fundamental problem is how little they got in return. How do they not AT LEAST get every last available pick from the Lakers? Would demanding their 2031 first really have blown up the deal? No way. Even with that, though, it still seems like not enough.
Trading your foundational and generational talent who is 25 and arguably has not hit his prime yet, because of “conditioning” issues & swap for a 32 year old oft-injured big, is frankly baloney and barely passes the smell test. They probably got wind he wasn’t signing the $350m extension.
The indictment against Nico isn’t trading Luka because he’s undisciplined, uninterested in playing defense, and always out of shape but how do you trade him for way less than what you would have gotten opening it up? Tell me Lakers turn down AD, Reeves, the 2029 1st, and the 2031 1st???
I feel exactly the same. It’s a massive win for the Lakers to get rid of an often injured and offensively inconsistent AD for a player that has the superstar ability to win games and playoff series virtually by himself in Luka. Very few players in the NBA can do that.
I will regret typing this but…..
The Hawks still have the best point guard in the league. I always said that Luca is the better player but Trae will have the better career.
It’s a money move with Miriam Adelson holding the strings in hopes that the move to Las Vegas is more swift. AD probably has 4-5 years until he’s done. Maybe less if his injuries pile up or just hates playing in Dallas.
I specifically like how people in this thread are magically forgetting how much of the offensive load Luka has had to carry throughout his career, talking about "out of shape and doesn't want to play defense". Gtfoh. Luka carried that team to everywhere they went. Fuck yah he was tired
I feel like it's pointless to discuss NBA trades when Elon Musk is hacking his way into every government system under cover of a Trump presidential pardon.
“Hacking”? Our new administration is literally giving this Bond villain access. He doesn’t need to do much. It’s a give away to an unelected oligarch. Yeah horrifying.
But talking sports is therapy. Plus, we can still appreciate a flower on the battle field.
Mavs won this hands down. They get an All-Defense guy in AD who can finally play in his proper position, while Kyrie can take over Luka’s role. The Lakers get a slow, chubby Slovenian who can’t (or won’t) play defense.
You can find reasons to support the logic but hard to credit the process that led to this specific deal. There's not a world where I think this trade ends up working out better for the Mavs in the near or long term than had they actually shopped around.
I think when the unanimous, immediate reaction is overwhelming shock, that in itself means it was a bad trade because it shows they could have gotten more. If the Lakers themselves shopped Luka now, they'd get much more than they just gave up, which means it was a bad trade for the Mavs.
If Luka actually matures & becomes the real franchise guy he capable of..... even if Dallas wins a chip in the next 2yrs Lakers will still win the the trade cause they will be revelant for the next Decade. All Depends on Luka!
I haven’t seen anyone comment yet on the advantage that LA has in LBJ. LBJ will own the locker room and set the standard for everyone else. Having LBJ I that role may benefit Luka as much as anything else. If it does, LA may be on track for years.
Doesn't make sense. There must be something we don't know behind the scenes: personal, physical or ideological. They could have garnered a far better return.
Him being around Lebron will change the way he eats and play. Next year I would pick him for MVP. Only if he came back looking like LeBron. This year is a write off.
I’m definitely on the Mavs side of it but that doesn’t change the fact that each team traded a player that can’t stay on the court for another player that can’t stay on the court.
I can understand why the Mavs wanted to get rid of Luka, but I think they could have gotten a better deal. AD is great, but he's too injury prone. They just can't rely on him being healthy for a majority of a season and in the playoffs. I think they could have done better.
I’ve been cool with it from the start. You don’t get rid of a player of that caliber unless you’re fed up and he’s dragging down the team. And it’s not like AD isn’t still good. Injury-prone, yes. But still good.
They could’ve definitely gotten better draft assets, but I’m not sure there was a better win now player they could’ve gotten than AD. Curious if you think so.
I agree with that. Honestly, I think this was a bad deal for Dallas because they are giving up their future and I still don’t thin they are good enough to win now. But *if* they believe they can’t win long term with Luka and they have a window now, I can understand this trade.
I think just being on the same team with LeBron is going to make Luka "straighten up and fly right" LeBron ain't gonna be for no laziness. Like putting Zion on the 1992 Bulls; MJ would beat the excellence out of him! 😅
For everyone saying they could’ve got more for Luka, what does that mean?
They probably could’ve got better draft assets and some young players, but they got a top 10 player in AD and one of the best 2-way players in the league. What better win-now player could they gotten?
I agree that this probably makes Dallas worse in the long run, but they were going to get equal value for Luka, and if they believed they can compete now (I disagree) then this move isn’t inherently bad.
I still feel same way. I think it makes lakers a slightly worse team this year, but it makes sense for when Bron retires soon and they wanted a superstar face of the franchise.
still feels weird. if the Mavs were done/mad w/Luka... why not trade him somewhere in the hinterlands, like Orlando? Seems like there was more, younger talent to be had in the trade. Looking forward to seeing this play out
I'm not as devastated after losing AD and the fear we'd stall the current upswing of the club after adding pieces that are paying off while Max Christie began to show why he was valued. My fear is regression in their play, lack of elite D and then no sure way to know Luka will shape up.
I don’t think the Lakers sniff a ring with AD or Luka but they traded a worthless 1st and a dude who may be retired in 3 years for a dude who will sell out staples, ship a billion jerseys and you can trade for 5 firsts if it falls apart. Like trading a 2015 Camry and $1000 for a $2024 Camry.
I’m getting more upset. That Nico press conference was a disaster. Luka wasnt perfect but Dallas wouldve been relevant playoff contenders for a decade. Now there’s no future. Just praying that these two old guys click between now & April. Luka should’ve commanded a ransom.
Mavs definitely won the trade. Not sure how it'll work in LA for Luka and the other guy. And they still don't have a center. I'm sure they're still shopping around but, eh. Mavs could be scary.
On a serious note, I haven’t. Luka got to the NBA Finals and a Conf Finals and is 25. “Concerns” over durability due to his weight is fine, but its not like AD is Mr. Durable. He is “street clothes” Davis. Rather keep the young MVP and play it out.
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The AD slander is wild.
It's worse that Pelinka has a history with AD that made him pursue only this option.
But who’s a better win now player that they could’ve realistically acquired? AD is a top 10 player right now and has played more games over the last two years than Luka. Probably the best two way player in the game.
What other top 10 player that would fit w/ Kyrie would be available. Would that team feel confident re-signing Luka in 18 months when he opts out? I wouldnt have traded Luka at all, but within those parameters it makes sense.
But what other top player is both better than AD and would be available. Not Giannis, Tatum, Shai.
i also think AD is quite possibly the best fit they could possibly get for kyrie irving and, when they were able to get a yes, they would just be happy to get it done.
That’s all I got.
Luka ain't Larry Bird -- get over it.
Wonder if the Sixers see a Joel Embiid similarity…
1) the Mavs built their team around Luka and short of blowing it up, AD fills an odd hole for them that Lively/Gafford occupied. Curious what other moves they have to make now
2) the haul back is laughable. One 1st makes my brain actually hurt
What holds me back from full support is that Luka is easily a top 3 player *with* all of his flaws. He's only 25. He can stay on his BS for the duration of a supermax and will still ball out.
You mean the version that is a top 4 player in the league and dragged his team to the finals when he was 24? Personally, I'd take that.
i think kyrie is happier being no 1 and AD is happier being no 2 so it's a better match, too.
After hearing the presser live, that the coach didn't know, coach still hasn't talked to Luka, buzzwords about defense, zero on why Luka doesn't fit anymore, but yes, concerns about his contract structure, I think they didn't want to pay.
Now I'm shocked and angry.
The Hawks still have the best point guard in the league. I always said that Luca is the better player but Trae will have the better career.
But talking sports is therapy. Plus, we can still appreciate a flower on the battle field.
They probably could’ve got better draft assets and some young players, but they got a top 10 player in AD and one of the best 2-way players in the league. What better win-now player could they gotten?