Mavericks Fan Brings Up Luka Doncic Trade In Graduation Speech; Rips Nico Harrison For The Move

A Mavericks fan has gone viral for talking about the Luka Doncic trade in her graduation speech.

4 Min Read

Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Dallas Mavericks caused a great deal of pain to their fanbase back in February when they stunningly traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers. Mavericks fans might never get over the trade, and a clip went viral on social media of one of them bringing it up during her graduation speech.

“It wasn’t all fond memories,” the fan said. “After Christmas came the worst day of the entire year, February 1st. Right around midnight, word spread that the Dallas Mavericks had inexplicably traded our beloved Luka Doncic.

“I cried, everyone cried, and some of us may have randomly cried a couple of days later when we were on a college tour,” she continued. “Everyone blamed Nico Harrison, who is somehow still employed.”

Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison has been public enemy number 1 in Dallas ever since Doncic was traded. Harrison reportedly did not want to give the Slovenian a supermax deal, partly due to concerns about his long-term health, and felt a parting of ways was the best course of action.

So, the Mavericks traded Doncic to the Lakers for Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick. It wasn’t a great haul, and there was a good reason for that. 

Harrison only discussed the Doncic trade with Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka, which ensured there would be no bidding war. All of this just made matters all the worse.

Harrison has continued to defend the decision to trade Doncic, but did admit that he didn’t realize how much the guard meant to the fanbase. Considering how the five-time All-Star had resurrected the franchise, it was a puzzling statement to make.

In Doncic’s first six seasons with the Mavericks, he made the All-NBA First Team five times, a remarkable feat. He led them to the Western Conference Finals in 2022 and then the NBA Finals in 2024.

Trading Doncic away was going to cause a massive uproar. Large-scale protests broke out outside the American Airlines Center about a week after the move. Later on, a Mavericks fan even went over to City Hall to protest about Doncic being shipped out of town.

Doncic himself was shaken by the Mavericks’ decision. The 26-year-old hadn’t expressed a desire to leave and had not seen this trade coming. It took him a fair bit of time, but Doncic has now finally moved on. The fans haven’t, though, but their pain was eased a bit when the team won the 2025 Draft Lottery.

The Mavericks selected Cooper Flagg with the first pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, and the fanbase now has renewed hope. As high as Flagg’s potential is, though, he is unlikely to turn out to be as good as Dallas’ former favorite son.

Doncic averaged 28.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, 7.7 assists, 1.8 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game for the Mavericks and Lakers in 2024-25. This was considered a bit of a down year for him, which tells you about the standard he is held to. There is good reason to believe this past season will prove to be an aberration, too.

Doncic has undergone a physical transformation this offseason, having reportedly lost 31 pounds. Concerns regarding his long-term health because of his conditioning and whatnot are being dispelled, and we might see the very best of him during the 2025-26 season.

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Gautam Varier is a staff writer and columnist for Fadeaway World from Mumbai, India. He graduated from Symbiosis International University with a Master of Business specializing in Sports Management in 2020. This educational achievement enables Gautam to apply sophisticated analytical techniques to his incisive coverage of basketball, blending business acumen with sports knowledge.Before joining Fadeaway World in 2022, Gautam honed his journalistic skills at Sportskeeda and SportsKPI, where he covered a range of sports topics with an emphasis on basketball. His passion for the sport was ignited after witnessing the high-octane offense of the Steve Nash-led Phoenix Suns. Among the Suns, Shawn Marion stood out to Gautam as an all-time underrated NBA player. Marion’s versatility as a defender and his rebounding prowess, despite being just 6’7”, impressed Gautam immensely. He admired Marion’s finishing ability at the rim and his shooting, despite an unconventional jump shot, believing that Marion’s skill set would have been even more appreciated in today’s NBA.This transformative experience not only deepened his love for basketball but also shaped his approach to sports writing, enabling him to connect with readers through vivid storytelling and insightful analysis.
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