LeBron James was just as stunned as everyone else when Anthony Davis was traded. According to a new book by Yaron Weitzman, the Lakers star had a three-letter reaction in the team’s group chat the night the blockbuster Luka Doncic trade went down.
“LeBron James had a three-letter response in a group chat when he found out that Anthony Davis had been traded as part of a deal that sent Luka Doncic to the Lakers earlier this year,” wrote Christian Arnold of the New York Post. “‘WTF,’ the NBA superstar wrote on the February night one of the biggest trades in NBA history took place, according to details in Weitzman’s new book A Hollywood Ending: The Dreams and Drama of the LeBron Lakers.”
The Lakers and Mavericks worked hard to ensure the Luka Doncic negotiations were made in secret. By the time the world found out what was happening, the deal was already being finalized. Nobody in the locker room saw it coming until Bronny James shared the breaking news in the team’s group chat.
“Bronny James, LeBron’s son and a rookie with the Lakers, was the one to post the NBA-shattering breaking news in the players’ group chat… That’s when Davis entered the chat, according to the book. ‘Did these [N-word] just trade me?’ Davis wrote before wishing his now-former teammates luck and leaving the group. That prompted James’ three-letter message in the group chat.”
As a four-time champion and future Hall of Famer, LeBron James is usually the first to be clued in on major trades, especially when they involve his teammates. In the case of Anthony Davis, however, most considered him untouchable on the trade market. In fact, not even James imagined a scenario where he’d outlast Davis as a Laker.
Nevertheless, the Lakers gave him up in the pursuit of Luka Doncic, and all LeBron James could think to respond at the time was “WTF.” It was sheer confusion and panic for James, and a night he won’t easily forget.
It was also a moment that changed the course of NBA history. It saw the move of one of the game’s best young stars and reset the Lakers in a way we rarely see. Going into this season, it’s now Luka Doncic leading, and he’s on track for greatness after his best summer ever.
Meanwhile, for Davis, the trade gave him a clean slate to experience the final chapter of his career. Now that he’s out from under LeBron’s shadow, he has an opportunity to establish his own legacy and get revenge on the Lakers for trading a champion.
Only time will reveal the winners and losers of this deal, but it’s a learning moment for those who listen. Nobody is safe in the NBA, and even the best players in the league may be considered expendable under the right circumstances.
In the end, LeBron’s “WTF” captured the chaos and unpredictability that define the NBA. In a league where loyalty is fragile and legacies shift overnight, even the greatest players can be blindsided. For LeBron, it was a reminder that the game he has mastered for two decades still has the power to surprise him.
