It’s been weeks since the Luka Doncic trade, but Lakers owner Jeanie Buss still has no regrets over trading her team’s championship big man for young superstar Luka Doncic. Speaking in a recent appearance on the ‘Games with Names’ podcast, Buss gave her updated thoughts on the blockbuster deal and why she feels it was the right move to make.
“Look what we had to give up, though,” said Buss. “We were not looking to trade Anthony Davis; Dallas contracted us. I didn’t anticipate the global impact it would have. I knew it was gonna be a big story in the NBA but he is a global superstar.”
The Lakers were loyal to Anthony Davis, but when the Mavericks came calling with an offer of Luka Doncic, Jeanie gave her approval to make the trade that shook the entire NBA. It’s been a party in LA ever since, with Luka’s arrival being met with overwhelming hype and praise.
“It’s gonna be a lot of fun,” said Buss. “Our fans are already ecstatic. And I love that he wears No. 77 because we’ve never had it. If he was wearing 24, it’s like sorry you can’t wear 24 because it’s retired. But we’ve never had a 77.”
After Doncic led the Mavericks to the NBA Finals in 2024, nobody thought that they would be willing to let him go. At 26 years old, he’s arguably the best young player in the league right now with career averages of 28.5 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 8.3 assists per game on 46.7% shooting.
Due to concerns over his conditioning and work ethic, the Mavericks turned on their franchise star and sent him to the Lakers after weeks of secret negotiations between Rob Pelinka and Nico Harrison. Jeanie was one of the few people who knew ahead of time and as the owner/governor of the franchise, the decision was hers to make.
As much as Jeanie loved Anthony Davis, she knew he was unhappy and that the Lakers had a better chance to win with Doncic. The 5x All-Star raises the ceiling of any team that he’s on and has playoff experience after a run to the Conference Finals and the NBA Finals.
Today, roughly a month since the trade, and it seems the Lakers made the right decision. As Doncic acclimates to his new surroundings, he’s slowly but surely looking like the same guy who finished third in MVP voting last year.
For Lakers fans, everything since the trade has been a dream. Doncic’s arrival was soon followed by an eight-game win streak that pushed them as high as second in the West.
Currently, at 40-23 this season, the Lakers need Doncic to keep their position in the standings. Without LeBron James (groin strain), the team is missing one of their top stars and Luka must carry more of the scoring load to keep the Lakers afloat.
Regardless of what happens in this campaign, however, the Lakers are still big winners this season. By swapping Davis for Doncic, they added another 10 years to their championship window and have the next decade to build him a roster that can contend at the top of the West.
So while it was not an easy choice for Jeanie Buss, it was ultimately the right one to swap AD for Luka. It sent shockwaves across the NBA and around the world but, most importantly, it set the Lakers up for another 10 years of prosperity.
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