The Los Angeles Lakers pulled off the heist of the century this weekend, as they landed Luka Doncic in a bombshell trade by sending Anthony Davis to the Mavericks. Davis was a player the Lakers traded for in 2019, sending their young core of Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, and Josh Hart to the New Orleans Pelicans along with several draft picks to secure the deal.
One Lakers fan correctly pointed out that the franchise was able to turn the core of Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, and Josh Hart into a 2020 NBA championship and Luka Doncic, which is incredible when one thinks about it. Other fans marveled at the masterclass that Rob Pelinka just pulled off.
“Lakers traded Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, and Josh Hart for a Championship, and Luka Doncic.”
“The ironic part is that if the Lakers wanted to, they could get both Ingram and Lonzo Ball back today.”
“A generational chess move and biggest sports franchise in American sports.”
“Nets traded KD for Cam Johnson and 9 first-round picks.”
“For me, it’s more so finally feeling the start of a little relief for Kobe tearing his Achilles, that championship didn’t mean much”
“Could’ve had a second championship if they had kept KCP and Caruso. But yes, that sounds like a good deal.”
“And with a mid front office at that — Dallas approached the Lakers. How lucky can Pelinka get???”
“The Lakers were playing chess to checkers. Those 3 still haven’t done anything.”
“That’s gotta be the most successful trade in history, but NOT for the right reasons.”
“And a draft pick ends up J. Hayes who now plays for them!”
This is a massive trade that will have reverberations across the NBA for years to come. The Lakers pulled off a coup here. While trading Anthony Davis is not ideal, it was the only way they could have completed this trade. Furthermore, Davis is 31, whereas Doncic is just 25, meaning that he can carry the franchise on his back for the next decade, whereas Davis has just a few more years left to play elite basketball.
This move came together in quite shocking fashion, as few expected the Lakers to make this move. Even Rob Pelinka thought that Mavericks GM Nico Harrison was joking when he offered Doncic, that is how surprising the deal is.
LeBron James reportedly had no idea of the deal taking place. In fact, it was reported that the King found out about the trade while he was at dinner with his family in New York. James’ agent, Rich Paul, who also represents Anthony Davis, only became aware of the possibility of the trade 48 hours before the deal was finalized.
We hypothesized four reasons why the Lakers decided to make this trade. Giving up Anthony Davis will sting, but the fact the Lakers have a player who can be the face of not just their franchise, but the entire NBA will make things a lot easier.
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