The highly-anticipated matchup between the Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers is just around the corner. Tuesday’s game between the Mavericks and Lakers will likely be attended by plenty of Hollywood A-listers, but the Mavericks’ Kyrie Irving reportedly tried to put this in its proper perspective after the Lakers’ Luka Doncic had 32 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, and four steals during Saturday’s 123-100 win over the Denver Nuggets.
Tuesday’s game is expected to be a star-studded affair, including the news headlines leading up to the nationally televised matchup at Crypto.com Arena on TNT. For example, multiple sources have reported that the Mavericks were “over” Luka Doncic since the 2023-24 NBA season. Here’s why the Mavericks reportedly felt sick and tired of Doncic, even though Doncic is widely considered a generational player in the NBA.
Luka Doncic’s Mixed Signals
Guard Up recently attracted attention with an Instagram post. Guard up’s post consisted of a picture titled, “Report / Tired of Luka [Doncic] / The [Dallas] Mavericks were reportedly “over” Luka Doncic since 2023-24 when he hired his own training experts. To handle his medical & nutritional needs [via Mark Stein].” Guard Up captioned the post, “Mavericks may have thought he was distancing himself from the organization.”
Guard up’s post drew mixed reactions from the NBA world. One user commented, “Mavs PR working overtime trying to make themselves look like the good guys.” Another user chimed in, “Keep adding fuel to the fire. Laker fans are loving the Mavs’ organization are talking. It’s only going to fuel Luka’s ambitions for success even more. He’s gonna drop 80 points on Dallas when the Lakers go there. Just to have the last laugh.”
Luka Doncic’s Trade
The Dallas Mavericks were reportedly “over” Luka Doncic and didn’t want to continue their partnership anymore. The Mavericks’ broken record of excuses has always been a trend, but perhaps not like the post-Luka Doncic trade days. The Mavericks said that diet and conditioning were two subjects for concern before Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont cited character and culture and confirmed the team won’t move to Las Vegas.
According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Mavericks “cooled” on Doncic hiring his own team of training experts. Stein wrote,
“With Doncic, meanwhile, one phrase you keep hearing, basically, is that the Mavericks are over him … Dallas has likewise said to have cooled on its star’s insistence on hiring his own team of training experts — even though it was done at his own expense — to handle the bulk of his medical and nutritional needs separate from the club starting with the 2023-24 season.”
“Doncic actually began assembling that team shortly after Dallas’ disastrous 38-44 season in 2022-23 in which the Mavericks followed up a wholly unexpected trip to the Western Conference finals by slipping all the way into the lottery. But his handpicked team quickly took on a role of even greater prominence than envisioned when the 2023-24 season began in the wake of the Mavericks’ abrupt removal of the team’s longtime athletic trainer Casey Smith — one of Doncic’s closest allies in the organization — from day-to-day duties in August 2023. Smith was brought in this season by the Knicks as their new vice president of sports medicine … with a strong recommendation from a certain former Maverick named Jalen Brunson.”
Luka Doncic Trade’s Effects
The effects of the Luka Doncic trade likely won’t go away anytime soon. Dallas Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki opened up about his reaction to the Doncic trade to 96.7 The Ticket on Friday. Nowitzki revealed that he found out while vacationing with his family in the Maldives. He said that, like everyone else, he “really couldn’t believe it.” He added that it was surreal to see him play for the Los Angeles Lakers, and he’ll always be a Luka fan.
Nowitzki’s opinion is just an opinion at the end of the day. However, there’s a chance that Nowitzki was waiting for Doncic to bounce back to his former self, similar to Lakers fans and anyone who wants to see him succeed in the NBA. Doncic last played on December 25, 2024, before suffering a left calf strain. Doncic’s first three games in LA were shaky with 14.7 points per game, while shooting 35.6% from the field and 20.8% from downtown.
Fast forward to the fourth game when the Lakers defeated the Denver Nuggets 123-100 at Ball Arena on Saturday. Doncic finished the game with 32 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, and four steals while shooting 45.5% from the field and 44.4% from downtown. Doncic’s first 30-point game shined a light on his Lakers tenure thus far and impressed the public with the most impressive all-around team performance since the blockbuster trade.
