Three Thoughts - Luka Returns & Drops 45
It was an emotional night for all and now we wonder if the Mavericks will ever recover.
It was a night that should have never existed. There is no explanation that could ever fully justify trading away a talent this rare. The idea that a player this special would need a homecoming game at the age of 26—just 10 months after leading the franchise to the NBA Finals—leaves heads shaking in disbelief. And it only gets harder to accept with time.
He was the chosen one. He was the first of his kind. He was everything they promised he would be—and more. And by every account available, he considered Dallas his home. He never wanted to leave. He was a Maverick, and he planned on bringing them all the way to the trophy in time.
But in the end, he wasn’t given any more time in Dallas. He was traded in the middle of the night, without warning or deliberation. And so, this dreadful occasion had to happen—whether we liked it or not.
Luka Dončić scored 45 points and led the way for the Lakers in an easy 112–97 win over the Mavericks. Just typing that sentence is upsetting. Not only should the game have never happened, but we should never have to imagine Luka leading the Lakers to a win over the Mavericks—let alone an easy one.
Yet here we are.
Here are My Three Thoughts:
– This night was always about 77. One way to know if someone is as great as they say he is would be if, with the entire world watching him, he plays at a level nobody else in the building could imagine. He dominated this game and it never looked particularly difficult. He scored 45 with 8 rebounds and 6 assists and was 7 of 10 from 3-point range. He rose to the occasion and could have had 60 if pressed. He put his stamp on this night like he always did. Very few superstars have the ability to save their best performances for the biggest moments quite like Luka.
He was sensational—but it didn’t surprise us. It didn’t surprise us because we had seen it over and over again. This is who he is. This is what he does. He vanquishes foes without prejudice. He racks up points with the flick of his wrist.
The point of this entire ordeal is that he had already proven who he was—and apparently, it didn’t matter to a few key decision-makers. But now, they find themselves squarely in his crosshairs.
He wasted no time switching onto the Mavericks’ big men, putting them on skates. Dereck Lively was ready to give it his best, but it proved too much for the athletic big. Luka does what Luka does—he makes offense look easy.
The man had a casual 31 at halftime. Nobody else on the Lakers had more than eight points at the intermission—but he sat there with 31. Meanwhile, it had to be noted: Anthony Davis—the player Nico Harrison was convinced would be a better fit for his roster moving forward—had four incredibly anonymous points.
If that margin of 31–4 isn’t a near-perfect representation of the absurdly lopsided trade itself, I don’t know what is. Anthony Davis is a nice player. Luka Dončić is a generational player. There are levels to this—and apparently, that’s lost on Nico Harrison and Patrick Dumont.
Again, this night wasn’t about re-evaluating a trade that never should have happened. That evaluation’s long been done. No team has ever lost a trade this badly in NBA history—ever. We knew the moment the news hit: this trade is proof that no amount of information can save you from incompetence when ego gets too involved.
Instead, the night was about the city showing appreciation for its lost son.