The Dallas Mavericks trading Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis is arguably the most shocking trade in NBA history. A franchise player, just entering his prime and fresh off an NBA Finals run, suddenly being shipped out caught everyone off guard.
But no one felt it more than Doncic himself. At his Lakers introductory press conference, he didn’t hide it. He said he always thought he’d retire as a Maverick, and his body language told the rest of the story. Dirk Nowitzki, a Mavs legend and one of Doncic’s closest mentors, saw it firsthand.
Nowitzki was seen supporting his former teammate in his Lakers debut and later revealed that Doncic had personally invited him to the game. He also opened up that Doncic wasn’t in the best place after the trade and that he wanted to be there for him.
“He invited me to come out to his first game in LA… He was pretty down & disappointed on how it went down, so I wanted to be there for him.”
Dirk says Luka invited him to his first game as a Laker
“He invited me to come out to his first game in LA… He was pretty down & disappointed on how it went down, so I wanted to be there for him.”
(Via @michmontaine )
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) February 22, 2025
