It's already been a little more than a week since the Dallas Mavericks shocked the NBA by trading superstar Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers. Even still, the dust is refusing to settle on what is increasingly looking like a bad trade for the Mavericks.
Prior to the trade, the Mavericks were struggling to keep pace in the Western Conference, with Doncic having missed significant time with an injury in the lead-up to the deal. However, after acquiring superstar Anthony Davis as well as Max Christie in the deal, Davis was injured in his first game with the team.
They now find themselves in a tough spot entering the second half of the season. The Mavs have dropped to 8th in the Western Conference, and without Davis for what could be at least 3 weeks, they could just as easily fall out of the playoff race altogether.
That would be a nightmare for the Mavericks, who made the NBA Finals last season. Despite their struggles this season, they had enough talent to make it back with Doncic and Kyrie Irving. If they were to miss the playoffs, then it would add more fuel to the fire surrounding Mavericks GM Niko Harrison.
Mavericks fans have been incensed by the out-of-nowhere trade and have taken it out on him and the team, even protesting in front of their arena. Dallas missing the playoffs after making this trade would only prove them right.
The Dallas Mavericks decision to trade Luka Doncic is looking worse by the day.
Despite the Mavs having plenty of success over the last 25 years, they have made a surprising number of boneheaded mistakes during that span. However, many of those mistakes were papered over by them having two generational players in Dirk Nowitzki and, later, Doncic.
With Nowitzki long gone and Doncic now in L.A., they may soon have to face the music. Trading a top 3 NBA player for a top-15 player seemingly out of the blue is an incredibly awful unforced error. The old sports saying four quarters don't equal a dollar rings true here.
Even though Davis is a terrific player, Christie shows promise as a three-and-D wing, and a future first-round pick is always useful; those players don't add up to a singular superstar. Every NBA fan, or at least Dallas fans, knows that, and the Mavs front office will soon learn that too.