Explain it in MLB terms: Lakers trade Anthony Davis to Mavericks for Luka Doncic

A common social media thread arises when seismic news breaks free of its typical audience and invades the mainstream — explain this to me in terms I would understand. In other words, I have no idea what this means, make it relatable.

Not all baseball fans follow the NBA, but, it's a good bet that you've heard of Anthony Davis and Luka Doncic. On Saturday night, both players were involved in a blockbuster trade that saw the Los Angeles Lakers send Davis to the Dallas Mavericks as part of a trade package to bring Doncic to LA. How would you explain this to a baseball fan in MLB terms?

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop between now and the MLB offseason.

New Mavericks center Anthony Davis is the MLB equivalent of LA Angels star Mike Trout

Let's look at AD's career-arch for a moment, shall we? Davis was a former first-round pick who became an utterly dominant NBA player. Before joining the Lakers in 2019, Davis was the centerpiece for the New Orleans Pelicans. Davis averaged 23.7 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks. Davis was a double-double machine and one of the rising young stars.

But, Davis couldn't stay healthy. Through his first seven seasons in the Big Easy, Davis averaged just 66 games per season. Now, load management — a terrible practice in the NBA if we're being honest — may have factored into some of those statistics, but Davis is known to be quite fragile. Heck, he sat out the Lakers' win on Saturday night with a strained abdominal muscle. Remind you of anyone you know?

Mike Trout was considered by many to be the best player in baseball over about an eight-year stretch. From 2012-2019, Trout posted 72 bWAR with 280 home runs, a 1.009 OPS, and three AL MVP Awards. But much like Davis, injuries have come to define Trout's career of late. After averaging 145 games played during that aforementioned timeframe, Trout has suited up for an average of 67 games per season since 2021. While he still possesses All-Star-caliber skills, Trout has not been durable.

Blue Jays All-Star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is the MLB version of Luka Doncic

Let's flip over to Doncic. An All-Star and MVP candidate, Doncic is one of the most exciting young players in the NBA and was thought to be the cornerstone of the Mavericks franchise for the next decade. Doncic does things on the court that few, if any, other NBA players can.

He's also the equivalent of a fence post on defense. There are probably third-graders who could blow by Doncic in one-on-one. The Mavericks have also questioned his conditioning, something that has dogged Doncic since he arrived in the league back in 2018.

That sounds a lot like Vladimir Guerrero Jr. An uber-talented offensive player, Guerrero has been in the MVP conversation for three of the past four seasons and is staring down what's likely to be a massive contract extension between now and the 2026 season. Many experts expect Vladdy Jr. to land a deal worth between $400-$500 million.

But much like Doncic, Guerrero is not a complete player. While the bat is Valddy's biggest carrying tool, he's not much of a defender. Over the past three seasons, Vlad has been worth -26 outs above average (OAA). He's also not fleet of foot, consistently ranking among the bottom-third in the league in terms of sprint speed. But when you're at or near the top in average exit velocity, hard-hit rate, and expected slugging percentage, those defensive metrics are easier to overlook.

This NBA trade has many basketball fans scratching their heads. The Mavs seem to be selling their future in exchange for an opportunity to bring an elite, yet fragile, All-NBA talent into the organization in an attempt to win now. The Lakers, on the other hand, now have a young superstar to build around for the next 10 years.

The best MLB-to-NBA comp is Vlad Jr. for Trout. Feels kind of lopsided, doesn't it? But Angels' owner Arte Moreno is probably on the horn with GM Perry Minasian right now trying to figure out how to get that deal done.

More MLB News and Rumors from Baseball Insiders