Luka Dončić walking into American Airlines Center on Wednesday night didn’t feel real. For many Dallas Maverick fans, it was an out-of-body experience — a surreal moment still impossible to fully process, nearly two months after the Mavericks shocked the NBA world by trading away their franchise cornerstone.
The immediate question was simple, but painful: Why?
Did Luka request a trade? Was there tension behind the scenes? Did fans miss something? Nope. The team just... wanted a new direction. And somehow, that direction didn’t include a 25-year-old five-time All-Star, who had finished top-10 in MVP voting for five straight years.
The idea of trading Dončić, a generational talent who carried the Mavs to an NBA Finals just last season, still doesn’t make sense to most. And if you ask how impactful he was? Just look at what’s happened since.
NBA standings: Western Conference playoff picture
- Oklahoma City Thunder (Clinched playoffs)
- Houston Rockets (Clinched playoffs)
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Denver Nuggets
- Golden State Warriors
- Memphis Grizzlies (Play-in)
- Minnesota Timberwolves (Play-in)
- Sacramento Kings (Play-in)
- Dallas Mavericks (Play-in)
- Phoenix Suns (3 games back)
At the time of the trade, Dallas was sitting in the eighth seed, clinging to a one-game lead over the Golden State Warriors. On Feb. 25, they dipped to ninth for the first time all season, briefly recovered, but the trajectory was set.
Then came the snowball.
Anthony Davis, acquired in the deal, was injured in his debut and sidelined for a month — ironically, one of the biggest concerns fans had about trading for him in the first place. Meanwhile, the topic that was used against Dončić — his “availability” — suddenly backfired.
Worse yet, on Mar. 3, Kyrie Irving suffered a torn ACL, ending his season. Dallas dropped to the 10th seed, hanging on by a thread.
March was a slog. Injuries piled up, and the Mavericks hovered in no man’s land. On March 25, they slipped to 11th, their lowest point in the standings. Davis eventually returned, but only in limited minutes before — predictably — re-injuring himself.
Dallas bounced between ninth and 10th as April began, before settling into the final play-in spot on Apr. 6. Thanks to the Phoenix Suns completely imploding with seven straight losses, the Mavs are safe — for now. But they’re far from stable.
The final stretch of the season is now focused on whether they can leapfrog the Sacramento Kings for the ninth seed. That may seem minor, but every seed matters in a play-in fight.
A win Wednesday night over Luka and the Los Angeles Lakers would be more than just another tick in the standings. It would symbolize two things:
- Dallas can win without Luka Dončić — even in front of his face.
- Maybe — just maybe — Nico Harrison isn’t as crazy as fans thought.
Sure, the trade is still hard to justify on paper. Doncic is thriving in Los Angeles, helping the Lakers secure a top-three seed while playing through nagging injuries. He’s showing the same elite-level production that made him untouchable to begin with.
But for one night, in front of the fans who still chant his name, Dallas has a chance to rewrite the narrative. To shift the conversation — even slightly — in Harrison’s favor.
Will it erase the sting of seeing Dončić in a Lakers jersey? No. But it might prove the Mavericks still have some fight left.