The future of the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks after the historic trade between Luka Doncic and Anthony Davis

Despite many league executives opting for Luka Doncic or Victor Wembanyama to build a franchise from scratch, the Dallas Mavericks management was afraid to commit to the Slovenian in a supermax extension worth 345 million dollars over five years due to his defensive issues and conditioning.

"Luka has defensive and effort problems in general, but he's too special not to try to build around him, especially at 25 years old," said an NBA executive to HoopsHype. Instead, Harrison identified the defensive attributes of Anthony Davis as more suitable to help Dallas win now and in the short term future. The addition of Max Christie is also noteworthy, given that the Mavericks and Quentin Grimes were apart during contract extension discussions before the season.

Since then, Grimes has become a key 3&D player for Dallas, averaging 10.2 points with an efficient 46.3% shooting from the field and 39.8% from three-point range in 22.8 minutes. The 24-year-old shooting guard will be eligible for restricted free agency this summer. Christie, a 37.3% three-point shooter who turns 22 on February 10, has a $32 million contract until the 2027-28 season, including a player option.

The 2029 first-round pick acquired from Los Angeles Lakers is considered a valuable asset for Dallas and was highly coveted by teams across the league in previous discussions with L.A. Therefore, NBA executives believe that the Mavericks are not done negotiating before the deadline and expect Dallas to remain active in the coming days.

Lastly, Dallas previously discussed Maxi Kleber in exploratory talks with the Indiana Pacers for power forward Obi Toppin before including him in the deal for Doncic.

The Future of Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers acquired the franchise cornerstone for the next decade in Doncic and retained their coveted 2031 first-round pick in trade discussions. "I like the exchange better for the future of the Lakers," said an NBA executive. "This will help them attract other pieces in the post-LeBron era."

Several NBA executives who spoke after the news of the Doncic-Davis trade began to question whether LeBron James, who has a $52.63 million player option for the next season, could be traded. However, everything indicates that James wants to finish his career with the Lakers. LeBron also spoke highly of Doncic during a previous podcast with coach JJ Redick, a former teammate of Doncic at the Mavericks.

The acquisition of Doncic is also notable for Dorian Finney-Smith, his close friend and 3&D small forward. Finney-Smith is expected to decline his $15.38 million player option for next season and become an unrestricted free agent this summer. It's safe to say that Doncic will advocate for the Lakers to keep Finney-Smith.

Regarding potential future negotiations, it's worth noting that Kleber is owed a total of $22 million through the 2025-26 season. If Kleber remains with the Lakers until the deadline, he will become a more valuable trade asset when he becomes an expiring $11 million contract. With Davis gone, Los Angeles also needs more help inside, which the team will seek to improve in the trade market.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, El futuro de Los Angeles Lakers y Dallas Mavericks tras el histórico traspaso entre Luka Doncic y Anthony Davis