The real grass of Luka Doncic's value in the Los Angeles Lakers

The decision of the Dallas Mavericks to trade Luka Doncic, now a star for the Los Angeles Lakers, continues to resonate throughout the league, in the halls of the American Airlines Center, and on the streets of Texas. Will those reverberations ever cease? Only time will tell. There are theories, rumors, and stories related to the truth behind the decision of the Texas organization to bid farewell to the beloved city superstar. Money often plays a role in the departure of a team's star player. According to Tim MacMahon, of ESPN and a regular on The Hoop Collective Podcast, it definitely played a part for the franchise.

If money was at the center of it all, it was linked to the supermax deal that Doncic was supposed to receive soon. Now, he won't be eligible despite hitting free agency in 2026. Of course, Luka won't have to worry too much about that. Undoubtedly, the Lakers will offer him a very persuasive figure. The Lakers didn't agree to the trade if they didn't have a plan to convince Doncic to stay for the long haul. Although it took some time to adjust to his new reality, Doncic seems thrilled with his time in Los Angeles, playing alongside LeBron James and being coached by JJ Redick. Certainly, Jeanie Buss and Rob Pelinka will do everything in their power to ensure Luka signs permanently.

According to MacMahon, that supermax deal is why Dallas wanted to move forward. Speaking with Jovan Buha, an expert on the Lakers, on the Buha's Block podcast, MacMahon, who has just written a book about Doncic titled The Wonder Boy, suggested that 100 million dollars is the figure Luka could demand based on his value.

"They were afraid to give him the supermax, which I didn't know until they traded him. It's like, do you think the supermax is a bad deal for this guy?" MacMahon said about Dallas. "Let's be honest, you talk to people around the league, and I've asked a lot, I ask people in analytics, what's his value? And a lot of them will tell me it's a 100-million-dollar value. 100 million dollars a year. The supermax deal is a little under the average of 70."

Highest-Paid NBA Players

Even for Luka, 100 million dollars per season in the NBA sounds way off the charts. Joel Embiid is the highest-earning active player (64.3 million dollars) per year in his current contract. He pockets 51.4 million dollars per season. Nikola Jokic earns the same per season as Embiid until 2026-27, when the numbers slightly shift. Stephen Curry earns 55.7 million dollars for this current season, the highest amount per season among all players. MacMahon stated that the supermax deal is slightly under 70 million dollars.

The Lakers would be crazy to offer Luka nearly 30 million above the average to keep him as a Laker. That said, they are the Lakers, and if any team could do it, it would probably be them. Fortunately for Los Angeles, they won't have to go that far, considering the supermax isn't on the table. Nevertheless, whatever deal they ultimately offer Doncic will be enticing enough, whatever it takes to keep him in Hollywood.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, El pastizal real del valor de Luka Doncic en Los Angeles Lakers