Dave McMenamin
OKLAHOMA CITY — After one of the most lopsided losses of his career, Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic was asked to comment on the orchestrator of what many consider to be one of the most lopsided trades in league history, the deal that brought him to L.A. from the Dallas Mavericks. Nico Harrison, the Dallas president of basketball operations and general manager who first approached Lakers president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka with the trade idea in January, was fired by Mavs governor Patrick Dumont on Tuesday.
Following L.A.’s 121-92 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night, Doncic was asked for his reaction to the dismissal.
“The city of Dallas, the fans, the players, they’ll always have a special place in my heart,” Doncic said. “I thought I was going to stay there forever, but I didn’t. So, that will always be a special place for me. I will always call it home. But right now, I’m focused on the Lakers and trying to move on. But obviously, always there will be a part of me there.
“But just trying to move on and focus on what I’m doing here.”
A reporter followed up by asking whether Doncic could ever envision returning to play for the Mavericks now that Harrison no longer works for the organization.
“Right now, I’m just focused on the Lakers,” Doncic said. “No further comments.”
Harrison shocked the basketball world in February when he traded Doncic to the Lakers in a deal centered around Anthony Davis, Max Christie and L.A.’s 2029 first-round pick. Maxi Kleber, who was included by the Mavericks to make the salaries line up, also was asked for his reaction to the Harrison news after the Lakers’ morning shootaround session.
“It’s a fast business, man,” Kleber said. “Players, GMs, coaches, everybody. So, always got to be ready for the next move.”
Doncic, who was acquired by the Mavericks in a trade with the Atlanta Hawks on draft night 2018, went on to become Rookie of the Year and was a five-time All-Star, five-time All-NBA selection, one-time scoring champion and named the 2024 Western Conference finals MVP — all by the age of 25 — with his former team.
He had been off to an electric start for L.A. this season — averaging 37.1 points, 9.4 rebounds and 9.1 assists through his first seven games — before struggling mightily against the defending champion Thunder.
Doncic finished with a season-low 19 points on 7-for-20 shooting (1-for-7 on 3-pointers), 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 turnovers against the Thunder. The Lakers were outscored by 31 points in the 33 minutes Doncic was on the court, and their 30-point deficit at the break was the most Doncic has ever trailed at the half in his eight-year career.
“Definitely wasn’t our best game,” Doncic said. “Probably one of the worst this season, but they did a great job. I think they all did a great job on me. They’re champions for a reason, so they showed that today. I think we need to be more ready. Obviously, it starts with me. I need to be way better than that and just got to figure out.”
Oklahoma City improved to a league-best 12-1. The Lakers, 1-2 on their current five-game road trip that ends with a back-to-back in New Orleans and Milwaukee, are No. 5 in the West with an 8-4 record.
“It’s not concerning,” Doncic said when asked about the substantial gap between the two teams to start the season. “I think it’s more of a big motivation. … They were the champions for a reason and it’s a big motivation. They started the year even better [than last season], I think so. It’s a big motivation to see how they play and try to stop them.”
