Luka Doncic father Sasa Doncic criticized the Dallas Mavericks after his son was trade to the Los Angeles Lakers in a stunning move, which sent shocking waves in the NBA world. Luka Doncic avoided mentioning the Mavericks franchise in his farewell message on Sunday but his father didn’t mince words.
According to a three-team deal between the Dallas Mavericks, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Utah Jazz, L.A. will receive Doncic, Maxi Kleber, and Markieff Morris from the Mavericks. Dallas will have Davis, Max Christie and the Lakers’ 2029 first-round pick.
Sasa said his son didn’t deserve to be treated like this and called out the Mavericks for the ‘hypocrisy’.
“I understand there comes a moment when you disagree with a certain philosophy,” Sasa Doncic said, as translated by Arena Sport. “You don’t like this or that player, all good — I get it.
“But I think that exactly this secrecy, or should I say from some individuals, maybe even hypocrisy, this hurts me personally. Because I think that Luka absolutely doesn’t deserve this.”
Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison revealed Davis’ superior defense as a reason for the trade. However, according to reports, Doncic’s conditioning were a major factor in the Mavericks’ decision for a trade.
“[Luka’s conditioning] wasn’t even a problem last year since, I am saying again, one individual said he’s not fit enough,” Sasa said. “That he played, I don’t know, 100 games — practically 40 minutes with two or three players constantly on him.
“That he was beaten, and you say such things about him — I feel that this is very unfair from certain individuals. You traded him, stand by your actions but don’t look for excuses or alibis, that’s it.”
Doncic also shared his views in a message on Sunday with the Dallas community and said he wanted to win a title for them.
“For a young kid from Slovenia coming to the U.S. for the first time, you made North Texas feel like home,” Doncic wrote in the message posted to social media. “In good times and bad, from injuries to the NBA Finals, your support never changed. Thank you not only for sharing my joy in our best moments, but also for lifting me up when I needed it most.”
Doncic, along with Kyrie Irving, had played a key role in taking the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA finals in 2023-24 season but they could not cross the final hurdle against the Boston Celtics.
