Luka and the Lakers Aren’t Proving Nico and the Mavs Wrong — Yet
And there's reason to worry about the Lakers' playoff chances
We don't need to tell you the Lakers made a haul with the Luka Dončić deal, and that Mavs GM Nico Harrison messed up immensely.
Luka is a top-3 basketball player on the planet, with an almost unparalleled combination of three-level scoring and genius passing ability.
But here's the thing: Nico wasn't totally off in his evaluation of Luka’s fitness level, his motivation and what he brings to the "culture” of a team.
From a pure basketball standpoint, Nico's mistake was not that he entertained the idea of dealing Luka — it was the return he got.
I'm with Mark Cuban when he said, "Just get a better deal. No disrespect to Anthony Davis, but I still firmly believe if we had gotten four unprotected No. 1s and Anthony Davis and Max Christie, this would be a different conversation."
Luka has been with the Lakers for two months now. And for the watchful observer, it has become apparent that Luka carried with him to L.A. many — though not all — of the bad habits he had with the Mavericks.
So where has Luka shown improvement, and where has he not? And what does it mean for the Lakers’ chances in the playoffs?
Why I have my doubts about Luka and the Lakers
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