Does Luka to the Lakers Mean LeBron Is Gone?

While LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers were busy beating the New York Knicks, Jeanie Buss and the Lakers front office were finalizing one of the most shocking trades in NBA history.

The Lakers acquired Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Dončić in exchange for All-NBA big man Anthony Davis.

At first glance, it’s an uneven trade that could position the Lakers for a post-LeBron future — if Dončić extends or re-signs with Los Angeles. That’s a big “if.”

For now, the defending Western Conference champion Mavericks find themselves in an uncertain position without their star point guard.

But could the Mavericks emerge as a long-term winner of this blockbuster? And where does it leave James and his future with the Lakers?

Why the Mavs Traded Luka

By acquiring Davis, the Mavericks have one of the NBA’s best interior defenders. And right now, the Mavericks front office could use some defense of its own, as fans are incensed over the departure of Dončić, who led the team to last season’s NBA Finals.

Even for non-Mavericks fans, it’s a befuddling move. But Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison insists it’s a smart one, telling the Dallas Morning News, “We really feel like we got ahead of what was going to be a tumultuous summer, him being eligible for the supermax and also a year away from him being able to opt out of any contract.”

In other words, the Mavs believe, or want us to believe, they got significant value for a player they either couldn’t keep — or didn’t want to keep. So which is it?

Was Dončić going to reject a supermax offer, or were the Mavs never planning to offer him one?

Harrison suggests it may be the former — that the Mavericks likely wouldn’t have won an eventual bidding war for Luka.

“We know teams, they’ve had it out there, teams have been loading up to try to sign him once that comes available,” the former Nike executive told the Dallas Morning News.

Mavs’ Concerns Over Luka’s Conditioning?

But the real story may come down to concerns about Luka’s conditioning.

Like Davis, he has been injury-prone, with significant scrutiny on how he takes care of his body. But his weight has also been ballooning. The 6′ 6″ guard is heavier than the 6′ 10″ forward-center Davis.

Now, the Mavericks still had Dončić under contract for another year, as the earliest he could opt out was next summer. So another key question remains: would waiting to trade him have been the better move? What exactly was the rush?

Tim MacMahon of ESPN reports that the Mavericks had “major concerns” over Luka’s “constant conditioning issues and the looming commitment of another supermax contract extension.”

MacMahon knows his stuff — he’s the author of the forthcoming book, “The Wonder Boy: Luka Doncic and the Curse of Greatness.”

This season, Dončić has played just 22 games — and he’s been out since Christmas with a calf strain. Perhaps pairing up with James — who maintains phenomenal conditioning — may help the 270-lbs. Slovenian. Or, maybe there’s more to the story.

Did the Lakers Really Win the Trade? And Is LeBron On His Way Out?

The prevailing opinion is that Lakers GM Rob Pelinka pulled off one of the biggest robberies of the century in acquiring the 25-year-old Dončić for the 31-year-old Davis.

Luka and LeBron lighting it up in L.A. Who could have imagined it? The Lakers are climbing in the Western Conference — they’re just a game behind the Denver Nuggets for the 4th seed, after winning eight of their last ten games.

But the Lakers lose Davis’s elite defense and scoring — and it remains to be seen how the two ball-dominant superstars, Luka and LeBron, play with each other.

Or it may be that the Lakers don’t intend on having the two play together for too long.

The Lakers may part ways with James, who holds a player option for 2025-26 in his contract with Los Angeles. It’s a hefty $52.6 million option.

The Athletic reports that the 40-year-old has been expected to request an extension — if he chooses not to retire. For his part, LeBron has sent mixed signals as to whether he’ll continue to play, saying last fall, “I’m not going to play that much longer, to be completely honest.”

So in the end, if he does leave L.A., the Lakers may have effectively also “traded” LeBron James for Luka Dončić — to a team to be named later.

GM Pelinka may have signaled exactly that in a statement released today, describing Dončić as “a one-of-a-kind, young global superstar who will lead this franchise for years to come.”