Luka Be A Laker Tonight

Well, technically “the trade heard around the world” (or what I like to call “Nico’s cry for help”) was a few night’s ago, but when else would I be able to use this blue-eyed pun? I mean, how many of us know who Frank Sinatra is? And then, how many times could Luka be traded to the Lakers? If you’re answer was zero, hey, that was my answer too! But here we are, in some strange world where no matter how you feel about what just happened, the wowness factor still hasn’t subsided.

Nor should it! This trade is super-bonkers (scientific term) on so many levels, it truly is hard to quantify a few things, the first being how to rate Nico Harrison’s talent as a general manager on a scale that starts at stupid and ends with crazy. There is very little in-between, I assure you.

The official trade was as follows, since I just realized I could probably go another 1000 words solid without even going over the specifics:

• Lakers receive: Luka Doncic, Maxi Kleber, Markieff Morris.
• Mavericks receive: Anthony Davis, Max Christie, Lakers’ 2029 first-round pick.
• Jazz receive: Jalen Hood-Schifino, 2025 second-round pick via Clippers, Mavericks’ 2025 second-round pick.

So there it is, in all it’s glory and there are several aspects to touch on here. THERE WILL BE TOUCHING.

Now, keep in mind that I wouldn’t call myself the best of Luka fans, I truly make fun of him as much as I can, it’s just what I do when I see a 10 pound ham in a 5 pound bag, ya know? His body is basically Zion’s, without the definition, and his actual body-language is truly hateful. The continued crying to the refs, lack of any defensive approach, yeah, never mistake me for a Luka-stan, but even I know this trade is quite ridiculous. Dude, despite everything I said, is still a generational talent, a top-5 player, and someone other than Jokic who could easily average a triple-double any time, any place and any weight. Ya just don’t trade that type of player, and if you do, you don’t do it for a 31-year-old center with established health issues. Granted, Davis has been pretty stable the last couple of seasons, and he himself is a top-25 guy for sure, one of the few true 2-way big men in the league, and on most nights, an elite contributor, but that’s still not enough. So that’s the NBA side of things, what about what we’re all here for, the fantasy implications.

Quite frankly, I think this is a huge ‘w’ for any Luka owner, both in the short and long-term. This may a bit of a rocky experiment for the Lakers, at least until they can get a serviceable or better big man again, but the back court of Reaves, James and Doncic is very solid. The Lakers already weren’t winning with defense, so bringing Luka in as the primary scorer means he picks right where he left off. While it’s not a tangible assessment, you have to think the LeBron becomes a proper LeMentor and all the rough edges we know about Luka may finally begin to erode. But even if he stays his fat-effective yapping self, you are still going to get that sweet-sweet 30-10-10 line for years to come.

On the other side, I don’t think this affects A.D. too much, he most likely becomes a greater focal point in the offense. It’ll also be interesting to see how Kyrie Irving reacts, both on and off the court, but besides having popcorn on standby, there might not be too many changes in the numbers for the Mavericks side of things. I do think Maxi Kleber gets a bit more time, since the Lakers don’t have many other bigs, but that’s about it.

We’ll have the Fox and LaVine trade to discuss next, but this was probably one of the craziest NBA deals I’ve ever seen. My condolences Mavs fans…

Jay is a longtime Razzball everything who consumes an egregious amount of Makers Mark as a vehicle to gain wisdom and augment his natural glow. Living in the D.C. area, he also likes spending time visiting the local parks and feeding lettuce to any turtles he encounters, including Mitch McConnell.