The trade that brought Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers was a blockbuster deal that completely changed the fortunes of the franchise. Rob Pelinka immediately brought owner Jeanie Buss into the fold at the start of these trade discussions and the Lakers’ braintrust was all on one accord in making this deal happen.
While the inner-circle of the Lakers knew the trade was in the works, Doncic himself had no clue anything was on the horizon. He has been open about how difficult this transition has been in joining the Lakers and Buss and the rest of the franchise are doing everything they can to make it easier on him.
Buss recently spoke about this in an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show, saying that the Lakers have fully embraced Doncic and also revealed the initial conversation she had with the franchise’s newest superstar:
“We’ve embraced his family, his management. Everything we can do to make his transition smoother is what we’re doing. It takes time because he’s gotta decide, you know he doesn’t know L.A., he’s gotta figure out where he wants to live. There’s just a lot going on plus he’s gotta figure out how to fit in to this team. But JJ Redick played with him for, I think a month or so with the Mavericks, so they had a relationship. Dorian Finney-Smith, who had been his teammate with the Mavericks, we had just acquired a few weeks before. So we’re just trying to build that continuity, that community where he feels embraced and he can accomplish all the things that he wants to. And when I met him, the first thing I said to him, because I think a lot of times when players first come to the Lakers, there’s such a history that it’s kinda like, ‘How am I ever gonna stand out with all of these great Laker players. How am I gonna get my jersey up there.’ And the first thing I said to him was, ‘You’re gonna write your own chapter in the Lakers history books. We’re so excited to have you.’ And then he said, “I really wish that Kobe was there.’ That was like a really important relationship that Kobe really took him under his wing, was supportive of him. So I think he feels that, even without Kobe present, there’s that kind of feel with our organization and we do our best.”
Buss would also add that now, a few weeks later, she feels Doncic is beginning to get more comfortable with the Lakers:
“I think it still hadn’t set in with him. Because it’s very humbling to be traded, nobody wants to go through that. He had just bought a house and was settling in, so I think it surprised him. But I think now, it’s been three weeks so he’s kinda getting on board.”
Many only focus on the on-court things, but there is a lot of off-court happenings when someone gets traded. Especially in a situation like Doncic in which he had just bought a house in Dallas, and has a family that must be uprooted, it is a massive change not just for him, but his loved ones as well.
There is only so much Buss and the rest of the Lakers organization can do to help ease things for Doncic, but they are going to do everything they can to make him feel welcomed in his new home.
Mavericks continue to trash Luka Doncic following Lakers trade
There has been a lot of negative comments and leaks coming from within the Mavericks organization since the trade that sent him to the Lakers, and even weeks later more continues to come out.
A recent report noted that the concerns within the Mavericks organization about Doncic’s weight and overall health date back to his time with Real Madrid and some feel that it could ultimately destroy his career in the near future.
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