For the first time since being traded in February, Luka Doncic will return to Dallas as the Los Angeles Lakers take on the Mavericks. The scene inside the American Airlines Center will be electric and this is arguably the most anticipated player return to a city since LeBron James returned to Cleveland for the first time as a member of the Miami Heat.
Of course, that arena was an extremely hostile one as LeBron made the decision to leave in free agency, angering the entire fanbase. Doncic did not choose to leave but was traded and because of that, James expects his return to Dallas to be very different from what he experienced in Cleveland, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“His situation is gonna be totally different than mine. I think he’ll get a standing ovation and people will clap and cheer and he’ll hear his name a lot. That’s what I’m expecting. My situation was totally different, he had no choice in the matter of what happened with his situation. I did. So it will be totally different.”
Choosing to leave, or even forcing a trade, would very much lead to a lot of hostility from fans, but Doncic had no choice in the matter. As such, LeBron is right in that Luka should receive a huge ovation and a lot of cheers and love from Mavericks fans who have instead directed their anger towards the Mavericks front office.
Even still, James and the Lakers plan to do whatever Doncic needs in order to support him in what is sure to be an emotional return, and ideally that would involve a victory at the end of the day:
“Whatever he needs. I think winning would be the best solution.”
And not only will a victory be big for the Lakers, but LeBron feels the team coming together to get behind Luka will be great for the overall chemistry and camaraderie of the team:
“I think it’s very important. It’s camaraderie, it’s holding each other down whenever we face anything. I think tomorrow is gonna be a lot of emotions for Luka, both interior and exterior, and it’s our job just to do our job. If we do our job on the floor, it will help him tremendously.”
Coming off a loss on Tuesday, the Lakers badly need a victory in order to put a stranglehold on the third seed in this very close Western Conference. Meanwhile the Mavericks, led by former Lakers star Anthony Davis, will be looking for a win to clinch a spot in the Play-In Tournament.
Mavericks to honor Lakers’ Luka Doncic in return to Dallas
Of course the Mavericks will honor Luka Doncic in his return to Dallas on Wednesday night. The franchise will have a video tribute for the now-Lakers’ superstar and will also give out shirts that read “Thank you for everything” in Slovenian to fans.
The Mavericks did have other sponsorship deals lined up for Luka’s return as well, but the Doncic camp declined to give its blessing for those.
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