The deal sending superstar Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers from the Dallas Mavericks at last season’s trade deadline was among the most shocking in sports history. Doncic was less than a year removed from leading Dallas to the NBA Finals, and the team had less than positive words to say about the Slovenian star on his way out the door.
The trade sent shockwaves through the league, with one of the most common sentiments among players being that if Luka can be traded, then no one is safe. At the time, Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo made headlines for his comments about his happiness that a European star was going to a big market, leading to some extra rumors about his future.
But he has since updated those thoughts to give a more real insight into his initial feelings when he saw the trade, via Harris Stavrou of SPORT24:
Giannis Antetokounmpo on his reaction when Luka was traded: "I was having my treatment, when a friend told me Doncic became a Laker. I was shocked. I shit myself. If Luka is traded, everybody can be traded. He took his team in the Finals. And it's Luka Doncic. He is 26" – SPORT24
— Harris Stavrou (@harris_stavrou) September 23, 2025
Antetokounmpo throws in some on-brand humor about his reaction to the deal, but it echoes the sentiment that many felt when Dallas traded away their homegrown superstar. The deal was so unexpected that many believed it was completely fake and that Shams Charania had been hacked.
But once it was confirmed to be real, it was widely seen as a heist by the Lakers and one of the most substantial trades in NBA history in terms of shock value.
Luka Doncic: new season feels like start of Lakers tenure
The Lakers begin the 2025-26 NBA season in less than four weeks when they face the Golden State Warriors on Oct. 21. It marks the start of Luka Doncic’s first full season as a member of the franchise.
The Lakers go into the 2025-26 season with the general consensus being that they improved slightly on their team that lost in the first round of last year’s playoffs. Some of that improvement comes from Doncic himself, as the 26-year-old slimmed down significantly in the summer and had a historic EuroBasket showing for Slovenia.
Now he’s ready to take the floor for the Lakers for the first time to begin a new season. And for him, despite already debuting in L.A., this new campaign feels fresh for the European superstar.
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