The trade itself was preposterous, with a franchise cornerstone coming off a Finals appearance on top of five consecutive first-team All-NBA selections being shipped out for a singular first-round pick. But, Dallas Mavericks GM Nico Harrison went a step ahead in criticizing Luka Dončić. Alluding to his fitness and conditioning concerns, many reports emerged from the Dallas camp to mar the Slovenian’s name.
On his end, Dončić has been quiet about the whole ordeal. Rather than fire back, he chose to take the “high road” as he mentioned in his introductory press conference. However, those closest to him haven’t extended the same mercy toward the Mavericks. His father, Saša Dončić, went on a heated rant against the squad, both for trading his son and then for trying to drag his name through the mud.
Luka Dončić’s Dad Has Stiff Words for Dallas Mavericks
Since the trade went down, many reports have emerged from Dallas that don’t paint the five-time All-Star in a positive light. First and foremost, is the defensive concern that Harrison mentioned in his opening press conference.
Throughout his career, Dončić has been known as a defensive liability. However, it is crucial to note that the Mavs supported a top-five defense last season during their run to the NBA Finals. Furthermore, some of the all-time great players like Stephen Curry have made their mark on the offensive end while being less than stellar on the non-glamorous end.
The second point of concern for Dallas was Dončić’s weight. Since coming into the league, the European sensation has seen his weight go up year over year. For the Mavericks, the ideal number for him was around the 250-255 mark. However, according to reports, that number climbed to 270 before Harrison made a hasty decision.
Saša Dončić, though, wasn’t buying the news coming out of Dallas. Instead, according to him, the team was using it as an excuse to justify a trade that has drawn outrage from seemingly every member of the fan base.
Speaking to Arena Sports in Slovenia, he was raw and honest in his assessment, “I understand there comes a moment when you disagree with a certain philosophy, you don’t like this or that player, all good, I get it. But, I think that exactly this secrecy, or should I say from some individuals, maybe even hypocrisy, this hurts. Personally.”
As his father, he knew the efforts that last year’s scoring leader made for his team and city. “Because I think Luka absolutely doesn’t deserve this, given the fact that at least as I know, sacrificed himself enormously. Even all the stories now that someone is releasing that he wants to apologize for the things that they’re doing, I feel like this is very unfair from some individuals.”
Luka’s dad about the trade 🐍 #nba #lukadoncic #lukadoncictrade pic.twitter.com/muWUDKaxlT
— Arena Sport Slovenija (@ArenaSport_SI) February 2, 2025
Moreover, Dallas had become a home for him, with reports emerging of Dončić purchasing a $15 million mansion just a week before the trade. “Because I know that Luka respected Dallas a lot. He respected the whole city, helped children, it was never a problem for him to go to hospitals and to orphanages and to all these charity events. It wasn’t even a problem last year.”
In particular, the elder Dončić had a problem with the fitness comments, given the load his son was bearing last season. “I’m saying all this since one individual is saying he’s not fit enough, that he played 100 games, practically 40 minutes a game with two, three players constantly on him.”
Others have iterated that point as well, most notably Giannis Antetokounmpo, who basically read Dončić’s résumé as a means to explain how shocking the trade was. Last season, not only did he lead the league in scoring, but he was the engine for a Mavs team that made its first Finals appearance in more than a decade while nabbing the Western Conference Finals MVP.
In the end, his father had just one final parting statement for Dallas: “You traded him, stand by your actions. But don’t look for excuses or alibis, that’s it.”
