Luka Dončić is a perennial MVP candidate and a five-time first-team All-NBA selection who has already led a team to the NBA Finals. Now, after a stunning blockbuster trade sent him to the Los Angeles Lakers, the 25-year-old will aim to return there while learning from all-time great LeBron James.
This trade will also impact Dončić’s financial future. Let’s examine Dončić’s salary, contract, net worth, and career earnings.
Luka Dončić’s Contract and Salary
Dončić is on a five-year, $215.2 million contract that he initially signed with the Dallas Mavericks. The deal, which pays him an average annual salary a little north of $43 million per year, is guaranteed through the 2025-26 season with a team option for 2026-27.
Prior to the trade, Dončić was set to be eligible for a super-max extension this offseason, which would have paid him $345 million over five seasons. However, ESPN’s Bobby Marks reported that after the trade, he will no longer be eligible to ink a super-max deal this summer.
However, Marks explained on X (formerly Twitter) that Dončić could benefit financially in the long run from the trade to the Lakers.
Here are the contract options for Luka.
Despite the super max extension off the table, Doncic should actually make more in the long run.
Important to note that if Doncic does not sign an extension in August, the financial playing field in what the Lakers can offer and a team… pic.twitter.com/wMJRHWY9pH
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) February 2, 2025
Los Angeles acquired Dončić, along with Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris from the Mavericks in a three-team trade. Dallas received Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick. The third team in the deal, the Utah Jazz, received Jalen Hood-Schifino and two 2025 second-round selections.
Dončić’s Career Earnings and Net Worth
Dončić is only 25 years old, but he’s already in his seventh NBA season after being the No. 3 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.
Through his first six seasons, Dončić has already earned $152,231,698 from his NBA contracts alone.
Dončić’s net worth is estimated to be in the $50 million to $58 million range. Most of that stems from his playing career, but the superstar also has several endorsement deals, including one with Nike’s Jordan Brand.
Dončić should be even more marketable in Los Angeles. He’s already had three different signature shoes released through Nike, but fans can probably expect more. Dončić is already a global superstar and one of the faces of the NBA, but the Lakers brand and fan base is next-level and there will be plenty of opportunities for him in Southern California.
While Dončić will obviously learn a ton from James on the court, he can also pick up some pointers off the court. After all, James became a billionaire because he did an incredible job building his brand and investing in various businesses.
Dončić has finished in the top five of NBA MVP voting three times, and he’s a five-time All-Star and former Rookie of the Year.
Last season, Dončić led the Mavericks to a fifth-place finish in the Western Conference and a surprise trip to the NBA Finals. During the NBA playoffs, the Mavericks defeated the Los Angeles Clippers, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Minnesota Timberwolves. But in the NBA Finals, the Boston Celtics defeated the Mavericks in five games.
Dončić was terrific in the Finals, though, averaging 29.2 points, 8.8 rebounds, 5.6 assists, and 2.6 steals per game.
Dallas shocked the sports world by trading Dončić just after midnight on Sunday, Feb. 2. Not only were the Mavs coming off a Finals run, they were sitting at 26-23 and in eighth place in the Western Conference. There were no rumblings of a potential Dončić trade and rival teams reportedly didn’t even know he was available.
Now, Dončić and James will try to lead the Lakers to their 16th championship. Los Angeles won its most recent NBA title in 2020. In the first round of last year’s playoffs, the Lakers were eliminated by the Denver Nuggets in five games.
Did the Mavericks Trade Dončić Due to Conditioning Issues?
There have been rumors that the Mavericks were frustrated with Dončić’s conditioning issues and weight, leading to many questions about Dončić’s weight.
As a rookie, the point forward was listed at 218 pounds. However, ever since his sophomore campaign, Dončić’s listed weight has been 230 pounds.
While his listed weight hasn’t changed, there have been reports from ESPN’s Tim MacMahon that he ballooned as high as 270 pounds while playing for Dallas.
Dončić developed a reputation for playing his way into shape early in the season, and there has been criticism about his diet and conditioning since he entered the league.
Playing for the Lakers isn’t like playing anywhere else. Every move is scrutinized, every loss is magnified, and for a superstar like Dončić, the expectations are nothing short of championship-or-bust.
On top of that, lingering concerns about his conditioning have only fueled the noise surrounding his arrival in L.A. But if there’s anyone who knows what it takes to thrive under the Lakers’ spotlight, it’s Hall of Famer and former Laker, Shaquille O’Neal.
On a recent episode of “The Big Podcast,” O’Neal didn’t sugarcoat his message to Dončić. He dealt with his share of criticism about weight and conditioning during his playing days, and kept it as blunt as possible.
“Make ‘em shut the f*** up. Get right, get healthy, and take over,” Shaq told him.
Shaq’s advice to Luka Doncic is simple: Make ‘em shut the f*ck up.
Adam & Shaq discuss the Luka Doncic trade as well as the Super Bowl in the newest episode of the Big Pod. Watch now: https://t.co/ChON4acARG pic.twitter.com/HdBHQNljXg
— The Big Podcast (@bigpodwithshaq) February 7, 2025
Recently on “Inside the NBA,” Shaq defended Luka against all of the criticism about his weight.
“He doesn’t look out of shape to me… When you say out of shape, is he fat? Does he have a six-pack? Are we talking body fat?” Shaq said. “One of my best friends just told me, ‘Fat Luka is better than 99.9% of all the guards in the game.'”
Shaq knows firsthand how relentless the L.A. media and fan base can be. The Lakers have always been under the limelight, and their every move is heavily scrutinized.
O’Neal, who won three championships with the Lakers while battling similar concerns about fitness, essentially told Dončić to control the narrative with his play.
If he wins, if he dominates, the noise will disappear.
Dončić Using Dallas’ Weight and Conditioning Criticism As Motivation
On the morning ahead of Dončić’s first game against the Mavericks, ESPN revealed that, according to an inside source, Dončić is using leaks from within the Dallas organization that they sent him packing due to concerns about his weight and work ethic as motivation. So, it’s safe to assume he’s had this matchup circled on his calendar since the trade.
Whether the reports of his poor conditioning and work ethic while in Dallas held any validity or not doesn’t much matter now, as the newest LA celebrity is putting those narratives to bed now that he’s a Laker.
“A beast was awakened inside him,” according to ESPN’s source. That beast reportedly pushed Dončić to work on his game at an outdoor court with Lakers assistant coach Scott Brooks and work out at his hotel gym while on vacation in Cabo San Lucas during the recent NBA All-Star break — habits that, if you believe the Mavericks’ leaks, were rare at best during his time in Dallas.
As for what the leaks specifically said, it was also ESPN that brought them to light when the trade first broke.
“The Mavericks were motivated to move Dončić because of his constant conditioning concerns, sources told [Tim] MacMahon,” Dave McMenamin wrote. “There had been significant frustration within the organization about Dončić’s lack of discipline regarding his diet and conditioning, which team sources considered a major factor in his injury issues.”
Regarding how that internal beast has influenced his form on the court, Dončić took a few games to find his feet with the Lakers, averaging just 14.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 5.3 assists over his first three games in the purple and gold. Now, it’s worth noting those were his first outings since returning from a calf injury sustained back in December, and he was on a minutes restriction for the first two.
Nevertheless, Dončić found his footing in a Feb. 22 matchup against the Denver Nuggets, leading the Lakers to a 123-100 win while stuffing the stat sheet with 32 points, 10 boards, seven assists, four steals, and a block. Alongside him, LeBron James poured in 25 points, nine rebounds, five assists, three blocks, and a steal, effectively quelling any doubts that the duo could perform as a tandem.
Unfortunately for those fans in it for the drama, the marquee bout between the new-look Lakers and Mavericks won’t feature Anthony Davis, who went down with an adductor injury in his otherwise stellar debut with his new team. Davis’ next chance to take on his former team comes April 9 in Dallas.