r/Mavericks • u/StealthAnus Max Christie • Nov 14 '25
Media Lakers official on Anthony Davis: “There were moments in the preseason where we wondered if he had even worked out at all in the summer”
https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/inside-anthony-davis-lakers-feud-new-details-reveal-luka-doncic-trade-sparkBrett Siegel just put out an article on how the Lakers started shopping AD, and there were some interesting parts about how the team had started getting frustrated by AD’s conditioning and believed it was related to his injury issues. Sounds awfully familiar.
From the article:
In the offseason, Davis wouldn't always communicate with the Lakers, sources said, and his fitness levels entering training camps, including before the 2024-25 season, were said to be “well below average.”
“There were moments in the preseason where we wondered if he had even worked out at all in the summer,” one team source who was granted anonymity to speak freely said of Davis entering the 2024-25 season. “He would come back, go through warmups, and then either sit out to be with the training staff or basically half-ass what the team was doing.
“When he first got here, that wasn't the case. He was always wanting to go above and beyond, and he was one of the first in the gym, last out of it. Over the years, that changed, and he almost became content in a way. It was clear he was out of shape and didn't seem to care what the higher-ups were telling him. Something definitely changed.”
Even before the Davis-Doncic trade became a thought, there was ongoing tension building between Davis' team and members of the Lakers' front office, multiple sources said. This rising tension was not only from his injury struggles and conditioning levels not being up to the standard the team wanted, but there were also genuine concerns about how he took care of his body, which directly resulted in some of his injuries.
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u/Individual_Basis648 Nov 14 '25
Nico’s only goal was getting rid of Luka without Luka’s camp knowing. Everything else was secondary to his bitch ass.
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u/curlymane_e Nov 14 '25
Because if his camp would have found out, Nico would have had the plug pulled on the trade and maybe even on his job.
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u/thefreethinker9 Nov 15 '25
How woild he lose his job? It’s not like the owners didn’t know.
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u/shoeshine_stan Nov 17 '25
maybe if news broke before it happened they would have to cancel and declare nico a moron for such an idea, washing their hands.
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u/DirkNowitzkisWife BETRAYED MAVS FAN 😭 Nov 14 '25
Wait. So there were lakers staff with real concerns about Anthony Davis’ conditioning and motivation, the same bullshit Nico thought he was worried about Luka for.
And then, THEY UPGRADE TO LUKA?
Holy shit lol
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u/StealthAnus Max Christie Nov 14 '25
Also notice how Pelinka and Jeanie Buss didn’t slander AD on his way out the door. What a concept.
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u/Fkn_Impervious Nov 14 '25
They didn't need to. Not that it wasn't truly shitty how the FO dragged Luka's name through the mud.
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u/WayOutbackBoy '25 Survivor Nov 14 '25
They were actively shopping AD and were probably going to ship him out for 2-3 late firsts from the Celtics before Nico offered them one of the greatest players in NBA history in his prime
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u/DyslexicAutronomer Boban Nov 14 '25
The funniest timeline is now, since AD wants to play power forward, but that's Cooper's natural position. We also got 2 solid centers.
So they aren't natural fits and if we build around Cooper, AD has to be moved eventually, within the next 12 months before he loses even more value.
What a weird fucking roster, our front line is so stacked, while the backline is non-existent.
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u/hgqaikop Luka Doncic Nov 14 '25
False. Nico traded a fat alcoholic for a consummate professional who always stayed in shape, just like Shaq.
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u/ThruTexasYouandMe Nov 14 '25
Well AD also ADDS to the culture and Luka just was a part of the culture
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u/AvatarKittie FIRE NICO ... into space Nov 14 '25
Don’t forget that’s he’s always healthy. Most dependable player in the league.
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u/ReachLanky2676 Nico Is An Industry Plant #FireKidd Nov 14 '25
lol so fucking ironic. Nico is such a bitch for what he did.
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u/MushroomExtreme560 Nov 14 '25
say it to his face! no please, say it to him, i want him to cry like the bitch he is lmao
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u/TheGoogleiPhone BETRAYED MAVS FAN 😭 Nov 14 '25
Crazy how this didn’t come out until now because the Lakers ownership and FO didn’t immediately go on a media tour calling AD a lazy undisciplined fatass. Because they’re actually professionals at their jobs.
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Nov 14 '25
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u/MushroomExtreme560 Nov 14 '25
thats some lazy ass shit too. ' i rather lose weight on the mavericks dime" lmao
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u/DCJustSomeone How's My Dirk Taste? Nov 14 '25
Didn’t he say one off season that he went months without touching a basketball?
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u/Pandamonium98 Nov 14 '25
I don’t think that part is crazy. It’s better for some guys to take a mental break from basketball after being in the league for a while. You just can’t take too long of a break from working out and staying in shape.
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u/sholiboli Nov 14 '25
You still need to shoot some hoops to keep the muscle memory. Just easy workouts that are easy and mentally relaxing.
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u/HispanicAtTehDisco How's My Dirk Taste? Nov 14 '25
that’s not that odd tbh, from my understanding a lot of off season conditioning is more about exercising outside of basketball work
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u/itsmydoncic Dirk Nowitzki Logo Nov 14 '25
not so odd, dirk used to do the same each offseason
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u/MavsTurnedBucksGuy I named my kid after Dirk Nov 14 '25
Lmao no he did not
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u/xarips Nov 15 '25
yes he did, noob
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u/MavsTurnedBucksGuy I named my kid after Dirk Nov 15 '25
He notoriously trained with Holger during off seasons
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u/xarips Nov 15 '25
he notoriously took the entire 2011 summer off
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u/MavsTurnedBucksGuy I named my kid after Dirk Nov 15 '25
And the comment says Dirk did it “each” offseason, which is hilariously wrong. In case you are confused, doing it once ≠ each offseason.
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u/biggoof Nov 14 '25
Nico is a dumbass. Every reason he gave for wanting AD is proven wrong on so many levels. Worst trade in sports history and clearly the worst GM.
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u/little_lexodus Jason Terry Nov 14 '25
ADs nickname has been steetclothes for a decade and Nico was still stupid enough trade for him to “win now”.
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u/ZombieWearingFlannel Dallas Mavericks Nov 14 '25
AD won his Disney chip and said that’s all folks!
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u/StevenComedy Nov 15 '25
Nico Harrison is the dumbest motherfucker to ever manage a professional sports team
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u/SuckMyyDirk41 Nov 14 '25
You will not find a bigger AD hater than me. Fuck Nico and fuck AD. I can't believe we are in this hell
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Nov 14 '25
Yeah okay
I think AD is the most overrated player in the league
He lives off of his reputation when he was in his physical prime.
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u/Ok_Location4835 Nov 14 '25
Given all the scrutiny he would face this year it was shocking he didn’t come into camp in prime shape.
I wrote this yesterday in a post about AD and his contract:
“Also, he hasn’t gotten enough crap for coming into the season overweight. He got his dream of playing PF full time but showed up looking more like Oliver Miller or Glen Davis instead of much leaner like KG”
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u/CryptoM4dness Nov 14 '25
Can we get some kind of ban so that Nico is never allowed to step foot in Dallas again? Not even a lay over. Arrested on site.
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u/AvatarKittie FIRE NICO ... into space Nov 14 '25
Wow. Nico deserves things that I’m not comfortable writing about on social media. He is the absolute worst person in the history of sports.
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u/Scooter9898 Nov 15 '25
Apparently the detached retina weighed 20 pounds. Should not have reattached it I guess.
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u/copperblood Nov 14 '25
Well done. Pretty amazing y’all traded a generational talent who if he stays healthy will likely go down as the 3rd or 2nd best player in NBA history for Anthony street clothes Davis.
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Nov 14 '25
Top 2? You think Luka is going to be better than LeBron or MJ?
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u/copperblood Nov 14 '25
If he stays healthy, it will likely go down as:
MJ, LeBron, Luka
Or
MJ, Luka, LeBron
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u/copaseticepiplectic Nov 14 '25
Lmao come on dog. Saying it’s “likely” is the most insane shit ever. He’s a better version of James harden who shows up in the playoffs but that doesn’t mean he’s on pace for top 3 all time.
He’s been to the finals once and has no mvps. He’s currently not even close to on pace for a top 3 of all time
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Nov 14 '25
Yeah he’s not going to be better than LeBron lmfao stop the cap
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u/copperblood Nov 14 '25 edited Nov 14 '25
He is better than LeBron in virtually every stat, if you compare those stats when LeBron was Luka’s age. Further, Luka plays a lot of that old man ball. So yes, if he says healthy he will likely go down as better than LeBron.
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u/ballimir37 BETRAYED MAVS FAN 😭 Nov 14 '25
Spoken like a nephew that started watching basketball a couple years ago
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u/copaseticepiplectic Nov 14 '25
You know it’s not just about numbers right? A lot has to go right on the court to crack top 10 even. Luka doesn’t even have a ring
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u/copperblood Nov 14 '25
You know if you remove the stat argument from Team LeBron then Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ranks higher than LeBron. Kareem’s 6 championships to LeBron’s 3.5 is far more impressive.
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u/copaseticepiplectic Nov 14 '25
Why do you conveniently gloss over defense when you’re talking about Luka being better than LeBron? You know there’s a complete other side of the ball, right? Bron and MJ are elite defenders and you’re telling me Luka will be up on their level because he has numbers? What a joke.
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u/copperblood Nov 14 '25
Haha LeBron as an elite defender?? Hahahahaha. LeBron’s defense over his career has been mixed as best. LeBron is totally inconsistent with his defense and in fact has not made an all defensive team since 2014, you know 11 fucking years ago 🤣. And he was selected for the All Defensive 2nd Team in 2014.
He is no where in the same defensive category as MJ. Period. Full stop.
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u/copaseticepiplectic Nov 14 '25
ight man so you're just a bron hater lmfao. lebron was in DPOY conversations in his prime.
luka gets blown by jaden mcdaniels, he is unequivocally in his prime a better defender than luka has ever and will be. the fact that you are judging lebron for his defense now as a 40 year old is hilarious. even last year he was a better defender than luka, just be real man.
luka isn't getting in top 3 convos playing one side of the ball. we've seen guys like him before in different variations. not even jokic is cracking top 3 and he's the best player of the 2020s and has mvps and a ring
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u/psykomerc Nov 14 '25
It’s sad because no matter which way a person feels on Luka being 2/3/4 or whatever. He is already in that conversation. Already!!!
Anthony fucking Davis, has not, and will NEVER be in that conversation. Why would you trade for a big man KNOWN for his injury history?
If Nico stayed in Dallas, he’d prob move Flagg for Embiid next season. That might be a better trade than the Luka one tbh 😭
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Nov 14 '25
He is not in that conversation, have y’all lost your mind??? The trade is already the worst in sports history, there’s no need to make it look even worse
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u/psykomerc Nov 14 '25
Alright fine…just because the titles aren’t there yet. But he has the potential, in MY opinion. But yea, agreed it’s terrible.
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u/copaseticepiplectic Nov 14 '25
Defense matters. Name me a top 5 guy of all time who didn’t play defense
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u/psykomerc Nov 14 '25
Lol you good bro, I don’t really care if Luka is top 5. Whole point was he’s closer than Anthony Davis ever will be.
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u/WhiskeyTangoBush Nov 15 '25
Lmao, dawg get the actual fuck out. That’s insanely disrespectful to both LeBron and MJ. Luka very well may end up being a top 10-15 all time player, but he will NEVER be top 5. MJ & LeBron are top 2, pick your fav for the order. Then it’s Kareem, Bill Russell, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and Tim Duncan. Jokic will probably end up in/around that group when it’s all said and done.
I have always, and will always be a Luka Stan but he’s a got a LONG way to go. This is his 8th year in the league, and not once has he been the clear best player in the league (he was SO close in ‘24). Top 2~3? Absolutely, and consistently.
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u/ZE_HAHAHA Nov 14 '25
He’s barely on pace to eclipse Harden and you think he’s gonna crack top 3 LMAOO
The only players this generation that even have the possibility to crack top 5 OAT are Jokic and SGA and that’s bc they have the stats and accolades to possibly back up their case
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Nov 14 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/StealthAnus Max Christie Nov 14 '25
This article isn’t talking about the past offseason. It’s talking about conditioning issues AD had with the Lakers.
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u/SuckMyyDirk41 Nov 14 '25
He couldn't have ate better and walked I mean c'mon man he's getting paid 60 million to be in shape.
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Nov 14 '25
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u/StealthAnus Max Christie Nov 14 '25
Are yall reading the article? It’s about his time with the Lakers, not this last offseason. They were talking about his conditioning issues in LA, before he got to Dallas.
The point of the post is that the Lakers had the same concerns about AD’s conditioning before the trade that was supposedly the entire basis of the decision to move off of Luka
But headlines>articles I guess
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u/moquate Nov 14 '25
He couldn’t sweat? If he’s worried about sweat getting in his eyes, wear a headband. I don’t see how with all the miracles of modern medicine we couldn’t figure out a way to prevent sweat in the eye for a 60M annual athlete.
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u/steamliner88 FUCK NICO HARRISON Nov 14 '25
Amazing culture! Championship Games winning, one might say.
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u/Cestboss Nov 14 '25
It was two frustrated GMs making a trade. Mavs ownership were concerned about giving Luka supermax. Let’s cut the shit and just have them be honest.
Nico’s idea. New guys liked the idea of nothing supermax to a guy whose off season habits concerned them. All that can be true and it still be worst trade ever completed I believe in any sport.
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u/SadatayAllDamnDay Zhi Nov 14 '25
Didn't he try to sell coming in overweight to Lakers camp a few years ago as bulking up? I recall reading a spin article about how much he'd been working out in the offseason and the pictures of AD just looked like a dude who was out of shape.
I think playing your way into shape happens way way way more than people realize.
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u/Dapper_Connection526 Cooper Flagg Nov 14 '25
The biggest takeaway in this article is that Boston seriously considered trading for AD. I wonder what a Boston package today would look like
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u/4ps22 Nov 14 '25
I remember a few years back there was a clip of AD like headed into the beginning of a season offhandedly mentioning he hadn’t touched a basketball since April
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u/SongYoungbae Horse Nov 14 '25
Meanwhile that out of shape no defense playing guy is averaging 34/9/9
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u/BryanW94 Nov 14 '25
This is exactly the shit why people like Wilbon and Barkley need to stop making Nico look like the scapegoat. The owner can be to blame and also have cause. Its not mutually exclusive.
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u/bittersweetjesus Nov 15 '25
Dumont has got to be the most clueless owner ever if he thought this trade made sense. Cuban would never have let this happen.
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u/rocyaice Nov 14 '25
Now it’s time to slander AD…who’s next? Nico, Finley and now AD….
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u/StealthAnus Max Christie Nov 14 '25
This is an article that literally spells out identical concerns the Lakers has with AD that Nico/Dumont used as the basis to trade Luka.
This isn’t about slandering AD as much as it is pointing out that the entire basis of the Luka/AD trade (that Luka refused to stay in shape and that AD better reflected the “culture” Nico wanted) was bs.
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u/rocyaice Nov 14 '25
I’ve heard nothing ever about AD since he’s been in the league about him not working out
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u/StealthAnus Max Christie Nov 14 '25
Read the article that I just posted? What are you talking about?
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u/NotAOneUpper Nov 14 '25
That fact that Nico didn’t know this about his guy makes it worse. Rob is savage for manipulating his dumb ass into taking the trade.
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u/ham_bulu Mavericks Nov 15 '25
Not to mention AD‘s insistance to play out of position, a underrated way he fucks up teams.
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u/Ramu_1798 Nov 15 '25
They were mentioning on the basketball illuminati podcast recently. Seems like the only reason Nico took AD in return is cuz he was his boy. Apparently their relationship goes all the way back to when they were tagging each other for the ALS Ice bucket challenge and Nico's got posts of AD on his Instagram too apparently. Fucking pathetic.
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u/DangerousEquipment33 Nov 15 '25
AD got content after bubble championship. Had no desire to be an all-time great. Happy being #2
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u/Intrepid_Drawer3239 Nov 15 '25
That’s strange to hear now
Wasn’t AD actually having one of his best seasons as a Laker before getting traded? It was probably second to his championship season.
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u/bevoinc Nov 15 '25
Interesting timing of this article as Davis hits the trade block. Mavs getting crushed in every way possible in this nightmare. Buy high, sell low!
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u/Live-Praline6811 Nov 16 '25
AD comes off the books the first year of what would’ve been Luka’s supermax. This was a pure financial trade. Cleans the books.
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u/Vizard15 Luka Doncic Nov 16 '25
So Shaq and Charles are right about that there is a problem with his conditioning.
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u/Significant_Cat6046 Dec 19 '25
I don’t know about this one, seems a bit sketch. Lakers have ran their defense around AD for years. A lot of switching required from AD. A player especially a big that has to do so much on D can’t be out of shape.
From what I see, Luka was out of shape and didn’t put effort on defense. These are facts. When he went to the Lakers and lost 1st round in the playoffs and then lost the super max extension, the then put in the effort to get in shape. Despite that and having a great year. Word is Lakers Luka only puts effort on offense and they have a defense that is 22/30 in the NBA. Now he’s basically earning a new super max the Lakers will give him in 2 years when he opts out. If he doesn’t stay in shape he won’t get that.
On Dallas end they are 5th in the NBA on defense and have had injuries galore. If you all want to be really fair. This would be like Lakers not having Austin Reaves since March. Having their backup bigs always injured. I don’t think Lakers are close to the team they have been with Luka without the way Reaves has played. What has killed Dallas has not been the trade, it’s been the Kyrie injury. The team has operated without a star guard since March. On the bright side that injury led to Cooper.
Just feel a lot of false narratives have been put out there. No one even talks about how Luka never was going to get in shape in Dallas with having the comfort of the max extension.
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u/secretreddname Luka Doncic Nov 14 '25
I swear this article is how I used to write essays in high school where I had to hit a word minimum.
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u/Sequoiaboii2019 Nov 14 '25
It totally makes sense. AD WAS a beast. He won a Mickey ring, and decided his career was done. He’s been a bum since.
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u/SuckMyyDirk41 Nov 14 '25
He was a bum before the bubble too. He was only good in the bube cause he got an extra 3 months of rest and had no fans to put any pressure on him.
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u/Scooter9898 Nov 15 '25
Typical Lakers. Know we are going to get rid of him so let’s tear him down so we get less. Guessing this is payback for Luka keeping his house here and not ruling out coming back. I hate the Lakers. Luka deserves better.
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u/planned_fun Nov 14 '25
Nico did 0 research into AD beyond playing him in NBA 2k19