Luka Dončić returns to Dallas with the Lakers, compared to Babe Ruth

New York Times

09-04-2025

DALLAS – Draped across the 20,000 spectator seats inside American Airlines Center were t-shirts with the following message written in Slovenian, directed at the evening's special guest.
'Hvala za vse,' which means 'thank you for everything.'
Almost no one outside of Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison's office could have, up until the shocking news broke on Feb. 2, imagined any scenario where the people of Dallas were welcoming Slovenian-born superstar Luka Dončić as part of the visiting team or thanking him for 6 ½ years of service that are now over.
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But that exact scenario is playing out on Wednesday, with Dončić and the Los Angeles Lakers (a sequence of wording that still gives Mavs fans shivers) in Dallas for a game for the first time since the blockbuster trade from two long months ago.
'Some were comparing it to Babe Ruth (getting traded by the Boston Red Sox to the New York Yankees), which is kind of cool,' Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said.
This Mavericks-Lakers game, on ESPN, is also a big deal because it features the other star in the Dončić deal, Anthony Davis, playing against his old team for the first time since the trade, and almost as an aside, both teams need to win for postseason positioning. A small footnote, LeBron James will pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the second-most games played (1,561 games) in NBA history.
All of those things take a back seat to the return of Dončić, a five-time All-Star, perennial MVP candidate, and 26-year-old who had already led the franchise to two Western Conference finals and the NBA Finals last season. A player like him, just entering his prime, simply is not traded.
But early on Feb. 2, news broke that the Mavericks traded Dončić, Maxi Kleber and Markieef Morris to the Lakers for Davis (a 10-time All-Star and 2020 champion with the Lakers), Max Christie and the Lakers' first-round pick in 2029. Two franchises were changed forever.
'There will be a lot of emotions, I think, a chance for fans to say hi or say bye,' Kidd said. 'Unfortunately with the trade, they didn't get that opportunity. You're talking about one of the best players in the world on one of the biggest stages, who's always delivered.'
Lakers coach JJ Redick said his message to Dončić would be that his teammates and coaches 'got your back.'
'Luka said it last night to me, I know he said it to you guys – he doesn't even know how he's gonna feel,' Redick said. 'I think anybody who's been in a place that means a lot to them and built relationships and felt really a part of the community, that first time back is always emotional and there's no predicting how you're gonna feel.'
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Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki is expected to be in attendance for Dončić. He was there in Los Angeles when the Mavericks played the Lakers for the first time since the trade on Feb. 25.
The Lakers acquired the next face of their franchise in Dončić, already a co-standard bearer with James, who is near retirement. The Mavs say they restructured to win with defense, adding Davis to an already large frontcourt, and avoided a disruptive summer that would have followed when Dončić would have been eligible for a five-year, $345 million contract extension.
Dončić insists he was always prepared to sign and remain a Maverick for his entire career. It has become clear Harrison did not want to offer Dončić the extension, stating generally that some players are better fits culturally than others.
The trade was met with great anger from the Mavericks' fan base; there were protests inside and outside American Airlines Center, with patrons calling for Harrison's job. During the first few home games after the trade, fans protesting Harrison were removed from the arena.
When the Mavs traveled to Los Angeles for the first game between the two franchises since the trade (Davis was out that night with an injury), Laker fans thanked Harrison, who was in attendance, for making the trade. The Lakers won that game and Dončić scored 19 points against his old team, but his first trip to Dallas was always going to be the more emotional reunion because, well, this was home – a home he intended to keep.
'When you look at just the business of sports, change happens,' Kidd said. 'When change happens, it's the ones who carry on and keep moving forward – those are the special people. Fans are gonna be fans, they have a right to boo, they have a right to cheer. Hope is still in that locker room. AD is not a bad player – I think he's a top 75 player (of all time) if I recall.'
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The Lakers were in fourth place at the time of the trade and entered play Wednesday in third in a tight Western race. A win over the Mavs would clinch a playoff spot. Dallas was in ninth place when the deal went down and entered Wednesday's game in 10th. A win over the Lakers would secure a spot in the Play-In, which, really, would be a win for the franchise given that Kyrie Irving went down to a torn ACL on March 3.
Dončić entered play averaging 27.1 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 7.6 assists in 26 games for the Lakers. Davis was averaging 20.6 points and 9.6 boards in seven games for Dallas. He was injured during his Mavs debut on Feb. 8 and missed the next 18 games.
'I'm forever grateful to AD for our relationship as player coach and him allowing a first-year coach, a guy who's never coached outside of 9 and 10-year-olds to actually coach him,' Redick said. 'And I thought we had a terrific working relationship and a terrific rapport and I've expressed that to him – my gratitude for that. It was a pleasure to be around every single day and, yeah, I think regardless of if we had five bigs or if we have one big like we currently do in our rotation he's gonna give you nightmares. Like, he's that good, he's one of the best players ever and you certainly have to scheme for him.'
This story will be updated.