Lakers' Luka Doncic Delivers Blunt Response on Playing Former Team

Luka Doncic never expected to be traded. He thought that he was going to spend his entire career with the Dallas Mavericks.

He thought that he was going to be the next Dirk Nowitzki. Instead, he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers about a week before the trade deadline.

Now, Doncic will have a chip on his shoulder for the rest of his career. He's going to try to make sure that the Mavericks regret the decision to trade him.

Doncic played his former team for the first time since the league-altering trade. He put on a show, recording his first triple-double since wearing a Lakers uniform.

It's clear that Doncic had a lot of emotions going through him during the game. Every time he made a shot, he would stare over at the Dallas bench.

After the game, he was asked how it felt to play the first game against his old team. His response was pretty blunt.

Luka Doncic on playing his former team for the first time tonight: “Sometimes I didn’t know what I was doing [out there] … I am just glad it’s over.”
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) February 26, 2025

“Weird game, different game…” Luka Doncic says.
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) February 26, 2025

Doncic just wanted to get past this first game. It's going to be a lot of the same emotions when he faces the Mavericks in Dallas for the first time.

Other Lakers players knew what this game meant to him. They kept making sure he was getting the ball so that he could dissect the Mavs' defense.

Doncic is still knocking off some rust, too. He missed over a month with a calf strain and only played two games with the Lakers before the All-Star break.

Once he knocks off that rust, he's going to be the top-three player that he has been for most of his career.

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Los Angeles has been playing some really good basketball, even before they got Doncic. They have won nine of their last 11 games.

The Lakers are hoping to make a run to the second seed in the West. They currently sit just a game back in the loss column from the Grizzlies and the Nuggets for that spot.

Doncic will make his return to Dallas on April 9. All eyes will be on that one.

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