LeBron James, Anthony Davis Agent Rich Paul Reacts to Lakers' Luka Doncic Trade

Ricardo Sandoval | Feb 9, 2025

May 13, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Savannah James, LeBron James and Rich Paul sit in the front in the fourth quarter of game four of the second round for the 2024 NBA playoffs between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images / David Richard-Imagn Images

A week has passed since the biggest and most shocking trade in arguably all of sports.

The Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks made a blockbuster trade last Saturday, sending superstar Luka Dončić to L.A. in exchange for Anthony Davis.

Davis is now a Maverick, and Dončić is now a Laker.

Although time has passed, some are still in disbelief of the trade, including the agent of LeBron James and Davis, Rich Paul.

Paul spoke on the trade between Davis and Dončić and said he was shocked, like many others.

Kevin Gary Jr. of the pre and post of the Mavericks podcast shared via X.

"This one was a shock. And again, the timing of it was a shock, who was involved was a shock, (but) the destination was not a shock, just based upon the relationship. AD has been someone that Nico (Harrison) has coveted since he got the job, so that’s not a shock to me."

Rich Paul on the Anthony Davis/Luka Dončić trade:

"This one was a shock. And again, the timing of it was a shock, who was involved was a shock, (but) the destination was not a shock, just based upon the relationship. AD has been someone that Nico (Harrison) has coveted since he… https://t.co/su992jqxrN

— Kevin Gray Jr. (@KevinGraySports) February 7, 2025

The Lakers traded Davis along with Max Christie and a 2029 first-round pick in exchange for Dončić, forward/center Maxi Kleber, and forward/center Markieff Morris from the Dallas Mavericks in a three-team trade. 

The shock value of this trade was like no other.

The Lakers traded away a player who was expected to lead L.A. into the next chapter of Lakers basketball.

As for the Mavericks, they traded the face of the franchise and a player who led them to two Western Conference finals and one NBA Finals just a couple of months ago.

Dallas fans have still not gotten over Dončić's departure, and reasonably so; however, they get back an all-world player in Davis and a solid role player in Christie.

Time will pass, and both sides could eventually be happy with this trade. However, to many, the Lakers are viewed as winners in the long term.

L.A. resets with a win-now player in Dončić and has him as the face of the franchise for the next decade or so.

Dončić is one of three players in league history to garner five All-NBA First Team selections before age 26, joining Kevin Durant and Tim Duncan. 

This season, Dončić has appeared in 22 games (all starts), averaging 28.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, 7.8 assists and 2.0 steals in 35.7 minutes.

The 25-year-old has tallied 12,089 points, 3,655 rebounds, and 3,489 assists and is one of two players in NBA history to record at least 10,000 points, 3,000 rebounds, and 3,000 assists through their first 400 career games (Oscar Robertson). 

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For more news and notes on the Los Angeles Lakers, visit Los Angeles Lakers on SI.