Mavericks Never Planned to Give Luka Doncic Supermax Before Trade to Lakers: Report

The biggest trade in NBA history occurred more than two weeks ago, and little by little, we are understanding (or trying to understand) why the Dallas Mavericks dealt their former superstar point guard, Luka Dončić.

Reports came out insinuating that the Mavericks didn't believe that Dončić could be the player to lead them to new heights despite his most recent success and that he was out of shape and would never get into shape.

We've seen all that; however, a recent report by The Athletic's Christian Clark, Mike Vorkunov and Fred Katz, said that the Mavericks were never going to offer Dončić a five-year, $345 million supermax extension.

Prior to the trade between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Mavericks, it was expected—heck, it was almost guaranteed Dončić would remain a Mavericks for life, sign the extension with Dallas, and lead them to the heights that Dirk Nowitzki once did.

However, that was all thrown out the window once Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison, assistant general manager and vice president of player personnel Michael Finley, and majority owners The Adelson and Dumont families traded away Dončić to L.A.

It is a move that some can't seem to get over, but on the Dallas side of things, it was a no-brainer.

Last weekend, team governor Patrick Dumont alluded to those concerns in an interview with the Dallas Morning News' Brad Townsend.

"If you look at the greats in the league, the people you and I grew up with—[Michael] Jordan, [Larry] Bird, Kobe [Bryant], Shaq [O'Neal]—they worked really hard, every day, with a singular focus to win,” he said. "And if you don't have that, it doesn't work. And if you don't have that, you shouldn't be part of the Dallas Mavericks.

“That's who we want. I'm unwavering on this. The entire organization knows this. This is how I operate outside of basketball. This is the only way to be competitive and win. If you want to take a vacation, don't do it with us."

One man's trash is another man's treasure, and the beneficiaries of that went on to be the Lakers.

Regardless of the concerns Dallas may or may not have had, Dončić is on his way to being an all-time great in the game.

In his short career, Dončić is already a five-time All-star, five-time First-Team All-NBA, and has the third highest points average in his career at 28.6, behind Hall of Famers and legends Wilt Chamberlain and Michael Jordan.

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