SI

Mavericks Fans Angrily Protested Luka Doncic Trade Outside of Arena

Mavericks fans were shocked and angered by the Doncic trade.

Tim Capurso

Mavericks fans walk to the arena with a coffin during a mock funeral before the game between the Dallas Stars and the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Mavericks fans walk to the arena with a coffin during a mock funeral before the game between the Dallas Stars and the Columbus Blue Jackets. / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
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The Dallas Mavericks sent seismic waves throughout the NBA landscape when they traded five-time All-Star Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in a three-team blockbuster that also sent superstar big man Anthony Davis to Dallas early Sunday morning. So shocking was the trade that fans initially believed NBA Insider Shams Charania's phone had been hacked, and even the likes of Doncic and Davis, as well as Lakers superstar LeBron James, were said to be taken aback.

But Dallas's stunning about-face with its franchise player may have hit those closest to home harder than anyone. Mavericks fans, shocked and hurt by the trade, came out in droves to protest the deal outside of American Airlines Arena before Sunday's hockey game between the Dallas Stars and Columbus Blue Jackets.

Several fans, dressed in all black, carried a coffin in a mock funeral for the Mavericks, as one fan could be seen carrying a sign, which blasted the deal as the "Worst Trade in NBA History."

Signs, flowers, words of appreciation for Doncic and memorabilia were all placed outside the arena in the lead-up to the Stars-Blue Jackets game, all of which were later removed by arena staff on Monday morning.

FOX4 Dallas-Fort Worth also gave Mavericks fans a chance to let their voices be heard in interviews outside the stadium. To say these fans were distraught by the Doncic trade would be an understatement.

One fan, calling the trade the "worst moment in the history of my life", cited Doncic and the Mavs' run to the NBA Finals last summer, then lamented the fact that Doncic, on an early career trajectory that has him in the company of some of the game's greatest players, likely would have earned the right to have a statue outside of the arena one day.

But even more so than his stellar play on the court, Doncic was beloved by the city of Dallas, which in 2021 declared July 6 "Luka Doncic Day", and almost universally loved by Mavs fans.

And the feeling was mutual, as Doncic penned a heartfelt farewell to Mavs fans on Sunday.

Dallas is a special place, and Mavs fans are special fans," Doncic wrote in the statement. "Thank you from the bottom of my heart."

It's safe to say that the emotional scars Mavs fans are feeling in the aftermath of the stunning trade won't soon heal.

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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.

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