An atomic bomb went off in NBA circles Saturday night when it was reported that the Dallas Mavericks would be trading star player Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis.
The news was so shocking that many people thought ESPN’s lead NBA insider Shams Charania had his X account hacked when he reported the trade.
But once people realized that this was no practical joke, the hot takes began flying. The blockbuster trade spurred Bill Simmons and Co. to record an emergency podcast on Saturday night to discuss the deal. Tagging along for the show were The Ringer’s own Ryen Russillo and Rob Mahoney.
After the initial shock of the trade, an immediate reaction for many people centered around why the Mavericks would willingly part ways with a generational talent like Dončić, who just led the team to an NBA Finals appearance last year.
Fans didn’t have to wait long to get an explanation from the Mavericks’ front office. The team’s general manager Nico Harrison told ESPN, “I believe that defense wins championships. I believe that getting an All-Defensive center and an All-NBA player with a defensive mindset gives us a better chance. We’re built to win now and in the future.”
Many took that as a shot at Dončić’s conditioning and defensive ability. But Russillo would not have let that deter him from locking up Luka as the Lakers did. In fact, he even went a step further.
“Even if they had some sort of crazy insights to his terrible diet habits, some sort of physical issues that maybe they’re only aware of, I still would’ve offered him the supermax. He’s Luka Dončić. Made the Finals last year,” Simmons said, concurring with the general wisdom of NBA fans.
“No doubt,” Mahoney chimed in.
Then Russillo, from the top rope, said this.
“He could’ve been smoking cigarettes, Bill. He could’ve been smoking cigarettes bringing the ball up the f*cking court and I would still be like, ‘When can we sign you to the supermax?'”
It’s unclear how legitimate the criticisms of Dončić’s wellness habits are, but Ryen Russillo has a point here. Even if the superstar guard is eating Big Macs for every meal, it’s clearly not impacted his on-court performance that much. He’s still objectively one of the best players in the league.
So good use of hyperbole here from Russillo. There are surely many NBA franchises who’d gladly take a cigarette-smoking Luka Dončić over their current backcourt.