Mavericks haunted again as Luka Doncic trade keeps brutally twisting the knife

The Dallas Mavericks made one of the craziest trades in NBA history nearly six months ago, as they traded Luka Doncic, Maxi Kleber, and Markieff Morris to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a first-round pick. This move was Nico Harrison's decision, as his concerns with Doncic combined with his fondness for Davis and his impact on the game ultimately led to this move, and it lit the NBA world on fire.

Despite this trade happening over 170 days ago, the Mavericks are always still getting flak about it, as it was recently named the biggest roster mistake in the NBA since 2020 by ESPN's Zach Kram. Other moves at the bottom of this list included the Phoenix Suns trading for Bradley Beal and Kevin Durant and the Milwaukee Bucks trading for Damian Lillard, but no move was ranked worse than Dallas' Doncic trade.

Kram's reasoning for putting the Doncic trade at the bottom of his list states that he had just led the Mavericks to the NBA Finals in the previous summer and had made the All-NBA First Team five times in a row. He also brought up the fact that everyone's first reaction to reading Shams Charania's report that stated Doncic had been traded was to assume he had been hacked, showing how outlandish this move was.

Mavericks' Luka Doncic trade is still under a major microscope

Kram continues to talk about the heartbreak that this trade caused for sports fans, and Dallas truly may never hear the end of this. Everyone remembers exactly where they were when they got the news that Doncic would be heading to Los Angeles, and there may never be another move like this again.

It was hard enough for Mavericks fans to go through the Doncic trade at the time, as it was likely the most unexpected and lopsided trade in sports history, and the pain of this move for fans will continue to live on. Even though Dallas drafted Cooper Flagg, and he is poised to be a star right away, fans shouldn't expect him to be like Doncic right away.

Flagg and Doncic are completely different players, as Flagg is an all-world defender and freak athlete while Doncic is a world-class playmaker and offensive engine, and the way they impact the game will look completely different. This isn't to say that Flagg can't morph into an NBA star, as he is known for his elite work ethic and is never satisfied, and this is going to put him in a great spot to succeed right away. He and Doncic share a similar love for winning, and Flagg won't settle for second place.

Regardless, though, the Mavs' decision to trade Doncic before he even hit his prime will continue to draw criticism, and not even Flagg can save them from that. If the Mavs hadn't won the draft lottery, their future outlook would be looking much more grim right now, and everyone knows that.

Mavs fans must prepare themselves to hear about the Doncic trade until the end of time, as no other move will likely ever surpass it as being one of the worst trades in NBA history, and the heartbreak of seeing Doncic in the purple and gold will live on for fans.