Lakers legend must eat his words as his Luka Doncic nightmare becomes reality

Although the Dallas Mavericks have played four games since trading away Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers, it still doesn't feel real for not only Maverick fans but the rest of the NBA community.

The city of Dallas can't get over that Doncic is no longer a Maverick. Protests were held outside of the American Airlines Center on Saturday, as fans were furious that an all-time great Maverick is gone. Even with Nico Harrison having his reasons to trade Doncic, trading away a franchise player doesn't make sense for most.

Prior to the start of the season, not many would've seen Doncic wearing another NBA uniform. Insane irony has now happened that Doncic is now a Laker. There was one Lakers legend that didn't want the Lakers to pursue Doncic but now will have to root for the Lakers with Doncic on the team now.

Horry's take about Doncic may come back to bite him

Prior to the start of training camp, Lakers legend Robert Horry was strongly passionate when he talked about how the Lakers should not pursue Doncic if he was to become a free agent in 2026 on his "Big Shot Bob Podcast." One of the first things that Horry mentioned about Doncic was his defensive abilities.

"(Doncic) ain't the best defensive player now, and that's the problem for the Lakers," Horry said. "You know, you got to have some athletic guys that can play some defense."

The Lakers would send Anthony Davis to the Mavericks as part of the Doncic trade. Davis was by far the best defender on the Lakers. Now that Davis is gone, it will be interesting to see what defensive impact Doncic can have on the Lakers. Doncic has averaged at least one steal per game every season and averaged two steals per game this season before getting traded.

Horry also criticized Doncic for his iconic moment when he was seen drinking a beer when the Mavericks won the 2024 Western Conference Finals. In the same part, Horry criticized his weight issues as the Mavericks were concerned about his weight and conditioning.

"We also know you got to take beers out of his hands 'cause he doin' staying in shape," Horry said. "He gonna be good, but he ain't gonna be what you need probably."

While Horry said what he said about Doncic before this season, Doncic has shown what kind of player he has been his whole career. Along with winning the 2019 Rookie of the Year and the 2024 Western Conference Finals MVP, Doncic has been a superstar player his whole career.

Over the past five seasons in which Doncic made the All-Star Game, he made the All-NBA First Team in each of the five consecutive seasons. In his final two full seasons with the Mavericks, Doncic averaged over 32 points per game. Last season, Doncic won the NBA scoring title while averaging an impressive 33.9 points per game.

Now being to play with LeBron James can help make him a better player. Davis was able to have successful seasons playing with James. Now that James has Doncic, he has an elite wing scorer that the Lakers have been lacking for a few years. Doncic's scoring abilities could help the Lakers get over the top in the playoffs. The Lakers became a solid championship contender by adding Doncic still in his prime at 25 years old.

Doncic will have the big bright Los Angeles lights shining on him and will be eager to show the Mavericks that they shouldn't have traded him. While doing that, Horry will have to see Doncic in a Lakers jersey just months after he said the Lakers should stay away from Doncic.