Luka Doncic's emotional night leaves Mavericks fans craving dream scenario

Wednesday night was one of the strangest regular-season games in Dallas Mavericks history as the Mavs hosted the Los Angeles Lakers for Luka Doncic's homecoming game just over two months after they unexpectedly traded him.

Even before you walked into the game, the stage was set outside the arena for a cinematic evening. From a massive truck driving around the streets surrounding the American Airlines Center with a sign in the back that read "fire Nico, sell the team" to street vendors selling Doncic Lakers merchandise to countless fans of both teams proudly wearing No. 77 jerseys, it quickly became clear that this game wasn't a Mavericks home game.

It was a Luka home game.

Regardless of what team you supported in this game, every fan inside that arena had their eyes locked on Doncic. Dallas is still his city, and fans packed the arena to get a glimpse of history. Fans were at the game to see how Doncic responded to one of the wildest backstabbings in NBA history while showering him with cheers for the spectacular six-and-a-half seasons he spent in Dallas, and his love for the city and its fans was clear before the game began.

A Luka Doncic reunion with the Mavericks can't be ruled out yet

The Mavericks' tribute video that was played before Doncic's name was called in the starting lineups brought him to tears, and after the game, he admitted that he didn't know how he ended up playing in the game after going through a rollercoaster of emotions during that 139-second video that caused the AAC crowd to erupt with loud cheers that continued until he checked out of the game for the final time and was issued a standing ovation.

Fans still can't believe that Doncic was taken away from them by Nico Harrison, and even Doncic himself still doesn't have full closure when it comes to his time in Dallas. He wanted to be a Maverick for life, and while that possibility is out the window since he's with the Lakers now, the chances of him returning one day shouldn't be completely ruled out.

While a lot would have to change within the organization to convince Doncic to return, likely including firing Harrison along with potentially a new ownership group, it's clear that he still loves Dallas like Dallas loves him. He wanted Dallas to be the place where he raises his family and grows as a player and a man, and he was prepared to put that into writing this summer by signing a supermax extension, but the Mavericks had no interest in him signing that record-breaking deal. No one wanted things to be like this except for Harrison and the ownership group that signed off on this cursed trade, and Doncic returning at some point down the line would bring life back to the city.

Mavs basketball has never felt the same since Doncic was traded, and him playing for the Mavericks would be the best storybook ending to his career. While the heartbreak of Doncic sporting a Lakers jersey will never go away, the dream scenario of him wearing a Mavericks jersey again and bringing a title to the city of Dallas has been in every fan's mind since his homecoming game, and this dream won't be going away anytime soon.

Doncic wanted to win the NBA Finals with the Mavericks as badly as he wanted to breathe, and while that dream may be on pause, it's overwhelmingly obvious that a huge part of Luka Doncic never left Dallas.