NBA Realities

Luka Doncic admitted earlier this week that the Dallas Mavericks sought his approval before completing the Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington trades. Luka told the media on February 8th that the organization discussed both trades with him to gain his approval.

At first glance, the Mavericks’ decision to consult with Luka Doncic on potential acquisitions is normal, as teams sometimes consult with stars before making a big move.For example, the Milwaukee Bucks talked to Giannis Antetokounmpo before hiring a new head coach last offseason.

According to Marc Stein, Giannis Antetokounmpo told the Bucks he didn’t want to play for Nick Nurse, which contributed to them hiring Adrian Griffin. Although it is ok to seek occasional input from players on organizational decisions, teams begin to have problems when they depend on player input to make decisions.

Luka Doncic’s unhappiness with Rick Carlisle

Over the past three years, the Dallas Mavericks have sought Luka’s input on every major decision to ensure he stays with the organization. Dallas’ rationale behind involving him in every major organizational decision was to ensure they avoided the Rick Carlisle situation again. Luka Doncic reportedly didn’t enjoy playing for Carlisle during his first three seasons because of how he treated role players on the team.

According to Tim McMahon of ESPN, Carlisle accused Dennis Smith Jr of being jealous of Luka Doncic during an early season meeting in 2018. Luka didn’t like that Carlisle tried to cause a rift between teammates.

Carlisle’s treatment of Luka’s teammates continued to be an issue. The coach refused to defend former Mavericks center Salah Mejri after he picked up two technicals.

“You’ve got two f—ing points, get the f— out of here!” Carlisle shouted at Mejri, pointing toward the tunnel to the locker room, an exchange caught by television cameras.

The coach’s treatment of Mejri frustrated Doncic as Luka viewed the center as a big brother because Salah was good to him when they were teammates at Real Madrid in 2015. The tension between both men kept on growing thanks to Haralabos Voulgaris, the former director of quantitative research and development.

Luka Doncic believed Haralabos Voulgaris dictated the starting lineups and rotation for the team from 2018 to 2021. Luka’s beliefs led to a lack of respect for Carlisle’s coaching decisions. Doncic’s poor relationship with franchise leadership led the Mavericks to clean house. Haralabos Voulgaris, Donnie Nelson, and Carlisle stepped down from their positions before the 2021-22 season.

Doncic’s power in the Mavs organization

Dallas hired Nico Harrison as the new general manager. Nico is the former vice president of North American basketball operations at Nike. he played a pivotal role in Doncic becoming the first European player to join the Jordan Brand in 2019.

Harrison’s relationship with Doncic has allowed Luka to shape the roster in his vision. Luka pushed the new front office to trade for Kyrie Irving last season because the team struggled with a record of 28-26. The Mavericks complied with his request as they traded Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a 2027 second-round pick, a 2029 first-round pick (unprotected), and a 2029 second-round pick for Irving and Markieff Morris.

Doncic has continued to influence the team’s decision this season. The Mavericks traded Grant Williams earlier this week because he annoyed people in the organization. One of the ways Williams reportedly irked the franchise was he stopped wearing Doncic’s signature shoe at some point this season.

The Mavericks traded Grant Williams, Seth Curry, and a 2027 first-round pick (top two protected) to the Charlotte Hornets for P.J. Washington. Dallas targeted Washington because Luka was enthusiastic about playing with him.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN” was told that Luka Doncic was very enthusiastic about the idea of landing P.J. Washington. I think that was a little bit of a motivating factor that he was excited about the possibility of getting him at this trade deadline to add him to this team to make a run.”

On the same day, the organization also traded Richaun Holmes and a 2024 first-round pick (via Oklahoma City) to the Wizards for Gafford. Luka told the media he has been wanting the team to acquire a backup center for 3 seasons.

Luka’s organizational influence has resulted in the team trading five draft picks, including three first-rounders over the past year. Consequently, the team can only trade two first-round picks to improve the roster.

Luka’s style play

Luka’s vision doesn’t align with his style of play. He has led the league in time of possession over the last three seasons, holding the ball for 9 minutes per game. Luka’s time of possession is high because he constantly tries to break down defenders in isolation.

Luka Donicic has spent 22.9 % of his possessions in the isolation play type, averaging 7 per game. At least three teammates are behind the arc as floor spacers when Luka isolates. This season, the Maverick’s most consistent lineup has been Irving, Derrick Jones Jr, Doncic, Williams, and Dereck Lively. They averaged 7.6 minutes per game in 13 outings. Irving, Jones, and Williams took more than 35% of their shots behind this season.

The Mavericks traded Williams, who has a career three-point shooting percentage above 37% on at least two attempts per game. The organization hasn’t replaced their shooting yet, as Washington shoots 35.9% on 4.9 attempts per game. 

Dallas’s three-point shooting percentage should decrease as they shot 37.3% on 40.6 attempts before the trade, 10th in the league. The Mavericks’ three-point shooting percentage could have been even better if Curry was in the rotation.

Curry is a career 43.2% three-point shooter on 4.2 attempts. Unfortunately, he averaged 12.7 minutes per game in 36 appearances.

Doncic’s defense

Luka’s decision-making will also negatively affect the team’s defense. Luka is a player who prefers to avoid moving on defense. For example, Doncic stands in the paint early in the third quarter vs the Suns as Kevin Durant drives to the basket. Luka stays there as Bradley Beal, his defensive assignment, jogs to the right corner. Durant passed the ball to Beal for three.

Luka Doncic’s defensive effort led opponents to shoot 48.2% when he has defended them over the last three seasons on 14.8 attempts, 1.1% worse than the league average. He ranks 74th in the category among forwards who have more than ten starts.

Luka’s style of play indicates that he should surround himself with 3&D players to achieve maximum success. Unfortunately, he has traded away some of the best defenders on the roster. Finney-Smith has held opponents to 45.7% shooting since the 2021-22 season on 13.2 attempts, 1.9% better than the league average.

Consequently, the Mavericks will continue to underperform without future assists to keep improving the roster. After a couple of seasons of the team being unable to meet his demands due to a lack of assets, he will ask for a trade. Dallas will be on board with Doncic’s request as they’ll realize a trade is the easiest way to clean the mess he created for the franchise.