When it comes to the Luka Dončić trade, Adam Silver is just like us.
So said the NBA commissioner during his news conference Saturday from the NBA’s All-Star weekend in San Francisco. Silver, not surprisingly, was asked early about the trade of Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers that remains a stunner two weeks after it was consummated.
He told reporters that the deal arrived as a surprise to him, just like fans.
“I was surprised when I heard about the trade,” Silver said. “I did not know that Luka was potentially a player that was about to be traded. That was news to me. I followed it like a fan at that point.
“That’s the kind of confidential information that’s generally not shared with the league in advance unless a team is publicly shopping a player. To the best of my knowledge, that’s not what happened in the case of Dallas and Los Angeles.”
Per reports, Silver is correct. Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison reportedly didn’t shop his five-time All-NBA point guard for the best offer. He instead zeroed in on the Lakers with the specific intent of landing Anthony Davis in return.
The Lakers, of course, were happy to oblige, and they sent the 31-year-old injury-prone Davis to Dallas in exchange for Dončić, who now projects as the face of the franchise for the next decade-plus.
Because of this, Mavericks fans are furious. Dončić is not only a generational talent and a perennial MVP candidate. He’s a beloved figure in the Dallas community and a superb entertainer who more often than not made Mavericks home games worth the price of admission. And now he’s a Laker.
Silver ’empathetic’ with angry Mavericks fans
“In terms of anger at the fan base, I’m empathetic,” Silver continued. “I understand. Dallas was in the Finals last year.
“I’ve also said this before. I like Luka very much. … It seems truly authentic that he was stunned, and you could see it in his body language.”
NBA doesn’t address fan ejections in Dallas
Dončić has played two games with the Lakers since the trade and is presumably turning the page on the shocking events of his professional and personal life. Mavericks fans, meanwhile, remain jilted. They’ve shown up to the Mavericks’ home arena armed with props, signs and protest chants in anger at Harrison and the ownership group led by Patrick Dumont and Miriam Adelson.
They’ve shown up inside American Airlines Center with calls to for Harrison to be fired. The Mavericks have responded by ejecting those paying customers from the arena.
Neither the Mavericks nor the league have addressed the ejections, which appear to have been doled out simply to stifle protest.
Silver, careful on Saturday not to throw an ownership group under the bus while expressing his empathy with fans, did not address the ejections.
Silver ‘sympathetic’ to Mavs ownership
Silver did say that he believes that Mavericks brass acted in good faith in trading Dončić while tacitly addressing conspiracy theories that have popped up around the trade, including one suggesting that it’s part of a plan to move the Mavericks from Dallas to Las Vegas.
“I also am sympathetic to the Mavericks organization,” Silver continued. “I’ve known Nico Harrison for a long time from his prior tenure at Nike. I’ve gotten to be close to Patrick Dumont, our new governor in Dallas.
“I can say one thing for sure. Whether or not history will ultimately judge this as a smart trade, they did what they thought was in the best interest of their organization.
“I have absolutely no knowledge or belief that there were any ulterior motives. There’s no doubt in my mind that the Dumont, Adelson families bought that team to keep it in Dallas. I have no doubt whatsoever that they’re committed to the long-term success of that franchise.”
Silver urges Mavericks fans to ‘believe in their organization’
Silver then left fans with a parting message that will be difficult to swallow in Dallas.
“In terms of the Dallas fans, all I can say to them is, again, time will tell whether it’s a smart trade,” Silver concluded. “I think they should believe in their organization. Their organization truly made a trade that they believe was in the best interest of the organization.
“It doesn’t mean they were right or wrong. But it’s very difficult to put yourselves in their shoes. They are living with the situation. They have a philosophical belief in what’s necessary to win championships. And I’m not in a position to second-guess that.”
