Shaquille O’Neal has waded in on the Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis trade, expressing who he feels the move benefits the most out of the Los Angeles Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks.
Late Saturday night, NBA insider Shams Charania revealed the shocking news of Dallas Mavericks trading their franchise star Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for Davis, Max Christie and a 2029 first-round pick.
While many – including Doncic himself – thought it was a prank, the Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison revealed the trade had been in the works for weeks and that only he and Lakers counterpart Rob Pelinka were aware of it.
And O’Neal, who was a Laker for eight years and integral to their three-peat during this time, revealed he was as stunned as others when he saw the news of Doncic getting traded to the Purple and Gold, before adding who he thinks are the winners of the trade.
‘I think Dallas got the better of the trade for the next two years anyway,’ said the four-time NBA champion on the Inside the NBA show.
Luka Doncic’s (left) trade with Anthony Davis on Saturday is still reverberating around the NBA
‘Obviously Dallas didn’t want to move forward with one of the greatest young players that we have seen today.
‘I wish the business of basketball could have been handled a little better.
‘You would think a guy that five years in the league, five first team All-NBA’s would at least get a conversation.’
Dallas certainly got one of the best two-way bigs in the league in Davis, alongside a handy two-way player in Max Christie, but trade experts believe the franchise would have got a bigger haul if they would have informed other teams of potentially moving Doncic.
Since his rookie season in 2018, Doncic has made five All-Star teams, five All-NBA first-teams and led the Mavs to only their third-ever NBA Finals appearance.
Davis on the other hand is an NBA champion and has the credentials to lead the Mavs to a successful season, but is 31 and prone to injuries.
Shaquille O’Neal has given his verdict on the LA Lakers and Dallas Mavericks trade
During the Mavs press conference after the trade, Harrison confirmed the franchise executed the move to contend for a тιтle in the immediate future.
‘Anthony Davis fits our time frame, if you pair him with Kyrie and rest of the guys, he fits right along with our time frame to win now and win in the future and the future to me is three – four years from now.
The Mavs, who were pre-season favourites, have not had a great first half of the season and sit 11th in the Western Conference with a 26-25 record.
Doncic’s effort on the defensive end has always been questionable and while Davis does bring that, will he be able to fill the void No 77 has left on the offensive end is a question only time will answer.
