Luka Dealt to Lakers: Nico Harrison is a Basketball Terrorist

[hakeemfaan]

It’s silly coming off a season where the team was on a 60 win pace once they made their trades and pretty solidly got through the tough Western conference to decide that you can’t build a title team around Luka. That history makes building around Luka just an incremental step. Blowing up the star and completely changing the style of play is the more difficult, nearly impossible path, especially when the new star is older, plays a position of diminishing value, has never been a #1 on a championship quality team, and just isn’t as good to begin with.  It’s a crazy decision. The Mavs just weren’t able to handle the bright lights that go with having a player with as much star quality as Luka. Trading your best home grown player with deep roots in the community for a mercenary will not work. It’s basically like the old days when the Mavs traded players in their primes for Dantley and Herb Williams and then went down the tubes.  It’s over for the Mavs. Their best path now is to make and win the lottery.

I never thought of that.  You are correct.  Franchises like Boston and LA know how to handle megatalents.The Mavs were overwhelmed fro the start. They gave the keys to Luka too soon and then spent the rest of the years trying to take some of the keys back.  When Barnes and Wesley Matthew tried to get him to play a team style they were shipped off. When teammates took last second shots and missed like when DSJ did, Luka pouted. When RC tried, Luka took shots at him and RC was let go.

Then as it kept spiraling was there ever any internal suspension for a few games?  Luka was treated with kid gloves. Then Nico comes and fires all his close confidants and Luka just goes out and hires his own. Was there a conversation between all sides?  Mavs seemed to be afraid of any direct interaction. 

So the first real disciplinary thing they do is go and trade him away. Reports are he cried when he first found out.  He is not a bad guy and wanted to be here.  Yes he could have changed himself but maybe a spanking here and there would have also woken him up. The Mavs should have been more strict and lived with the consequences.  They were so worried that he would ask out that they seemingly never imposed any sort of punishment and then just cut ties one fine night. 

A franchise that has dealt with a ton of stars handles this so differently.