Lakers' Jeanie Buss doubles down on surprise of Luka Doncic trade
03/11/2025 12:54 PM
Los Angeles Lakers governor Jeanie Buss recently addressed the blockbuster trade that brought Luka Doncic to the franchise in exchange for Anthony Davis, emphasizing that the deal was not one-sided and was initiated by the Dallas Mavericks. Speaking on former NFL receiver Julian Edelman's podcast, Games with Names, Buss reflected on the magnitude of the trade and its impact on the Lakers and the NBA.
"A one-sided deal is eventually going to either fall apart or come back and haunt you. It's just not the way to do business," Buss said.
Edelman interjected,
"That was a fair trade with the Luka thing, I guess," followed by laughter. "I mean, it had to go there, Jeanie… You guys just got the best damn player at like 21 years old."
Buss acknowledged the difficulty of parting with Davis and clarified that the Lakers had not been actively seeking to trade him.
"Look what we had to give up though. Do you know how hard that was? We were not looking to trade Anthony Davis – Dallas contacted us. It was a deal that both sides wanted to make," Buss said.
Edelman, in response, called it,
"That's like the biggest trade I've ever seen in all of sports."
Jeanie Buss reflects on Luka Doncic's global impact and Lakers' future
Buss admitted she had not anticipated the trade's far-reaching impact.
"I didn't anticipate the global impact it would have. I mean, I knew it was going to be a big story in the NBA, but he really is a global superstar," Buss said.
When asked about the trade's significance for the Lakers' future, Buss expressed excitement for what lies ahead.
"It's gonna be a lot of fun. Our fans are already ecstatic… and I love that he wears 77 'cause we've never had [a player wear that number]. Like, if he was wearing 24, it's like, sorry, you can't wear 24, it's retired. But 77, we've never had a 77," Buss said.
Since acquiring Doncic on February 2, the Lakers have posted a 12-4 record, going 8-4 when the four-time All-Star plays. Their recent eight-game winning streak — the franchise's longest since winning the 2019-20 NBA championship — was snapped in Saturday's loss to the Boston Celtics.
Doncic, still regaining form after missing 22 games due to a calf strain, is averaging 24.5 points, 8.4 rebounds, 8.0 assists, and 1.8 steals per game since joining the Lakers. In Monday's 111-108 loss to the Brooklyn Nets, he recorded a triple-double with 22 points, 12 rebounds, 12 assists, and two steals.
Now at 40-23, the Lakers will look to recover from back-to-back losses as they prepare for a challenging stretch. They face the Milwaukee Bucks (36-27) on Thursday night before taking on the Denver Nuggets (42-23) on Friday in a grueling back-to-back set. The team will then return home for a five-game homestand as they continue their push toward the postseason.
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