The trade was put together in secret, with only a precious few people knowing what was happening. Luka Doncic didn’t know. Anthony Davis didn’t know. Their coaches didn’t know. Their teammates didn’t know.
And then it happened — an absolute blockbuster. Doncic led the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA Finals last season, Davis won a championship with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020 and now they’re switching teams in a move that stunned most everyone in the league.
“I thought I’d spend my career here, and I wanted so badly to bring you a championship,” Doncic said in a written farewell message to Mavs fans. “The love and support you all have given me is more than I could have ever dreamed of.”
Doncic was traded by the reigning Western Conference champion Mavericks to the Lakers for Davis as part of a three-team deal. The trade was announced Sunday morning after the teams got the required league approval.
The trade talks, which took place over about a month, were kept extremely tight-lipped by Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison and Lakers GM Rob Pelinka.
Mavs coach Jason Kidd’s first reaction? “Shock,” Kidd said, though he later added that he believes it’s the right move for his team going forward.
Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris also headed to the Lakers, while Max Christie went to Dallas. The Utah Jazz also were involved, getting Jalen Hood-Schifino and a 2025 second-rounder from both the Mavs and Lakers.
“Sports are about transformative moments,” Pelinka said. “We are inspired by these moments Lakers fans know, expect and love with a franchise that continually ushers in new eras of greatness. ... Luka is a one-of-a-kind, young global superstar who will lead this franchise for years to come. His killer instincts and commitment to winning championships will be a driving force for the team.”
The trade news broke shortly after the Lakers beat the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Davis was not with the Lakers for the game; he has been in Los Angeles because of an abdominal injury that needed assessing.
Doncic has not played for Dallas since Christmas, when he exited a game with a strained left calf. The trade may come at a serious price for Doncic, who now can’t sign a five-year supermax contract extension this summer that could have been worth around $345 million.
It was never clear if the Mavs would have offered such a massive deal. Doncic also would have had an option to leave as a free agent after the 2025-26 season, and it’s certain that other teams with hopes of landing the Slovenian star would have planned for such scenarios.
“There’s other teams that were loading up,” Harrison said Sunday. “He was going to be able to make his own decision at some point of whether he wants to be here or not, whether we want to supermax him or not, or whether he wants to opt out. We had to take all that into consideration and I feel like we got out in front of what could have been a tumultuous summer.”
Doncic is still eligible for an extension this summer, with the max that the Lakers could offer him being five years at about $230 million — a $115 million difference than what the supermax could have been.
“Luka absolutely did not deserve this. ... He really respected Dallas,” Sasa Doncic, Luka’s father, said on Slovenian television Sunday.
The deal pairs Doncic with LeBron James as the new 1-2 punch in Los Angeles, while Davis would be forming a new star duo with Kyrie Irving in Dallas. And it reunites Doncic with his former teammate, Lakers coach JJ Redick.
Doncic was one of the Mavericks players on the floor when Redick came out of a game for the final time on May 11, 2021.
For the Mavericks, the decision largely came down to what Davis does on the defensive end of the floor.
“We think defense wins championships and we’re bringing in one of the best two-way players in the league,” Harrison said. He added that Davis’ ability to be elite at both ends makes him “a unique unicorn” in the NBA.
“We feel like we’re built to win now as well as in the future,” Harrison said.
There was one game still going on in the NBA late Saturday night as the trade began emerging, that being Phoenix-Portland. Suns guard Devin Booker said someone in the stands told him and his teammates of the trade.
“They said Luka. I said, ‘Luka Garza?’” Booker said, referencing a Minnesota center.
Booker wasn’t trying to be funny. He just thought what many probably thought — that there was no way the Mavs would move Doncic.
“It’s crazy, man. I really don’t know what to say about it,” Booker said. “Luka being a guy that everybody has claimed is untouchable and untradeable. The NBA shows you again. Can’t predict. It’s a business. They’re always having a conversation about you. So don’t think you’re safer than you are.”
Added fellow Suns star Kevin Durant: “Insane. It’s crazy. Crazy. Damn, would of never thought Luka Doncic would get traded. At his age, midseason, the NBA is a wild place, man. If he can get traded then anybody is up for grabs.”
Dallas played at Cleveland on Sunday, while the Lakers are off until visiting the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday night. It’s not clear when Doncic or Davis could play for their new clubs; there is no firm timetable for their returns from injury.
Among players with at least 400 games, Doncic’s 28.6-point average is third in NBA history behind only Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain — both at 30.1.
He was third in the MVP voting last season after averaging 33.9 points, 9.8 assists and 9.2 rebounds per game, easily one of the greatest seasons in league history. Doncic — who turns 26 later this month and refers to James as an “idol” — had a 73-point game against Atlanta on Jan. 26, 2024, tying the fourth-highest scoring total ever in an NBA game. Only Chamberlain (100), Kobe Bryant (81) and Chamberlain (78) scored more.
Davis, an All-Star pick this year for the 10th time in his career, turns 32 next month. He’s part of the NBA’s 75th anniversary team, helped the Lakers win the NBA title in the bubble in 2020, and — like Doncic — is a five-time All-NBA selection.
Doncic is averaging 28.1 points, 8.3 rebounds and 7.8 assists this season. Davis is averaging 25.7 points and 11.9 rebounds.
Harrison understands the risk and the anger among some in the Mavs fan base; some people protested outside the team’s arena in Dallas on Sunday. He has traded away a young superstar, someone who easily could be one of the game’s best players for the next decade, for a player in his 30s with a challenging injury history.
“I understand the magnitude of it,” Harrison said. “The easiest thing for me to do is do nothing and everyone would praise me for doing nothing. But we really believe in it and time will tell if I’m right.”
Luka Doncic heads to the Lakers and Anthony Davis goes to the Mavs in blockbuster trade
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Luka Doncic heads to the Lakers and Anthony Davis goes to the Mavs in blockbuster trade
- The trade news broke shortly after the Lakers beat the Knicks at Madison Square Garden
- For the Mavericks, the decision largely came down to what Davis does on the defensive end of the floor
Jokic, Strawther star as Nuggets down Thunder to tie series
- Serbian star Jokic was once again the anchor of a composed Denver performance, finishing with 29 points
LOS ANGELES: Nikola Jokic scored 29 points and unheralded bench player Julian Strawther produced a crucial late burst of scoring as the Denver Nuggets scored a series-leveling 119-107 victory over the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday.
A hardfought NBA Western Conference semifinal series will now go to a decisive game seven in Oklahoma City on Sunday after another ferocious duel between the two sides.
Serbian star Jokic was once again the anchor of a composed Denver performance, finishing with 29 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists to shepherd the Nuggets to victory.
Jamal Murray added 25 points while Christian Braun finished with 23. But arguably the most significant contribution came from the bench, with Strawther scoring 15 points.
Oklahoma City, leading 3-2 in the series, looked ready to clinch a series victory after surging into a 12-point lead late in the second quarter at Denver’s Ball Arena.
But Denver once again refused to roll over and rallied to trim the Thunder lead to 61-58 at the break.
There was little to choose between the teams for most of the third quarter, and with just under two minutes remaining in the frame, the score was level at 80-80.
Yet within moments Denver had suddenly opened a double-digit advantage after a 10-0 run that put the Nuggets into a 90-80 lead.
The scoring spree came from an unlikely source, with the 23-year-old Strawther, in only his second season in the league, suddenly finding his scoring range.
Strawther knocked down back-to-back three-pointers followed by a layup to rattle in eight of the 10 points in the Denver run.
With their noses in front, 2023 NBA champions ruthlessly kept a firm grip on the contest through the fourth quarter, keeping the Thunder safely at arms length to close out the win.
Back on the pitch: Pakistan Super League resumes after conflict-forced suspension
- The Indian Premier League, also suspended due to the outbreak between the countries, will also resume this weekend
- PSL organizers first proposed moving the tournament to Dubai but later decided to postpone it after foreign players were reluctant to participate in the tournament due to security concerns
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s premier Twenty20 cricket tournament resumes Saturday after a ceasefire between India and Pakistan was achieved. There will be a handful of foreign players returning for the remaining eight games.
The Pakistan Super League was suspended on May 9 but last weekend Pakistan and India agreed to a ceasefire after talks to defuse their most serious military confrontation in decades.
The Indian Premier League, also suspended due to the outbreak between the countries, will also resume this weekend.
PSL organizers first proposed moving the tournament to Dubai but later decided to postpone it after foreign players were reluctant to participate in the tournament due to security concerns. Around 43 foreign cricketers — competing on six PSL teams — were flown out of Pakistan from an air base in Rawalpindi.
Rawalpindi will host the remaining four league matches between May 17-19 before Lahore hosts the playoffs from May 21, including the final at Qaddafi Stadium on May 25.
Zimbabwean all-rounder Sikander Raza is among some of foreign players who have returned to Pakistan. Raza, who plays for Lahore Qalandars, is available for Lahore’s crucial last league game against Peshawar Zalmi on Sunday before he flies to England for test duty starting next week.
Raza will not be available for Lahore if the two-time champions qualify for the playoffs due to his test commitments.
He said that if the PSL resumed, he planned to return to Pakistan, even for just one match.
“I was very clear in my head that I was always going to go back,” Raza told The Associated Press as he trained with his teammates at Islamabad Club ground on Thursday.
“This PSL is not just about winning a trophy, there’s a lot more to it. All the overseas (players) that have come back, whether they’re in Pakistan or India, I think credit must be given to them because cricket unites and the whole purpose of sports all around the world is to unite cultures, countries.”
Lahore will also have Sri Lanka batter Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan for its must-win last league game against the Babar Azam-led Peshawar side after Tom Curran and Daryl Mitchel were ruled out due to injuries.
Raza said it was tough for the families of all the players living abroad after there was escalation at the borders.
“Whether it’s Pakistan or India, what happened was tough for everybody,” Raza said. “Sometimes when you’re on the ground, things may not be as bad, but (for) people back home watching TV, sometimes it’s very hard to control what media tells you.”
Lahore team director Sameen Rana said it was important that the PSL returns to finish the season.
“There’s a lot of uncertainty and the conditions which were happening on the ground was not the best, it’s unfortunate,” Rana said. “But from our perspective . . . the important thing is that the PSL is resuming, and that’s what matters.”
Defending champions Islamabad United has brought in Alex Hales of England and Rassie van Dussen of South Africa after initially picking both of them in the supplementary draft while Ben Dwarshuis of Australia is flying back to rejoin the team.
Islamabad, the three-time PSL champions, won five games in a row at the start of the season before four successive defeats.
Finn Allen of New Zealand and Rilee Rossouw of South Africa are rejoining first-place Quetta Gladiators, who have 13 points, three points ahead of Karachi and Islamabad.
Karachi is expecting to have its captain David Warner back from Australia in time to lead the team against Peshawar on Saturday.
De Bruyne seeks fitting Man City farewell in FA Cup final
- He has expressed his “surprise” that City did not seek to extend his stay, filled with the belief that he can still perform at the high
MANCHESTER: Kevin De Bruyne can add another honor to his haul as Manchester City’s most decorated player of all time with a fitting farewell in Saturday’s FA Cup final against Crystal Palace.
The Belgian’s trophy-littered decade in Manchester will come to an end at the conclusion of the Premier League season.
But Wembley’s showpiece is the 33-year-old’s final chance to lift silverware at the club where he grew into one of world’s best players.
A six-time Premier League winner, De Bruyne could add a third FA Cup to his five League Cups and 2023 Champions League win with City.
He has expressed his “surprise” that City did not seek to extend his stay, filled with the belief that he can still perform at the highest level.
De Bruyne rolled back the years when City rallied from 2-0 down to thrash Palace 5-2 just last month with a goal and an assist.
City will be hoping for more of the same to give him a fitting farewell and save some face from a season to forget for Pep Guardiola’s men.
After an unprecedented run of four consecutive Premier League titles, City are 18 points adrift of champions Liverpool and embroiled in a battle just to finish in the top five to secure a place in next season’s Champions League.
De Bruyne’s decline has played a factor in City’s downturn.
Of his 108 goals and 177 assists for the club in 419 appearances, only six and eight respectively have come this season.
However, he remains “irreplaceable” due to his impact in City’s rise to being the dominant force in English football, according to the club’s prolific striker Erling Haaland.
“To get the balls from him is a dream,” said Haaland. “It has been really special playing with him. Such a joy, and I am going to do everything I can to have this joy in the last few games.
“The future will be different with different players. When Kevin leaves we will need someone to replace him, although Kevin is irreplaceable in so many ways.”
Guardiola has appeared almost apologetic for overlooking De Bruyne at times this season as he searched for solutions to fill the gaps in City’s aging midfield.
“The gratitude I have, we have, is huge,” said Guardiola.
“Kevin is the player in the history of the club with the most titles and that defines what Kevin has done with us.”
A giant mural of De Bruyne alongside his trophy haul as a City player was unveiled in Manchester city center on Thursday.
Guardiola has suggested a statue outside the club’s Etihad Stadium is also just a matter of time.
But after a decade most characterised by a relentless thirst to keep on winning, the most fitting tribute would be for De Bruyne to go out with another medal around his neck.
“The whole team only has one thought and that’s to try and get the trophy and to make the day special for Kevin,” said City midfielder Mateo Kovacic.
“For what he’s done, he deserves to leave like a champion which he obviously is.
“He is a massive figure in City’s success, and he will be remembered as one of the best.”
Jhonattan Vegas grabs surprise lead at PGA Championship
- The 40-year-old Vegas has won four times on the PGA Tour
- World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler shot 2-under 69
CHARLOTTE: Venezuela’s Jhonattan Vegas surged into the lead late in the first round of the PGA Championship, shooting a 7-under-par 64 on Thursday at Quail Hollow Club.
Vegas, who started on No. 10, posted birdies on five of his final six holes. He capped it with a 27-foot putt on his last hole.
Cameron Davis of Australia and newcomer Ryan Gerard are two shots back.
The 40-year-old Vegas has won four times on the PGA Tour, including last July in the 3M Open. But he has missed cuts in nine of his last 13 majors.
Davis, who tied for fourth in the 2023 PGA Championship before missing the cut in last year’s tournament, racked up seven birdies. He held the lead until a bogey on his last hole.
Gerard, a Raleigh native who played collegiately for North Carolina, is appearing in a PGA Championship for the first time. He led by three strokes after an eagle on No. 15 before making consecutive bogeys to end his round in the early afternoon.
European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald of England shot 4-under 67 and was a co-leader in the clubhouse for a stretch during the afternoon. Donald completed his bogey-free round before Alex Smalley, New Zealand’s Ryan Fox, Germany’s Stephan Jaeger and England’s Aaron Rai joined him with 67s.
Jaeger navigated the course with six birdies and two bogeys, including on the final hole that cost him the solo lead.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler shot 2-under 69, while defending champion Xander Schauffele finished at 1-over 72 and Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy, the recent Masters champion and four-time winner of the PGA Tour stop at Quail Hollow, recorded 3-over 74.
Scheffler started on the back nine and notched an eagle on No. 15. But on the next hole, the trio of Scheffler, Schauffele and McIlroy all took double-bogey 6s.
Scheffler finished with birdies on two of his last three holes.
Smalley, who lives about 90 minutes away in Greensboro and has additional in-state ties as a former Duke golfer, was added to the field Wednesday when Sahith Theegala withdrew because of a neck injury.
US Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley is among a cluster of golfers at 3 under.
J.T. Poston, also North Carolinian, finished at 3 under after a bogey on the final hole. Michael Thorbjornsen, Englishmen Matt Fitzpatrick and Tyrrell Hatton, Colombia’s Nico Echavarria, Japan’s Ryo Hizatsune, Denmark’s Rasmus Hojgaard, Sweden’s Alex Noren, Scotland’s Robert MacIntire and Puerto Rico’s Rafael Campos also completed rounds at 3 under.
With Donald and Bradley holding top-10 positions, it’s just the second time that two current Ryder Cup captains have ended a round in a major within the top 10 during a Ryder Cup year. It also happened in 1937.
Jordan Spieth’s chance at the career Grand Slam likely ends early with opening-round 76 at the PGA
- The 31-year-old Spieth struggled in every facet of the game at demanding Quail Hollow
CHARLOTTE, N.C.: Jordan Spieth came to Quail Hollow hoping to follow in Rory McIlroy’s footsteps and complete the career Grand Slam.
After Thursday’s opening round of the PGA Championship, he’d probably be happy just to make the cut.
The 31-year-old Spieth struggled in every facet of the game at demanding Quail Hollow — off the tee, with his approach shots, his chips and even his putting — and shot a 5-over 76, leaving him 12 shots behind leader Jhonattan Vegas and all but ending his hopes this year of capturing the one major that has eluded him since he turned pro 13 years ago.
Spieth could never find his swing and repeatedly misjudged distances to the flag, leaving him scrambling for par all afternoon.
He managed to hold it together early and was even par through eight holes.
Then the wheels came off.
He bogeyed six of of the final 10 holes — chunking a chip from the rough on No. 11 and failed to get up and down for par on No. 18 from the rough, missing a 12-footer to save par. Spieth walked briskly toward the practice range after signing his card and did not take questions.
Playing partner Ludvig Aberg could understand the frustration, but believes Spieth will bounce back.
“Listen, Jordan is an unbelievable player and person,” Aberg said. “I was telling my caddie today that he’s one of the best, nicest guys in the world. I wouldn’t be surprised if gets someday. But I’m a big Jordan Spieth fan and I will be for a long time.”
It probably won’t be this year.
MGM Sportsbook now lists him at 1000-1 to win.
Spieth became the darling of golf at age 21 when he won the Masters and US Open in 2015. He captured the British Open two years later, bringing him to the doorstep of one of golf’s elite clubs.
But like McIlroy’s struggles to win the Masters until last month, Spieth hasn’t been able to capture the PGA.
He’s had a couple of chances.
He finished second in 2015 and tied for third in 2019. But over the past five years he has been in the middle of the pack — four times finishing between 29th and 43rd. Now he’s in danger of missing the cut for the first time since 2014.
