A rift had been forming between Anthony Davis and Lakers management after his sit-down interview with ESPN, per @BrettSiegelNBA

MORE DRAMA - The Mavericks approached a mystery team nearly two weeks ago about the prospect of swapping Dončić for another star. The bid was shot down, per @sam_amick Who do you think the Mavs tried to acquire? 🤔

LeBron James intends to remain a member of the Lakers past the Feb. 6 trade deadline, per @ChrisBHaynes

Imagine watching Luka Doncic do this in the Playoffs, lead the Mavs to the NBA Finals, and then you decide to trade him halfway through the next season.

Generational fumble

Nico Harrison said he left Luka Doncic a text and phone message: “My guess is he probably doesn’t want to talk to me.” (via @townbrad)

Mavs GM Nico Harrison on Luka: “We feel like we got ahead of what was going to be a tumultuous summer, him being eligible for the supermax and also a year away from him being able to opt out of any contract.”

Luka Doncic with the Dallas Mavericks: — 5x All-Star — 5x All-NBA First Team — 2x WCF Appearances — 1x NBA Finals Appearance — 1x NBA ROTY — 1x NBA Scoring Champion — 1x WCF MVP Arguably the best player in Dallas Mavericks franchise history.

Luka Doncic has reached up to 270 pounds and the Mavericks were growing concerned, per ESPN