The first question for many NBA fans after the Dallas Mavericks shockingly traded Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 2 was simple: When do the Lakers play in Dallas next?
That answer was “April 9,” a nine-week wait for what would ultimately become one of the most anticipated regular-season games. Sure, the Mavericks had already traveled to face Dončić and his new team on March 1 — a 109-104 Lakers victory — but Wednesday night at American Airlines Center was the league’s must-see event of the second half.
Dončić, the crowd in Dallas and both teams met the moment, and the Mavericks’ former star reminded his former franchise why fans held protests, and even a symbolic funeral, after the trade.
Behind 45 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists, Dončić led the Lakers to a 112-97 win over the Mavericks, clinching a playoff spot for Los Angeles in the process. Following an emotional pregame intro, Dončić poured in 31 first-half points as the crowd erupted with each touch.
From what the atmosphere was like inside the arena to what the Mavericks can do in the offseason and what this victory might mean for the Lakers’ playoff chances, our ESPN insiders tackle the biggest questions from Dončić’s first game back in Dallas.
The Mavericks show their love and appreciation for Luka Doncic with touching tribute.
1. The atmosphere in Dallas on Wednesday was _______
Emotional, electrifying and extremely awkward at times.
Tears flowed down Doncic’s cheeks as the Mavs’ tribute video for him played before his turn in pregame introductions. He’s still clearly getting over the heartbreak after suddenly being shipped away from the city he hoped would be his NBA home forever.
That was a sentiment shared by the vast majority of folks who filled the American Airlines Center. That included Dallas legend Dirk Nowitzki, who attended his first Mavs home game since the trade. (The only other NBA game Nowitzki has watched in person since Feb. 1? His buddy Doncic’s Lakers debut in Los Angeles.)
A small percentage of the fans wore the white giveaway T-shirts with “Hvala za vse” — thanks for everything, in Slovenian — printed on the front. Many more wore Doncic’s No. 77 jerseys, from Mavs to Slovenia to Lakers editions. Others wore shirts expressing their frustration with Mavs general manager Nico Harrison, the man primarily responsible for Doncic’s undesired departure.
“Fire Nico!” chants were frequent, beginning with the first dead ball four seconds after the opening tip. Harrison pretended not to hear them as he stood in a midcourt tunnel, his seat unoccupied as it has been since the trade was made.
On the other hand, Doncic was showered with love and adoration as he lit up the franchise he hoped he’d belong to forever. — Tim MacMahon
2. The biggest lesson to take away from this game is ____
It is counterintuitive, but this was the night when Luka became a Laker. The team totally was devoted to uplifting him and protecting him and rallying around him. It was not a hostile environment obviously and that made it feel different than other players in “return” games. But that didn’t mean Doncic wasn’t vulnerable. It was the most vulnerable he has ever been in his basketball career and he knew it. He knew it in the same way he knew to ask for a towel when the pre-tipoff video started playing because he knew how he would respond to it. And the Lakers collectively experienced a performance that absolutely elevated their bond as a team.
Luka is still going to have a temper; he’s still going to curse out referees and fans; but his connection with his team is what changed Wednesday night. He felt it, too, when he told Lisa Salters on the floor after the game that “it’s time to move on.”
The Lakers still have roster challenges, though once again J.J. Redick had a swarming game plan aimed at crowding Anthony Davis and ignoring less feared players on the perimeter that helped cover up their size issues. And just because they had this memorable evening doesn’t mean they’re headed for a storybook end.
But it was potentially a foundational moment to build from, one that could be remembered as a crucial building block to bigger moments in the future. — Brian Windhorst
Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison has chants directed at him from the crowd in Luka Doncic’s first game in Dallas as a Laker.
3. Luka’s performance in Dallas was _____
Everything we could have hoped. Capturing the moment, Doncic shifted quickly from shedding tears to raining 3s. He had three makes from beyond the arc in each of the first two quarters en route to 31 points, his most in a half with the Lakers.
Doncic’s scoring pace predictably slowed after halftime. That showcased the value of his partnership with James, who had 14 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter as the Lakers opened up a double-digit lead. Down the stretch, Doncic took back over, scoring seven consecutive L.A. points starting at the 3:30 mark before leaving to a standing ovation with 45 points.
Doncic needed just 28 shot attempts, plus nine foul shots, to get there. Add in 8 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals and Doncic’s 48.1 game score was his second highest this season, per Basketball-Reference.com.
Mavericks fans have seen so many of these incandescent performances from Doncic, making it bittersweet to see one in his return. Per ESPN Research, Doncic joined Wilt Chamberlain in 1964-65 as just the second player in NBA history to score at least 45 points both for and against the same team in the same season. — Kevin Pelton
4. The biggest offseason priorities for Dallas are ____
Getting back a healthy Kyrie Irving, using their lottery pick and, once again, exploring trades. Other than the veterans minimum exception, Dallas does not have money to spend in free agency. What it does have is three first-round picks and 12 players earning between $2 million and $16 million available to trade.
Is that enough to potentially bring in Kevin Durant to team up with Irving and Anthony Davis? Because they are projected to be a first-apron team, the Mavs would need to trade at least four players and still remain below the apron — a tall task considering Irving, Durant and Davis would earn a combined $150 million.
But Harrison has a track record of big moves; the Mavericks roster that finishes the 2025-26 season could look very different than the one in October. Since taking over basketball operations in June 2021, Harrison has made 16 trades and has continually searched for the right combination of players to win a championship. The lone players remaining from the Mavs’ 2022 Western Conference finals team are Dwight Powell and Spencer Dinwiddie. — Bobby Marks
5. In the playoffs, the Doncic-led Lakers can go ______
… As far as their offense takes them. When Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves share the court, the Lakers score a scorching 119.5 points per 100 possessions, which ranks in the 83rd percentile of all lineups leaguewide, per Cleaning the Glass. But that trio allows an even higher 121.8 points per 100 possessions, which ranks in the eighth percentile.
Despite a midseason surge and better defensive effort, the new-look Lakers are unlikely to actually slow down the best opposing offenses in the playoffs. But if Doncic, James and Reaves can all click together, particularly as they gain more experience playing off each other, they’ll make up all those points and more on the other end.
The playoff bracket could end up favoring the Lakers, who are the favorites to land the West’s No. 3 seed and therefore won’t have to face the Thunder until the conference finals. But at the same time, potential first-round matchups against the Nuggets, Warriors, Clippers or Timberwolves could prove challenging.
It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Lakers lose in the first round, because the West is so stuffed with dangerous teams up and down the playoff field. But it also wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Lakers win a series, then knock off an inexperienced Rockets squad in the second round and even challenge the Thunder — whom they blew out in Oklahoma City on Sunday and pushed in a competitive game Tuesday — in the conference finals.
A team with two of the best players in the league is inherently a Finals contender, especially when they’re both such dynamic creators with ample experience tormenting playoff defenses. — Zach Kram