DALLAS — The one year anniversary of the Dallas Mavericks-Los Angeles Lakers shocking Luka Doncic trade is on February 1. On Saturday, January 24, Doncic made his second return to Dallas since that trade happened. Before the game, Mavs head coach Jason Kidd was asked about the trade exactly almost one year after it occurred.
“It’s been one year. Next year it will be two years. After that, it will be three,” Kidd told reporters. “We will just keep counting. Luka’s moved on. We’ve moved on… We wish him the best, but that's just the business of basketball. Got to move forward.”
No one expected what came to fruition last year. It was a shocking move that was announced in the middle of the night. It's still difficult to believe the trade even happened.
Yet, here we are. Sure enough, both Doncic and the Mavs have moved forward. Doncic is an All-Star starter and playing at an MVP-caliber level, while the Mavericks are poised to have rookie phenom Cooper Flagg lead the way for years to come.
Still, returning to Dallas will surely mean something to Doncic for the remainder of his career. In fact, Lakers head coach JJ Redick echoed that exact sentiment before Saturday night's game.
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“The significance of this probably will be there for the rest of his career,” Redick told reporters.
Doncic expected to spend his entire career with the Mavericks. The trade last year caught everyone by surprise. Nevertheless, Doncic is moving on and playing some of the best basketball of his career.
Fans in Dallas certainly still miss him, though.
Luka Doncic is back in Dallas and gets a LOUD ovation from fans pic.twitter.com/Sz9frHgBFh
— Joey Mistretta (@JoeyMistretta_) January 25, 2026