The Dallas Mavericks have tried to slander Luka Doncic at every possible opportunity since they traded him to the Los Angeles Lakers in early February. Hit pieces have come out since the trade, calling him overweight, out of shape, a poor leader, and an obsessive beer drinker and hookah user. But former teammates of Doncic aren't falling for that.
Quentin Grimes released his thoughts, calling it a bad narrative around the team, but some other teammates have spoken out since.
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Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (and guard Josh Green
Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) and guard Josh Green (8) celebrate during the second half against the Chicago Bulls at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Three-time Dallas Maverick Seth Curry spoke with the Sporting News recently about Doncic and had nothing but praise for him. "From my vantage point, you knew what you were going to get from Luka," Curry said. "Practice, games, when the ball went up, you knew he was going to show up and be ready to play when he was healthy. I didn’t see any issues, really... He’s a great competitor. When practice came around and the ball went up, and guys were ready to compete, he played as hard as anybody. One of the best competitors I’ve ever played with."
Curry's now Charlotte Hornets teammate and a member of last year's Mavs that went to the NBA Finals, Josh Green, had a similar sentiment. "At the end of the day, he’s played World Cups, he’s played Olympics, back-to-back-to-back years. You have to be in pretty good shape to be able to play that," Green said. "I think for someone to be 24 years old and be able to take a team to the Finals, it’s impressive. The last two years, he took a big leap being a leader. The guys really followed that."
Everyone has blasted the Mavericks for what they've released since the trade, trying to excuse one of the dumbest decisions made in NBA history. It's not an accident that every player in the NBA who has talked about it has not understood it at all.
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