Luka Doncic was nearly asleep last Saturday night in Dallas when his phone buzzed. Only then did he learn that the Mavericks had just stunned the sports world by trading him to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Trail Blazers would likely want to make room to have more minutes for Donovan Clingan, who they recently selected early in the 2024 NBA Draft. For the Lakers, meanwhile, Ayton could have at least some tangible valuable as a player who has postseason experience and tremendous size on the inside.

While All-NBA star Luka Doncic was shocked by the trade, then realized "This is the Lakers. It's one of the best clubs in history. So I’m excited to be here.”