The aftershocks of the ground-shaking Luka Doncic trade are still being felt around the league after the five-time All-Star was dealt to the Los Angeles Lakers in a stunning late-night swap.
Over a month since the trade, several reports have come out detailing the Dallas Mavericks’ concerns with Doncic’s conditioning issues and weight, as well as his “taste for beer and hookah.” The ruthless smear campaign against the Slovenian star hasn’t gone unnoticed by Doncic’s former Mavs teammate, Quentin Grimes, who was also traded by Dallas at the deadline.
Grimes has played on four teams in the last two seasons with his longest stint during that span being in Dallas this past year, where he averaged 10.2 points per game in 47 appearances. The fourth-year guard has since landed with the Philadelphia 76ers, but he had made some pointed comments directed at his former franchise about how the Mavs spoke of Doncic after the trade.
“Grimes dismissed the team’s concerns about Doncic’s conditioning and work habits, saying his former teammate was always in the gym whenever he would show up for his late-night shooting sessions or practice-day weightlifting,” The Athletic’s Sam Amick wrote Friday.
Grimes went on to call his departure from Dallas “a blessing in disguise” and seemed to refute the idea that the Mavericks were ever worried about Doncic’s work habits and social habits.
“It’s just a narrative around him. Once a narrative gets thrown out there, everybody just runs with it,” Grimes said, via The Athletic. “Whatever they’re saying, if he’s 270 (pounds) and he gets to the finals, let him be 270 then. It’s crazy.”
Hopefully, the Mavs’ smear campaign is long over by now. Doncic has seemingly moved on and will be focused on competing for a championship alongside LeBron James on the Lakers, while Dallas can only lament what is rapidly turning out to be a disaster of a season.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Former Luka Doncic Teammate Claps Back at Mavs for 'Crazy' Conditioning Narrative.
