Gatorade dropped quite the telling advertisement on Wednesday ahead of the highly anticipated return of Luka Doncic to the American Airlines Center for the Los Angeles Lakers' matchup against the Dallas Mavericks.
In the Gatorade ad, which was released hours before the game, Doncic doesn't say a single word. He just dribbles a ball behind his legs while sitting on a chair. As the camera pans out, Doncic stands up as the phrases "No love lost. Only sweat" appear on the screen. Viewers can then see that the stands behind Doncic spell out "L.A." paying homage to his new home.
One journey fuels the next ⚡ @luka7doncic pic.twitter.com/ZXGQeNzRsJ
— Gatorade (@Gatorade) April 9, 2025
The not-so-subtle meaning behind the ad is presumed to be based on any reported "bad blood" between Doncic and the Mavericks organization after they traded him to the Lakers at the beginning of February. Doncic admitted the move was "hard" for him as he'd only ever played in Dallas and was somewhat expecting to play his whole career there.
But, as Doncic stated in an article written by Los Angeles Times' Dan Woike on Wednesday, he ended up in Los Angeles for a reason. He doesn't want doubters questioning his work ethic. So, this may have been his way of dismissing any negative rumors surrounding his exit from the Mavericks.
The Mavericks have prepared the arena for Doncic's return by putting shirts on the stands saying "Thanks for everything" in Slovenian. We'll see what the atmosphere is like in American Airlines Center on Wednesday night.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Gatorade Drops a Goosebumps-Worthy Ad Ahead of Luka Doncic's Return to Dallas.
