The Dallas Mavericks are not having a great season and really the only way to experience it is to be a fan of the team. The Mavs traded away Luka Doncic and watched three centers go down with injuries in Daniel Gafford, Derek Lively II and Anthony Davis. And then they raised ticket prices. And then they lost Kyrie Irving to a torn ACL.
But what if we told you that this cursed season actually began nearly three years ago when the team let Jalen Brunson walk in free agency only for him to immediately become a perennial MVP candidate in New York?
It's true! And while some people may have forgotten that, Brunson and Doncic haven't. Last night, the duo met up on the court as the Lakers took on the Knicks, and they combined for 71 points and 22 assists. On different teams. Neither of which was the Dallas Mavericks, who acquired both of them in the 2018 NBA draft.
Doncic and Brunson swapped jerseys after the Lakers beat the Knicks on Thursday night and both took the time to write little notes to their former teammate.
Luka had 32 & 12. Brunson had 39 & 10.
— NBA (@NBA) March 7, 2025
Only right the former teammates jersey swap after the thrilling duel 🫶 pic.twitter.com/HZ7zPG7kBT
Luka making the NBA Finals with Kyrie Irving last year probably helped deal with the pain of letting Brunson go in 2022, but trading Luka and seeing Kyrie immediately go down with a devastating injury might have erased any comfort the fan base felt.
And yes, the general manager in the summer of 2022 when Brunson left for New York and signed a four-year deal worth $104 million was Nico Harrison.
According to the reporting in this ESPN article, Brunson had wanted to sign an extension in January of that season, but the Mavericks wanted to see if they could trade for another star. After the trade deadline passed they offered him a four-year, $55.5 million contract extension. Over the summer the Mavericks were willing to offer a five-year deal "comparable to the four-year, $85 million deal guard Fred VanVleet signed with the Toronto Raptors in 2020."
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Luka Doncic-Jalen Brunson Jersey Swap Somehow Makes Season Worse for Mavericks Fans.
