Amid Media Run Denying Involvement In Luka Doncic Trade, Mark Cuban Makes Wild ‘Anthony Davis Big 3’ Claim

Two months out and the Luka Doncic trade is still being discussed in NBA circles. Mark Cuban is certainly still feeling the effects of it as he and Mavs general manager Nico Harrison have been the main targets of angry Dallas fans who wish The Don was still wearing their uniform. Cuban recently appeared on Stephen A. Smith to speak about the Doncic deal, but he seemed much more optimistic about the team’s future.

Cuban has been on a media run worthy of Super Bowl weekend, telling multiple outlets and analysts that he did not know about the Doncic trade when it happened. While this could just be damage control, it does line up. “If I had any influence, that trade never happens,” said Cuban.

The 66-year-old billionaire previously stated that he would divorce his wife Tiffany before ever trading the Slovenian superstar away.  The couple are still together, but Maverick fans are still unhappy that the franchise player is gone.

But Cuban is trying to look forward to the team that the Mavs now have. Dallas acquired Anthony Davis in the Luka trade, who had an incredible debut for the team before suffering a non-contact injury. AD is now back and playing strong ball alongside fellow team bigs Dereck Lively II and Daniel Gafford. In fact, Cuban likes the trio so much that he gave them a title during his chat with SAS.

“You know the truth is between AD, Dereck Lively and Gafford, that’s the best big 3 in the NBA,” said Cuban. The bold claim was met with some confusion by basketball Twitter, who pointed out that Cuban most likely meant that the unlikely trio was the best “frontcourt big three.”

 

That would make more sense since Lively, Gafford, nor Davis would likely share the court at the same time. But when healthy, that is a deadly rotation of big men rotating in and out and putting pressure on 4s and 5s. The Cavaliers could give the Mavericks “big three” a run for their money in terms of their own frontcourt potency, but Dallas has had a hard two months so they can have this title for now.

Now that it’s over, Cuban wishes the Mavericks got more for Doncic than just AD

Cuban may not have known about the Doncic trade, but he certainly has some big opinions about it. The Shark Tank star spoke with WFAA  about what he wishes the Mavs got for The Don along with Anthony Davis.

“If the Mavs are going to trade Luka, that’s one thing,” Cuban expressed. “Just get a better deal. No disrespect to Anthony Davis, but I still firmly believe if we had gotten four unprotected No. 1s and Anthony Davis and Max Christie, this would be a different conversation.”

One thing Cuban wants Mavs fans to know is that if he were still the majority owner of the team he would have certainly pushed for much more than a swap. Regardless, the trade happened. The Mavericks are hovering over a Play-In spot while the Lebron & Luka-led Lakers are 4th in the West and are eyeing a showdown with the red-hot Golden State Warriors.

It’ll be interesting to see how this all blows over once the postseason begins.