Brian Scalabrine Claims Nico Harrison Made Luka Doncic a Winner With the Lakers Trade

The Luka Doncic trade remains one of the strangest deals that we’ve ever seen in the NBA. Not only because it uprooted the heart and soul of the Dallas Mavericks in a matter of moments, but it also instantly turned the Los Angeles Lakers into Western Conference contenders. Now, thriving in LA, Brian Scalabrine thinks that Nico Harrison unintentionally pushed the superstar guard to rethink his workout routine. 

When the Mavericks were eliminated from the 2024 NBA Finals, a big talking point was Doncic’s conditioning and durability. Near the end of the series, he looked worn out, and Dallas promptly bowed out in five games. But nobody expected him to be traded the very next season because of this conditioning issue. 

Regardless, Scalabrine questioned Doncic’s approach to conditioning after it was such a big focus in the Finals loss. 

“Why didn’t he get himself in shape after the NBA Finals?” Scalabrine questioned on SiriusXM NBA Radio. “He got kind of exposed in that series.”

Not only was Doncic exposed, but it pushed Harrison to believe that he was never going to be a winner. Citing defense as a key reason after the fact, the Mavs GM traded Luka for Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick. It’ll go down as one of the most lopsided trades in league history. Still, the Dallas fans never got a good enough reason why it occurred. 

“Right now, he’s playing like a Top 5 player in the NBA.”@Scalabrine joined @talkhoops and @darthamin and discussed Nico Harrison’s impact on Luka Dončić pic.twitter.com/EZageItpFB

— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) November 11, 2025

To make matters worse, Doncic took Harrison’s comments personally. He seemingly made an effort to drop a ton of weight in the offseason. That’s why, looking back on it, Scalabrine believes that Harrison unintentionally helped Luka.

“What we found out is the guy who probably made Luka a winner is Nico Harrison for trading him,” Scalabrine pointed out. “When he made that trade to LA, all of a sudden, he looks at himself a bit differently. And he’s probably a competitive guy and wants to prove everyone wrong. Right now, he’s playing like a Top 5 player in the NBA.”

The Men’s Health ‘Luka Doncic 2.0 Has Entered The Chat’ story made the rounds for days this past July as it focused all on Luka’s fitness journey. Everything from calculated cardio sessions to intermittent fasting, the Slovenian forward did it all.

Through nine games, “Slim Luka” is averaging close to a career high in points per game with 33.7. He’s also averaging 9.2 assists and 8.9 rebounds per contest. And even though he’s missed three games, Doncic has made a difference, leading the Lakers to a 6-3 record in games he’s played. 

With Austin Reaves also coming on as a go-to scoring option, and LeBron James on the verge of a return from sciatica, LA is primed to be one of the best teams in the West. It’ll be interesting to see if they can keep it up or if the return of James leads to a situation with too many mouths to feed. But we can’t see that being the case. After all, the duo went 15-8 together at the end of 2024.