There have been a lot of crazy trades throughout NBA history, but none in recent memory were more unbelievable than the Anthony Davis-Luka Dončić trade.
The sports world stopped in its tracks when news broke that the Los Angeles Lakers were getting longtime Dallas Mavericks star Luka Dončić. While L.A. fans were excited about acquiring another superstar, it was a bittersweet moment, as they lost someone who had a huge impact on the team, Anthony Davis.
While these trades come out of nowhere for fans, they also caught a lot of people in the league by surprise–Including some people involved in the trade.
According to a newly-released book from sportswriter Yaron Weitzman, Bronny James, LeBron James’s son and Lakers teammate, was actually the one who broke the news to Davis. The 21-year-old reportedly shared the Shams Charania tweet that broke the news in the Lakers’ group chat, garnering some confused reactions.
Per a write-up from The New York Post, Bronny wasn’t sure whether Charania had been hacked, echoing the sentiments of many that this trade couldn’t be possible.
In response to the shocking news, AD is said to have asked, “Did these n****s just trade me?” He then went on to wish his teammates luck and exited the chat.
That’s when LeBron sent back just three letters: “WTF.”
Weitzman’s account is similar to how Lakers guard Austin Reaves retold the moment, previously saying that he thought Davis was pranking the team with news of the trade.
According to reporting from team insider Dave McMenamin, Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka agreed to the deal with the Dallas Mavericks and later had a joint call with Davis and head coach J.J. Redick to inform them about the move, per Newsweek. Pelinka then reportedly informed Davis’ agent, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, and then called LeBron James about the deal.
The deal was made with direct negotiations between Pelinka and Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison and no other teams were involved in the trade.
