Last week, Nico Harrison, the General Manager of the Dallas Mavericks, traded away his best player and fan-favorite Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis and a handful of magic beans.
Harrison's move was so unpopular, he was forced to defend the trade in the press. That didn't work out so well.
But because the trade was so bad, it caused a lot of collateral damage and the owner's son-in-law was forced to weigh in. What's his experience in basketball? Almost nothing.
Businessman Patrick Dumont is in way over his head. He had to give a press conference clarifying that GM Nico Harrison arranged the trade, but it was Dumont himself that approved the trade, calling it an "organizational decision." It took him over a week to gain the composure to face the media.
That still didn't calm the fury, so popular Minority Owner Mark Cuban had to chime in, asking fans to tone it down a notch. Did he defend the trade? No, he just told the Mavs fans to "calm down."
Are things calmer today, nearly 2 weeks after the trade? No. Commissioner Adam Silver was forced to clarify that there were no "ulterior motives" in the trade just this past weekend.
What the hell is he talking about? Well, according to the magical internet, the trade was so bad, that conspiracy theorists have claimed that Patrick Dumont facilitated the trade to alienate Mavs fans so that the team could move to Las Vegas.
Wow.
This is the whole reason I wrote the sequel to the original article. Within 10 years, Las Vegas will have a team.
Where will that team come from?
LeBron James has stated, on the record, that he would like to be an owner in the NBA, preferably with an expansion team in Vegas. Would Adam Silver steer an expansion team to LeBron and his ownership group? Possibly.
In 2022, I speculated that LeBron may buy the Cavs and move them to Vegas. The only hiccup in that plan? Dan Gilbert. I believe Gilbert would actually make LeBron pay MORE than any other candidate to buy the Cavs. No hometown discount for LeBron.
Is it feasible Dumont could move to Vegas, and the two expansion teams would be Dallas and Seattle? Ah, ah, ah, Adam Silver has stated, on the record, that he wants to address expansion later this year. Dallas is too big of a market NOT to have an NBA team.
I don't believe the Las Vegas Maverick Conspiracy Theory, but I'll tell you what, I think it is feasible that an owner in a place like Minnesota or New Orleans would jump to Las Vegas, then the 2 expansion teams would be Seattle and....Mexico City.
The winner in this game? It appears to be LeBron and the Lakers. We'll see if that pans out.
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