Dec 15, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) handles the ball against Golden State Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins (22) during the fourth quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Former Mavericks guard likens being traded away from Warriors to Luka Doncic trade

Originally posted on Dallas Mavericks on SI
By Austin Veazey | Last updated May 9, 2025 2:55 PM ET

The city of Dallas is feeling a level of betrayal since Nico Harrison and the Mavericks traded superstar Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers. Mavs fans saw him as the successor to Dirk Nowitzki, thinking he'd get a statue across from him eventually.

Doncic also feels betrayed, as he never wanted to leave Dallas. He had just closed on a new home right before the trade, loved being in Dallas, and wanted to play out his entire career as a Maverick like his mentor Nowitzki did. Those emotions were clear when he was openly crying on the bench when he played his first game back in Dallas during the tribute video. He saw all the talk coming out of the front office about him being out of shape, and that had to feel like a knife in the back.

But a lot of trades feel like betrayal to players. Former Mavericks guard Monta Ellis recently appeared on the "Out the Mud" podcast with Zach Randolph and Tony Allen, discussing what it was like to be traded away from the Golden State Warriors, likening it to the Doncic trade (around the 40-minute mark).

"I love Golden State, you know what I mean? They gave me my opportunity. The way it went down is what really hurt me or affected me. And it’s similar to what happened to Luka [Doncic]. That's what part of the business you really don't know nothing about unless you really been a part of it.”

Ellis would later go on to say that he had been on the phone with the Warriors soon before he was traded where they claimed they were staying pat since they were on the cusp of the playoffs. He got off the phone, left the hotel, got on the bus, and by the time he got to the arena to prepare to play the Sacramento Kings, he had been traded to the Milwaukee Bucks. That's what left him feeling disrespected, as he spent six and a half seasons with the team, just like Doncic did with the Mavs.

He's not saying that he was of that caliber, just the way he felt blindsided is similar to what Doncic dealt with. Ellis never made an All-Star Game or All-NBA Team, but he was a good player in his own right, winning the 2007 Most Improved Player award, with seven straight seasons of averaging at least 18.9 PPG. He was a dynamic scorer, and was a key catalyst for the 2007 "We Believe" Warriors that upset the top-seeded Mavericks in Dirk Nowitzki's MVP season. He would play with Nowitzki for two seasons from 2013-2015.

This article first appeared on Dallas Mavericks on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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