Luka Doncic's first Lakers news conference sheds light on league-altering trade

Luka Doncic is officially a Los Angeles Laker. 

And while the reality of that sentence may have seemed incomprehensible just over 72 hours ago, the transaction is indeed official. In the coming days, weeks and months, enlightening reports will surely continue to flood in, providing clarity on how this trade came to fruition. But one thing is clear: there's nothing like hearing it straight from the horse’s mouth. And that’s exactly what Lakers fans and NBA fans as a whole were finally treated to on Tuesday morning. 

During Doncic’s 25+ minute introductory press conference, the former Dallas star covered a lot of topics. From his initial reaction to the trade, to the prospect of playing alongside LeBron James, to being coached by his former teammate JJ Redick, Doncic’s first official comments as a member of the Lakers deserve further analysis. 

While Doncic may still be harboring feelings of resentment towards Dallas—and more specifically, Dallas’ GM Nico Harrison—he’s clearly genuinely excited about the opportunity to be a Laker and play with Lebron James.

"It's like a dream come true, I always looked up to him [LeBron James]," Doncic said, via ESPN. "There's so many things I can learn from him, and I'm just excited...It's an amazing feeling."

From the very first mention of teaming up with James, Doncic’s face lit up—and understandably so. It's no secret that Doncic has long been compared to James, producing near identical career numbers. For Doncic to now have the opportunity to learn, grow and compete alongside James is an opportunity that will likely pay long term dividends for Doncic. As a result, Doncic wasted no time showing his authentic appreciation for the magnitude of being afforded the opportunity to team up with a player many consider the greatest to ever pick up a basketball. 

“I had to check if it was April 1st," Doncic said.

No other trade or transaction in the modern era of the NBA has broken the internet like the Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis swap. And the fact that neither player had any prior notion that a trade was in the works makes it all the more befuddling. 

It's one thing for NBA fans to immediately question whether ESPN’s Shams Charania’s account was hacked or whether indeed it was April Fool’s Day, but for Doncic himself to be completely blind-sided by this move is borderline unimaginable. These sort of things just don’t happen, so of course it was necessary and understandable for reporters to want to ask for Doncic’s initial reaction. His reaction, apparently, was just like everyone else’s. 

“I thought I was gonna stay my whole career there," Doncic said. "Loyalty is a big word for me.”

While Doncic remained measured and level-headed for the majority of his news conference, he understandably couldn’t help but express his emotions regarding his Dallas exit. 

In Doncic’s six-plus spectacular years in Dallas, he had already established himself as an all-time great. It felt like a foregone conclusion that he would one day have a statue next to fellow Mavericks-great Dirk Nowitzki outside of the American Airlines Center. With Nico Harrison pulling the plug on the Doncic era in Dallas, however, Luka will now have to look to build a new legacy in Los Angeles. 

Luckily for Lakers fans, if Doncic—who at 25 is just entering his prime years—truly values loyalty as much as he says he does, he could be looking to award his new franchise with a decade-plus of championship-contending years.