Michael Jordan's former teammate blames $32,400,000,000 decision-maker for Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis blockbuster trade

Luka Doncic was traded on Saturday in what many are dubbing as the most shocking trade in league history. Now that the dust has settled on the blockbuster deal, a former NBA player chimed in with who he feels led the charge to this decision.

Like many other analysts and podcasters, BJ Armstrong took to his platform to discuss Doncic geting moved for Anthony Davis. The former champion and teammate of Michael Jordan was left stunned like everyone else. However, he has dug deeper into why the deal happened.

On his "Hoop Genius" podcast, Armstrong didn't call out Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison for the Doncic trade. Instead, he pointed the finger at ownership.

"That's an owner-to-owner deal, trust me on that," Armstrong said on Sunday. "If the owner says they wanna make the deal, you gotta do your job. The owners felt it was good business for them for whatever the reason may be, and it's done."

In 2023, Mark Cuban sold his controlling stake in the Mavericks to the Adelson and Dumont families, who were previously minority owners. Miriam Adelson is most known for her success in the gambling and casino sector. According to Forbes, her net worth is believed to be over $32 billion.

In the early stages of their ownership tenure, they've decided to take a massive swing that could make or break the franchise for the next decade.

---

NBA insider details what led to Luka Doncic being traded to LA Lakers

Since the trade became official, there have been numerous reports as to why the Dallas Mavericks decided to part ways with Luka Doncic. On Monday, one of the league's top insiders cited one area of frustration within the franchise.

While discussing the Doncic-Anthony Davis trade, Marc Stein suggested that the Mavericks weren't fond of the star guard's actions, particularly how he sought out his own group of trainers to handle his diet and other medical needs.

"Dallas has likewise said to have cooled on its star's insistence on hiring his own team of training experts — even though it was done at his own expense — to handle the bulk of his medical and nutritional needs separate from the club starting with the 2023-24 season,” Stein wrote on Monday, via 'The Stein Line.'

This is one of multiple reports citing the Mavericks traded Doncic for health and fitness reasons. Shortly after the news broke, ESPN's Tim MacMahon posted on X that conditioning was a factor that led to the move. He also brought up that Dallas was worried about signing Doncic to a supermax contract this offseason.

"The Mavs had major concerns about moving forward with Luka Doncic due to his constant conditioning issues and the looming commitment of another supermax contract extension this summer, sources told ESPN," McMahon tweeted.

Less than a year removed from leading the Mavericks to the NBA finals, the team decided to end the Doncic era in Dallas. He heads to the LA Lakers, where he'll likely lead the historic franchise for the foreseeable future.