"Rich Paul couldn't know, nobody knew" - Carmelo Anthony claims LeBron James was blindsided by Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis trade

The biggest deal in the 2024-25 NBA season was when the LA Lakers traded LeBron James' star teammate Anthony Davis, to the Dallas Mavericks for Luka Doncic. Players, fans and other experts were surprised by the blockbuster deal that took place on Saturday. However, many are wondering if James was unaware of the trade, as some reports have claimed.

The 21-time All-Star admitted that, like everyone else, he was taken aback when he learned of the deal. He discussed it on Tuesday following the Lakers' resounding 122-97 victory against the LA Clippers. James claimed to have no idea what happened and initially believed it was a hoax.

Carmelo Anthony, a former NBA player and close friend of James, discussed the issue on Thursday. Rudy Gay, a retired basketball player, joined him in talking about whether the Lakers star knew anything about the transaction on the most recent episode of the "7PM in Brooklyn" podcast.

"Now you're in LA and you at a point in time where, in order to make certain s**t happen, I can't put certain people in these situations to actually have influence to f**k this up," Anthony said.

"Bron couldn't have, he couldn't know. Rich Paul couldn't know. Nobody else could know... Nobody knew. He knew AD was unhappy, that's what he knew."

According to Gay, James may have had some influence on team decisions early in his career. However, he believes that time has passed.

The LeBron James-Luka Doncic tandem could debut on Monday

In a 105-99 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Christmas, Luka Doncic scored 14 points in his final game with the Dallas Mavericks. The Slovenian player has been out ever since due to a left calf injury.

Doncic may soon make his Lakers debut, which is fortunate for the franchise. NBA insider Marc Stein reports that the five-time All-Star plans to make his Los Angeles debut against the Utah Jazz on Monday. Fans will see LeBron James play with the European sensation for the first time.

Stein also revealed that Doncic has returned to 5-on-5 practice this week and that his calf injury has progressed well.

The Lakers have also released the first photos of Doncic wearing the team uniform. Fans are excited to see how well James and the 25-year-old will lead Los Angeles moving forward.

Doncic played for the Mavericks for seven seasons and became one of the best players in the league. The 6-foot-6 guard is often considered an MVP-caliber player and has proven to be an elite talent. During his time in Dallas, the star averaged 28.6 points, 8.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists.