"WTA has traded Coco Gauff to ATP for Daniil Medvedev" - Insider makes interesting tennis comparison to Mavericks trading Luka Doncic to Lakers

Longtime tennis journalist and insider, Jon Wertheim referred to Coco Gauff in a bid to find a tennis equivalent for the blockbuster trade that happened recently in the NBA, shaking the league to its core.

While he's a devoted tennis fan, Wertheim is also familiar with other sports, including basketball and the NBA, the flagship league of the United States. The league was recently rocked by a trade that many have described as the craziest trade in the past few decades.

The Dallas Mavericks traded their franchise player Luka Dončić to the Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis which to the average NBA fan was rather shocking. Analysts were equally shocked because it's not practice for teams to trade away their best players, especially not those who are 25.

Wertheim had a friend ask for a tennis equivalent and he struggled to find a good one. He posted on X that a friend had asked him to contextualize the trade by coming up with a tennis equivalent. He proposed Coco Gauff being traded for Daniil Medvedev, although he didn't seem entirely sold on it as the best comparison.

"Friend who doesn’t follow the NBA asked for a tennis comp re: Luka and AD…..best I came up with: WTA has traded Coco Gauff to the ATP for Daniil Medvedev? ….feel to improve on that…," wrote Wertheim on X.

Putting Coco Gauff in there made sense for Wertheim considering she's a fan of basketball.

Coco Gauff's support of the WNBA and love for basketball

2025 Australian Open - Source: Getty

One possible reason why Wertheim chose Coco Gauff in this trade could be her love for basketball. Gauff is a fan of the NBA, famously rooting for her local Florida team the Miami Heat. She is also an avid supporter of the WNBA. Last year, she hailed Sabrina Ionescu after her three-point shooting contest duel with NBA legend Stephen Curry.

"I just hope they [the NBA] continue to do this. It just humbles a lot of men in the world. I really like that. Especially basketball, that type of competition, it's something where physicality doesn't always matter. I think that's what makes it cool," said Gauff [via WTA Tour].

She's not only a fan of basketball but also is invested in spreading the sport. She is a current investor in the Unrivaled Basketball League and attended an event for the same recently where she hung out with WNBA Rising star Angel Reese.

Gauff last played at the Australian Open 2025, where she failed to go all the way after tumbling out of the quarter-finals in a loss to Paula Badosa. The 2024 WTA Finals singles champion was the clear favorite against the Spaniard who was awarded the WTA Comeback Player of the Year after her return from injury last year. But in a shocking turn of events, Badosa outsmarted Gauff en route to the semi-finals, which led to her staging a return to the top 10 rankings.