The Mavericks reportedly ran a “smear campaign behind the scenes” to justify trading Luka Dončić, per
@sam_amick
"The Los Angeles Lakers star has been a lightning rod for criticism from that crowd for nearly a decade now, from the time the Slovenian sensation entered the league as a fiery and absurdly talented rookie in those early Dallas Mavericks days. But the actual basketball people — even the ones who were most critical about his defensive struggles, the contentious relationship with the refs and his (previous) physique — always acknowledged his undeniable greatness (except for the Mavericks when they worked so hard to justify the February 2025 trade with a smear campaign behind the scenes)."