By now, the stunning trade that sent superstar Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers has been extensively dissected by sports media, but Pardon the Interruption added a unique twist to the topic on Friday. A week after the blockbuster trade sent the NBA’s reigning scoring champion from the Dallas Mavericks to the Lakers in exchange for 10-time All-Star Anthony Davis, NBA analysts are still buzzing. The shocking part was the Mavericks’ decision to trade the 25-year-old Dončić, who led the team to the NBA Finals last season. While some prominent figures like Charles Barkley believe the Mavericks won the trade short-term, Mavs fans are furious.
This tension led Tony Kornheiser to pose a question to PTI guest co-host Pablo Torre: “Which scene would you rather cover, Pablo? The Mavericks playing their first home game since the trade, or Monday’s Lakers game where Luka is expected to debut?” Torre responded, “I love this question because it raises the point of ‘Where’s the better story?’ I’m tempted to go to Dallas, as it seems we’ve overlooked the potential fan revolution focusing on the team owners rather than the GM…” However, he concluded, “Still, I’m sending myself to LA to see LeBron [James] and Luka in his debut because that’s history, not just anger.”
Kornheiser agreed, stating, “This isn’t a close call. Luka’s debut is a wonderful story. We want to see how he plays alongside LeBron and whether they can win. The first game without him in Dallas will just be an off-court story, highlighting fan feelings of betrayal, which will normalize by the second home game.” Torre acknowledged, “I hate to admit it, but that was a really good pitch.”
Tony Kornheiser and Pablo Torre debate whether they would rather cover Dallas’s first post-trade home game or Luka’s debut with the Lakers. pic.twitter.com/MUQnS9pdZR
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 7, 2025
While Kornheiser and Torre had their differences, they both concurred on the trade itself. “It’s an insane trade,” Kornheiser remarked. “Nobody trades a 25-year-old superstar.”
“No one,” Torre affirmed.
