The Dallas Mavericks made one of the most controversial trades in NBA history last season when they traded away Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers. Now, the Lakers — who envisioned Doncic would stay with the franchise for the foreseeable future — may start to get a little nervous with a contract extension nearing.
Doncic spent the first seven seasons of his career with the Mavericks where he blossomed into one of the best players in the NBA. He averaged 28.6 points, 8.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists per game while being named All-NBA five times. Doncic also averaged 30.9 points, 9.4 rebounds and 8.0 assists in his playoff career with the Mavericks.
In 28 games with the Lakers, Doncic averaged 28.2 points, 7.5 assists and 8.1 rebounds per game, but struggled from the field as he shot just 44 percent, which is the lowest since his rookie season.
Doncic is eligible to sign a four-year, $223 million extension with the Lakers on August 2. However, as John Hollinger of The Athletic points out, there are multiple avenues that Doncic could take to earn more money long-term, whether it’s with the Lakers or not.
“Contractually, Dončić is a rarity: a superstar who was traded before his second contract ended,” Hollinger said. “That makes him ineligible for the supermax deal that most players of his ilk can sign at the end of their second contract. Thus, the massive deals for Jayson Tatum and Gilgeous-Alexander the last two summers aren’t there for Dončić … yet.”
“However, if he were to void his player option in 2026 and sign a three-year, $161 million extension with the Lakers with a 2028-29 player option, he would be a 10-year vet in the summer of 2028. At that point, he could sign a monstrous five-year deal worth up to approximately $406 million to remain in L.A.,” he added.
Hollinger also noted the possibility of Doncic departing Los Angeles and seeking big-time money elsewhere, pointing out that Doncic can only sign a four-year deal with $314 million as an early Bird rights free agent in 2028, which would be the same amount of money annually as if he signed the previously mentioned five-year deal.
“Dončić could make the Lakers sweat out the season before extending his deal. He could also opt out and try someplace else next summer on his two-year wait for 2028, and it will cost him mere pennies relative to the rest of his deal (only about $1.5 million, something he might easily make up in state taxes if he left California),” Hollinger wrote. “So, yes, L.A. is probably the best situation for Dončić, but you can understand why the Lakers might be a little nervous until he puts pen to paper. And for Dončić, he needn’t be in a big hurry — he can extend any time between Aug. 2 and next June.”
