The evening Anthony Davis was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Dallas Mavericks was one of the most shocking in the NBA history, but the most iconic reactions did not come from fans or pundits. They come from inside the Lakers’ own staff group chat.
As the New York Post reports, citing Yaron Weitzman’s book A Hollywood Ending, when Davis’ trade was oficially announced, a series of messages between Lakers players and staff memebers showed how surprised everyone was.
The news of the trade broke the chat
It all began when LeBron’s son, Lakers teammate Bronny James, put up a screenshot of the breaking tweet by Shams Charania announcing that Davis had been traded. Like many in the group, he was not sure if he should believe it.
A few seconds afterwards, Anthony Davis himself joined the chat and, wide-eyed, typed:
Did these [n word] just trade me?
Soon after, Davis wished everyone good luck and left the group chat, reflecting the shock and resignation present after facing an apparently, and later known, unwarted transfer.
LeBron James’ reaction: “WTF“
Even LeBron James could not believe his eyes. He only wrote three words in the group but they meant a lot:
WTF
That one reaction served as the perfect description of how the mood was in the Lakers’ locker room. A group full of shock, amazement, and maybe even a little irritation at how the deal was finalized and managed.
It caught everyone off guard
The whole deal, which traded Anthony Davis for Luka Doncic, was among the biggest upsets in recent NBA history. The players were both superstars, but the emotional impact from the Lakers’ side demonstrated there is a human element to basketball that sometimes gets lost in billion-dollar deals.
Lakers management held the trade discussions highly secretive, not even including the team’s biggest stars, including LeBron among them, until the deal was completely done.
Business and emotion in the NBA
Davis’ departure from the group chat hit harder than the player leaving to join a different team, saw as an act of shock and betrayal from the directors. Davis and LeBron had been the face of the Lakers’ new generation for years, winning the team an NBA championship in 2020.
Today, that alliance is broken, and it broke, not with a press conference or a handshake, but with a shocked message and a digital goodbye.
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