It's been almost a year and half since the Dallas Mavericks traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers, and yet, it still boggles the mind. The one detail that a lot of people forget is that the Utah Jazz were involved in the deal and didn't know it until it was too late.
They originally thought they had agreed to a completely separate deal with the Lakers to get Jalen Hood-Schifino and a few second-round picks, only to realize they were the last piece to make the deal work. Shady? Yes, but what's done is done.
Anyway, fast-forward to now, and as every Jazz fan knows, the Jazz traded Walker Kessler to the Lakers. They should also know by now that they got quite a haul for him. And it sounds as though it wouldn't have been possible without Doncic's campaign to get him to the Lakers.
Slovenian basketball writer Iztok Franko revealed that he heard that Doncic pushed the Lakers to get Kessler while discussing what cost the ex-Jazz center came at.
"If Kessler was the franchise center Dončić wanted so badly, and from the people I’ve spoken to I can confirm he pushed hard for this move, then perhaps that was simply the cost of doing business," Franko wrote.
None of this would have been possibe if the Luka trade never happened. It may not have been direct, but because of the Luka Doncic trade, Utah is now loaded with draft assets they can use either to add to their playoff core and/or upgrade it.
The Jazz got the picks Mavericks should have gotten
What was perhaps most mystifying about the Luka trade was that the Mavericks didn't get much draft compensation back for him. They got Anthony Davis (who they traded in a salary dump), Max Christie, and two first-round picks.
It's one thing to think Luka Doncic isn't your guy if you're trying to win a title - which makes the decision even odder for Dallas since he took them to the NBA Finals the season prior - but that package was inexcusable, which is why it will go down as one of the worst trades in NBA history.
By so doing, now the Jazz own the Lakers' future. It should have been the Mavericks who own all their future draft assets, but because they passed on that, the Jazz took it over. Even crazier is that the Lakers may have filled their biggest need, but there are still so many questions about that team.
Kessler's a quality player, but is he the third-best on a title team? Is Austin Reaves the second? It may not be right away, but this could work wonders for Utah is all goes well. Jazz fans should thank the Lakers for acting on their desperation, but should equally be as grateful for the Mavericks' carelessness.
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