The return of Luka Doncic to Dallas last night did not disappoint. The game was rife with emotion and intrigue. And Doncic himself went nuclear, dropping 45 points on his former team even as a particular 3-word phrase lingered in his mind. Amid all the tears, emotions, high-scoring and “Fire Nico” chants, there were a few wholesome moments between Luka and his former teammates. Thanks to some leaked audio, we know exactly what was said!

Seeing Luka Doncic back in the American Airlines Center must’ve brought memories flooding back into his ex-teammates’ minds. PJ Washington and Naji Marshall showed that it was all love between them and Luka. “Appreciate you, my boy. Stay healthy. Proud of you, love you gang,” said Washington.

Naji said basically the same thing with less care for propriety, “I’m proud of you, man. Keep doing your s—, bro.” 

However, Spencer Dinwiddie simply wanted Luka to know the significance of what he’d just done. “You had the highest comeback game,” he told a confused Doncic as he asked, “Who? “You did,” replied Spencer as the two hugged. But there was one who, while happy to see Luka, also had a different motive.

“Good game, dawg,” said Jaden Hardy, congratulating Luka on his 45-point showing before asking a favor. “I need one of your jerseys, too,” he said as Luka nodded in agreement, telling him, “I got you. I got you.”

The exchange between Luka and former majority owner of the Dallas Mavericks, Mark Cuban, though? Now that was a little less SFW than the others. “No, f— you!,” Cuban said with a huge grin on his face as they hugged. You can tell how much Cuban loved having Doncic at the Mavs, even from this brief interaction. After all, he did say he’d rather lose his marriage than lose Luka. Don’t worry; he was joking! (We hope…)

It was clearly an emotional night for Luka Doncic. But despite the emotional rollercoaster he went on during his return to Dallas, he seemed to be repeating a 3-word phrase that we alluded to earlier. And we don’t need leaked audio for this one!

Luka Doncic opens up about his new teammates after reuniting with his former ones

After Luka checked out of the game last night with his 45 points, he went and sat on the bench as the Dallas crowd cheered. But it wasn’t just the fans who were cheering. His Lakers teammates were also in on it, jumping up and down to celebrate Doncic. It was a really wholesome scene to watch. During the post-game interview, Luka had a wisp of a smile on his face, recollecting this moment even as the reporter was asking him how he felt about the moment.

“Big time, because they all have my back. And so we talked about it before the game, and everybody had my back. From coaches to players. We’re trying to build something special here. And that was really, really nice to see,” said Doncic. “Had my back,” this three-word phrase seemed to endure in the Lakers star’s mind.

Well, after the way he was blindsided by the Dallas Mavericks, we can see why this is important to Luka. After all, we know Luka Doncic never wanted to leave ‘The Big D’ in the first place. He wanted to win a championship with them; he even said it in his farewell to the club. “I thought I’d spend my career here, and I wanted so badly to bring you a championship,” he wrote.

However, when it came down to it, the Dallas brass simply didn’t have his back as they traded him without even letting him know first. And that maybe why Doncic is so keen on teammates and coaches that have his back. After all, he knows what happens when someone doesn’t!