“It’s a huge adjustment. It’s just not what people see on TV when you go…. It’s hard to find your footing in a new city”. Stephen Curry’s mother, Sonya, once revealed the effect an NBA trade can have. Bidding adieu to the team to whom the player had devoted years of his life is just one part of the tough process.

After all, being unexpectedly told about your shift to a different team uproots the athlete’s life. It causes him to find a new residence and shift in the city they head to, and creates a tedious adjustment period for him and his family. The longer a player has been associated with a team before the trade, the worse it is. Amidst Luka Doncic’s shocking trade to the Los Angeles Lakers, this aspect was something a former Knicks star talked about.

Carmelo Anthony recently hosted a new ‘7 PM in Brooklyn’ podcast episode. Having played with 6 different teams during his 19-year-long NBA career, Carmelo Anthony knows a thing or two, about trades. Therefore, when discussing the Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis exchange, he exclaimed that “it is f***** up” to have a trade without the player’s knowledge.

With uninformed trades, the former player believes, “That goes back to some real deeper level type of s***, right. So, that’s the f***** up part about it. Like at least have the decency to communicate with me, even if you know Im’ma be mad, like communicate that with me. Like I’m leaving, I got to leave my family. Rudy (Gay) say (Luka) was building a $15 million crib out there in Dallas”.

Hours after breaking the news about the trade, Shams Charania revealed “LeBron James had no idea this was coming. Anthony Davis had no idea this was coming. I’m sure Luka Doncic is still stunned about this trade”. The belief that something of this proportion had even happened caused many NBA stars like Tyrese Haliburton and Bam Adebayo to question whether the ESPN analyst’s phone was hacked or stolen.

After all, Luka Doncic was the face of the Dallas Mavericks. He and Kyrie Irving helped the team reach the NBA Finals last season. In a perfect world, he was as safe as a player could wish for. This would have made the news and the transfer that awaited him all the more heartbreaking for Luka.

Dallas was the only US city the Slovenian player and his fiancée, Anamaria Goltes, had called home. After shifting to Texas from Europe, Goltes highlighted a new place and culture can develop a new way of thinking. She had to find new local grocery stores, pick a gym, and make new friends.

While it took some time, the model could say about a year later, “Dallas is a lot like Europe. I love Dallas. It reminds me of home.” Former Mavericks player Chandler Parsons reportedly spread the rumor that Doncic was purchasing a $15 million home in Dallas. Luka’s business manager, Lara Beth Seager, confirmed the same, since “he expected to spend his career in Dallas”.

The least respectful thing would have been to inform the $215.16 million contract wielder about the trade decision early. Rob Pelinka made it clear the trade wasn’t a rash decision.

Rob Pelinka was willing to acquire Luka Doncic even in the presence of “248 insurmountable snags”

During the recent introductory press conference, Luka Doncic made his first public appearance as a Laker. Alongside him was Lakers GM Rob Pelinka. During the Q&A session, they asked the GM about the process that led to the Slovenian becoming another team player. Pelinka said that the Mavericks’ general manager, Nico Harrison, initiated the trade talks. Pelinka and Harrison go back a long way. They worked together often when the former served as Kobe Bryant’s agent, and the latter was associated with Nike. Despite their previous working relationship, the task they recently embarked on wasn’t made any easier.

“Along the way we knew there would be 248 insurmountable snags to get to the end, and there were,” said Pelinka. “And so, over the course of you know, three weeks call it, an issue would come up, and we’d think there was no way to climb the mountain. And we’d figure out a way. Then the next issue would come up, and you just keep going and you keep you stay committed to the work you stay committed to trying to get the deal done, in a partnership sense.”

Rob Pelinka also revealed they committed to keep the discussion between the team owners and the GM. During the three weeks, the team did not inform Luka Doncic even once despite this. Not even a warning? This is the very thing Carmelo Anthony is against. The thing that has now created unnecessary tension for Luka and his family right in the middle of an NBA season.