From “Fire Nico” to “Thank you, Nico”, the league has witnessed a lot of changes over the last few weeks. At first glance, it might seem like a positive change, except it isn’t. We’ll come to it in a bit. Meanwhile, the Mavs’ minority owner Mark Cuban, who oddly didn’t have much to say after the shocking Luka Doncic trade, cleared the air tonight amid the intense clash between the Lakers and Mavericks at Crypto.com Arena.

We all remember that infamous quote from Mark Cuban about trading Luka Doncic. For those who don’t? Here’s a refresher:

“If I had to choose between my wife and keeping Luka on the Mavs, catch me at my lawyer’s office prepping for a divorce.” Yep. He really said that—back in 2020.

Fast forward five years and a lot has changed. Cuban sold the team to the Adelson family, and Mavericks GM Nico Harrison made the unthinkable move—trading Luka to the Lakers. So much for ’til death do us part.

While Mark Cuban made it clear he wasn’t involved in the decision to trade Luka Doncic, one thing remained a mystery—his relationship with Luka and his family.

Well, tonight, he put all speculation to rest. Amidst the 19,000-strong crowd, Cuban made his way up the stands to Sasa Doncic, Luka’s father. With a beaming smile, he shared a few words, and then—they hugged it out.

A wholesome moment, proving that, despite the trade, there’s still love between the Doncic’s and Cuban.

Following the trade, Mark Cuban emerged as one of the unquestioned entities in the Mavs’ leadership and front office despite his strange silence. Looks like the fans are aware of Cuban’s bond with Doncic’s family. Well, the fans weren’t wrong at all, as the billionaire produced a wholesome gesture.

Meanwhile, Nico Harrison, one of the most questioned entities post the trade, had an unusual reception in the arena. Well, why wouldn’t the Lakers fans be happy after Harrison gave away a generational talent to their team? Anyway, let’s find out what happened.

Luka Doncic trade continues to haunt Nico Harrison

We all know how Mavs fans felt about Nico Harrison after the Luka Doncic trade—and let’s just say, it wasn’t pretty. Every time his face popped up on the Jumbotron, the arena erupted in boos, with chants of “Fire Nico!” echoing through the stands.

But here’s the wild part—the franchise wasn’t having it. Security reportedly confiscated signs that read “Fire Nico” and even ejected some fans for keeping the chants alive.

Safe to say, the Luka trade fallout is far from over in Dallas.

None of it seemed to help. At one point, the situation went out of hand when the team was forced to increase security for the GM. ESPN’s Tim MacMahon reported an increase in death threats and racial slurs against Harrison. Amidst this hostile environment, Nico received contrasting treatment in LA tonight.

Right when he came out of the tunnel, a bunch of Lakers fans screamed, “Good trade, Nico! We love you, Nico!” Importantly, it didn’t end there and further continued throughout the game. This time, it was the entire arena. When Luka Doncic approached the free throw line, the crowd screamed, “Thank you, Nico,” in unison. Moreover, it was a special night for the star guard, as he recorded his first triple-double in Lakers’ uniform (19-15-12) to crush his former team in the revenge battle.

Nico Harrison may have to face a lot of such difficult times in the coming days, as the Mavs struggle to hold their head above the playoff contention.