The pressure was on for the Mavericks as they stepped into Crypto.com Arena for the first time since the Luka Dončić trade. Emotions were running high, but Jason Kidd’s squad refused to back down, keeping things competitive against the mighty Lakers. But then—disaster struck.

Midway through the game, Dante Exum went down hard after a scary collision with LeBron James, forcing him to exit early. Just when the Mavs were finding their rhythm, they were hit with yet another setback.

The incident went down in the closing seconds of the third quarter, and let’s be real—when LeBron James is charging toward the rim, the smartest move is usually to get out of the way.

Looks like Dante Exum missed that memo. As LeBron came flying in at full speed, Exum leaped to contest what looked like a monster dunk attempt. And to his credit? He got the stop, knocking the ball loose from The King’s hands.

But at what cost? Mid-air, the two collided hard, and Exum crashed straight to the floor, writhing in pain. The arena went silent as concerns grew over the severity of the fall.

Visibly shaken up by the hit, Exum screamed “Oh my God!” as his teammates rushed to check on him. Replay showed that he might have taken an accidental hit to the face and his midsection from a soaring LeBron. The hit left him with a bloody mouth. Meanwhile, LBJ landed right on his feet, almost unbothered by the contact. Just shows what a freight train he is.

Sure enough, Exum could not continue playing because of the hit and headed straight to the locker room to assess his injury. On the court, LeBron’s play was reviewed for a potential flagrant or unsportsmanlike act, but the officials stood by their initial decision because LBJ was in his natural shooting motion during the collision. Unfortunately, Exum did not return and his night ended early with only 8 points and three rebounds. And that meant tragedy for the Mavs.

Mavericks’ Luka Doncic reunion ends in Disaster amid Dante Exum’s injury

When Dante Exum left the game, the Mavs were right there—just one point behind the Lakers, with a real shot at stealing the win. But his exit? A game-changer. Without Exum, Dallas struggled to keep pace in the final quarter.

Meanwhile, the Lakers’ starters went off, combining for 89 points and shutting the door on any Mavs comeback attempt. Final result? Lakers by eight. A hard-fought battle, but in the end, LA just had too much firepower.

Sure, Luka did not have a scoring outburst like everyone expected, as he scored only 19 points. But he did contribute in every other way and finished with his first triple-double for the Lakers. Meanwhile, LeBron did what he always does and dropped a 27-point double-double. And the dark horse of the night was none other than Austin Reaves, who impressed everyone once again by scoring twenty points. He is truly turning into that third star for the Lakers behind Luka and LeBron, averaging 19.2 points and over six assists.

For the Mavs, Kyrie Irving did everything he could, dropping 35 points in a valiant effort. But the problem? He didn’t get enough help. With little support, Dallas just couldn’t get over the hump in this highly-anticipated reunion. And now, Jason Kidd’s headaches just got worse.

If Dante Exum’s injury turns out to be serious, he could miss more games, dealing a major blow to the Mavs’ already shaky playoff push. For now, all Dallas can do is wait and hope for good news on Exum’s health.