Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic hasn’t received much love on his former team as the Dallas Mavericks’ social media team on the recent X. The All-Star Guard has been edited five times in the recent hype video.
Dallas Mavericks replace Luka Doncic with outline and team logo in social media hype video
The Mavericks released a video on Friday with several players on the team, and Doncic appeared to replace the short clip with silhouettes and team logos (in the video below, at 1:15 and 1:52).
Earlier this month, the Mavericks traded Don Cic to the Lakers in exchange for a package involving Anthony Davis and a 2029 first-round draft pick. The shocking deal came a season after Doncic led Dallas to the NBA Finals.
The original video on X was deleted at 9 a.m. ET on Friday at 9 p.m.
“You can imagine how surprised I was,” Luca Donkochi told Associated Press After the transaction. “I have to check if it’s April 1. I really don’t believe it.”
The Mavericks could have edited Doncic from the hype video to focus on active players. However, Maxi Kleber and Quentin Grimes can still be seen in the video, both of whom are traded by the deadline.
Former Mavericks employee Bobby Karalla also added that it is a long-term team policy to cover up former participants in social media videos:
The former team guy is here! Every year, we have to get rid of the image of the traders representing the team as quickly as possible in all media. Social, website, video, magazine, yearbook, etc. They no longer work there. I know the mood is still high, but that’s not everything that fits the norm.
– Bobby Karalla (@bobbykaralla) February 21, 2025
Several Mavericks fans are continuing to boycott the game. Three days after the deal, Dallas lost nearly one million Instagram followers, reducing the team’s total from 5.3 million to 4.6 million.
According to Rotogrinders, Doncic gained nearly 400,000 new Instagram followers during this period, while the Lakers have added more than 185,000 followers since landing in the all-NBA membership for five times.
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After the deal, hundreds of fans gathered outside the American Airlines Center to protest and mourn the loss of the Slovenian superstar. Some supporters even brought a coffin and held a mock funeral for Doncic’s time with the team.
The Mavericks also offered refunds to fans who canceled their season tickets after the deal.
According to emails between ticket holders and team employees, according to WFAA’s Dallas Paul Livengood, “at least one season holder requests a ticket to be cancelled and will be refunded.”
The refund is for the remaining home games of the Mavericks this season. As Dallas left 16 home games in this regular season at the time of reporting, the refund was worth about $2,000.
Livengood also noted that GoFundMe started raising funds to buy billboards to let the Mavericks know how frustrated they are with Doncic Trade. A brewery in the area also began selling “selling teams” beer.
“We value ticketing membership relationships in each season, and representatives can answer any questions or calls from problems,” Erin Finegold, vice president of MAVS Corporate Communications Erin Finegold, said via text.
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In addition, Mavericks fan Chris Taylor was held at the American Airlines Centre event with the Sacramento Kings at the American Airlines Center on February 3.
Simply put, there is nothing right in Dallas since the deal. ESPN’s Tim Macmahon said the Mavericks decided to move forward from Luka Doncic as his “continuous conditioning issues” and the “imminent” contract extension for the 2025 offseason promise”.
ESPN’s Bobby Marks said Doncic is eligible for a five-year, $345 million extension in the summer. Instead, the 25-year-old can sign a $229 million five-year contract with the Lakers.
Despite fans’ objections, the Mavericks will commemorate Doncic’s overall tenure as a member of the organization in the coming months. Dallas is reportedly planning a video of Don Xi’s salute to Don Xi when the Lakers headed to the American Airlines Center on April 9.
