Jeanie Buss, the majority share owner of the Los Angeles Lakers and the face of the franchise as the team’s governor, was recently interviewed and went into detail regarding Los Angeles’ unexpected trade for Luka Dončić.
Although she might not have been at the center of the trade like Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka, there is no denying that the owners from both sides were privy to the fact that their stars were going to be traded.
However, given the shock of the trade, Buss hadn’t anticipated the reaction it would draw from fans around the globe. From Dallas Mavericks fans busting their head to the Lakers knowing no bounds of their joy, Buss couldn’t help but stand in awe of Dončić’s “global superstar” status.
Jeanie Buss’ Admission About Luka Dončić Trade
The first reactions to Dončić’s trade in the NBA were shock, and questions arose about whether Shams Charania had been hacked or whether the deal was a prank. When the reality set in, Buss was just left in awe of the Slovenian’s popularity at 25.
“I didn’t anticipate the global impact it would have. I mean, I knew it was going to be a big story in the NBA but he really is a global superstar, ” she said on the Games with Names podcast.
Jeanie Buss gives her thoughts on the Luka Dončić trade
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📺Dropping on YouTube at 3pm EST@JeanieBuss @Edelman11 @NBA @Lakers @luka7doncic pic.twitter.com/3Sw3r3wQoL— Games with Names (@gameswithnames) March 11, 2025
Superstar From The Start
Dončić was a star even before being drafted by the Mavericks in 2018. He had been playing for Real Madrid in the Euroleague from 2015, and won the championship and the league MVP in 2018 before the NBA draft. He was also a three-time Liga ACB champion before the trade, and his popularity only skyrocketed after coming to Dallas.
The 25-year-old was a celebrity in Dallas, and when Buss learned about the opportunity to trade for him, she didn’t think twice, even if that meant giving up a legitimate DPOY candidate in Anthony Davis to get the deal over the line.
“I called Jeannie after the coffee in Dallas and brought her in immediately, as I do with everything,” Pelinka said at Doncic’s introductory press conference. “Her and I have a really strong working relationship and the fabric of that is that we share. We share things in real time. And she was extraordinarily excited and hopeful that we could get to the end, which we were able to do.”
While Buss has echoed Pelinka and others’ claims that they didn’t want to trade Davis, she recently termed his departure “positive” after claiming that “Anthony Davis was complaining about where he was being played, and he wasn’t happy.”
Dončić has indeed brought positivity in L.A., with the Lakers going 9-4 since his arrival, while Davis has been out since suffering an adductor strain in his first game with the Mavericks.