Meanwhile, the 26-year-old Slovenian guard was officially out of the team, ending a seven-year stint in Dallas, highlighted by reaching the 2025 NBA Finals presented by YouTube TV. “I texted him on that morning, and that’s the last time I’ve talked to him,” Kidd confirmed the lack of communication with Doncic since the blockbuster trade, “From the experience of being traded, maybe being surprised, upset, feelings are high.” “I loved the opportunity of coaching Luka. He’s an incredible person, and we all know his talent is one of the best in the world,” he continued, “I’ve always said this publicly and privately, I wish Luka the best.” -via EuroHoops.net / May 16, 2025

It was noisy when the Dallas Mavericks decided to trade away Luka Doncic in February. The Slovenian sensation was sent to the Los Angeles Lakers. The majority of Mavs supporters were expressing their disgust, general manager Nico Harrison was under pressure from constantly growing protests, the basketball world was stunned, but Jason Kidd was instead focusing on his team. “I was told by my boss, Nico, that we were going to make a change,” he said during an appearance on the Dan Patrick Show on Thursday, “This is in the hotel in Cleveland. And so he said the news was going to hit in an hour, and that’s how it went down.” “There was no arguing. This is what was going to take place. And so for me, it’s to move forward,” he explained his approach, “I thought my players and my coaching staff did an incredible job with, once they heard the news, of preparing to keep moving forward and especially with the trade and the injuries, I thought we did an incredible job.” -via EuroHoops.net / May 16, 2025