When the Mavericks acquired his rights on draft night, the organization viewed Luka Doncic and their first-round pick of 2017, Dennis Smith Jr., as their backcourt of the foreseeable future.
Isiah Thomas-Joe Dumars 2.0, is how a Mavericks source described it Tuesday. Fire and Ice. A tandem whose divergent skills complement one another.
Yet after barely half a season, including only 28 games on the court together, the Doncic-Smith duo appears destined for an abrupt breakup, with multiple sources confirming that the Mavericks have intensified efforts to trade Smith.
A Mavericks source, as well as a source close to Smith, emphasized that neither Smith nor his agent requested a trade but had informed the Mavericks they wouldn't be opposed to one.