Luka Dončić's comments after trade to Lakers should have Mavericks very worried

Luka Dončić was officially introduced as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday, and if his initial comments were any indication, the Dallas Mavericks may have made a franchise-defining mistake.

The 25-year-old expressed his surprise about the move, according to the Associated Press (via ESPN).

"It was a big shock," Dončić said. "It was hard moments for me. I had to check if it was April 1. ... [But now] I get to play in the greatest club in the world, and I'm excited for this new journey."

"Honestly, it was hard at first," Dončić continued. "That first day was really hard. I felt like these last 48 hours was one month. Emotionally, it was really hard, but today was much better. I'm just very happy to be here for this opportunity. This is the Lakers. It's one of the best clubs in history, so I'm excited to be here."

The Mavericks made this trade banking on Luka's fitness concerns continuing to get worse in the coming years. But the Serbian's comments on Tuesday don't sound like someone who is going to struggle with fitness moving forward.

They sound like someone who is ready to use this perceived slight as fuel to continue to be one of the NBA's best players.

Sending Dončić to Los Angeles to play with LeBron James was always going to be a massive gambit. James has shown the ability to motivate and push players to be better, and if anyone is going to help Luka to get his fitness where it needs to be, it's James.

Even if he doesn't, there's no real indication that Dončić's skills are going to atrophy at all in the coming years, meaning the Lakers have landed their heir apparent to James and the franchise cornerstone to build around without having to mortgage any more of their future than they already have.

Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka expressed his own excitement, as well.

"We have one of the game's biggest superstars and an international player coming to join the Lakers," Pelinka said. "I think it's going to be something incredibly special that the NBA and basketball has never seen before."

If Dončić's words are any indication, Pelinka is exactly right. And that should make Nico Williams and the Mavericks very, very nervous.

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