The Mavericks Will Likely Hold Luka Doncic Out of the NBA Summer League

The Dallas Mavericks made a big time move in trading away the rights to Trae Young and a 2019 first round pick in order to snag Slovenian guard Luka Doncic in Thursday night’s first round of the 2018 NBA Draft, and it looks like the team doesn’t plan on taking any chances when it comes to their future superstar. The team has announced that they will likely keep Doncic out of the NBA summer league in order to rest him, as he is just coming off the end of an MVP season in Euroleague basketball.

The Mavs still plan for Doncic to appear in Vegas while the summer league is in session in order to become acclimated with his teammates and training staff, the latter of whom will help Doncic develop from a strength and conditioning perspective.

Dallas hopes that Doncic can be the last piece of their core of talented young players, which includes 2017 first round pick Dennis Smith Jr and 26-year-old forward Harrison Barnes. Mavericks president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said of his team, “We feel at this point that we’ve got some building blocks that we can watch grow together. Now you’re seeing the makings of the stuff that we had back 20 years ago. Now, it’s letting these guys grow together.” He clearly has high hopes for these guys, as that “20 years ago” reference was made in comparing these young guys to the likes of Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Nash, and Michael Finley, the first two of whom are future Hall of Famers. That’s some pretty high praise.

Doncic indicated that, regardless of the team’s decision to keep him out of the summer league, he plans to work his hardest to succeed in the NBA. He said, “I like challenges. When they say you’re going to be good, I like to be challenged. When they say you’re not going to be good, I say, let’s see. When I step on the court, I need to show. No matter what pick you are, you need to show it on the court.”

While it might be disappointing for fans to have to wait until October to see Doncic play against NBA talent, the move makes perfect sense for the Mavericks, who clearly envision him as the future of their franchise.