This past weekend, two direct conference rivals of the OKC Thunder took part in one of the most shocking blockbusters in modern NBA history, as the Dallas Mavericks traded Luka Doncic, Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for a package headlined by Anthony Davis.
During the days since the earth-shattering exchange, fans and media pundits alike have been quite vocal about their opinions on the trade, with many questioning the logic behind why the reigning Western Conference kings in the Mavs would make such a move in the first place.
Though GM Nico Harrison has since come out and stated that, in his eyes, the acquisition of Davis "fits right along with our timeframe to win now and win in the future," when considering they shipped out a literal top-five player on the planet in Doncic, many strongly believe they could have gotten far more in return for his services than an aging, injury-prone star, role players, and one first-round pick.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's residency with the Thunder is a perfect case for why this sentiment should be widely accepted.
Thunder star a reminder of how a blockbuster trade should be executed
Following their underwhelming first-round playoff exit during the 2018-19 season, the Thunder decided it was best to push the reset button on their title-or-bust core of Russell Westbrook and Paul George and start anew.
That summer, both of the aforementioned cornerstones were dealt away, with Westbrook shipping out to the Rockets and George being sent to the Clippers.
Over time, it has become more than apparent that this tough yet necessary decision by Sam Presti and company was the right one to have made, as this particular strategy has helped guide the franchise to where they are now atop the Western Conference standings for the second year in a row at 38-9.
However, following last week's Doncic debacle out in Dallas, one could seriously make the argument that not only do the Thunder look even better for their wheeling and dealing abilities, but the Mavericks look even worse.
At this point in time, both players were still viewed as All-Star and All-NBA-caliber talents. Heck, Paul George even found himself coming off of his best season in the NBA with averages of 28.0 points, 8.2 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 2.2 steals on 38.6 percent shooting from distance.
That said, heading into the summer of 2019, neither one of them was argued to be a top-three player in the league like Doncic is when healthy.
Yet, in a nutshell, OKC traded a 30-year-old Westbrook and a 28-year-old George for a total return package headlined by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and a whopping 11 first-round pick rights (both in the form of swaps and outright acquisitions) that have either already turned into players like Jalen Williams (selected No. 12 in 2022 via LAC pick) or have yet to be conveyed (2025 pick swap with HOU, 2026 unprotected pick from LAC, etc.).
For a 25-year-old Doncic who boasts career averages of 28.6 points, 8.7 rebounds, 8.3 assists, and 1.2 steals and who is fresh off both an NBA scoring title and an NBA Finals appearance, the Mavericks only netted a 31-year-old Davis (will be 32 in March), a former second-round pick in Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick.
While it's still far too early to tell how this move will wind up shaping up for Dallas, at least from a comparative standpoint, it seems to be universally accepted that Luka's services should be worth far more than what the Mavericks got in return.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is clear reminder of this.