Negotiations with the Dallas Mavericks were won by Rob Pelinka, and this directly resulted in an all-in second trade.

NBA Trade Rumors: Negotiations with the Dallas Mavericks were won by Rob Pelinka, and this directly resulted in an all-in second trade.

After trading Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Dallas Mavericks are having a hard time getting a break.

The Los Angeles Lakers made their third deal of the year on Wednesday night, as the NBA trade season continued to go on. The Lakers negotiated a trade with the Charlotte Hornets, acquiring Mark Williams as their likely starting center after signing Dorian Finney-Smith, Luka Doncic, and other supporting players.

With an average of 15.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game, Williams is having a good season. Williams was acquired by the Lakers in exchange for a 2030 pick, a 2031 draft pick, and promising prospect Dalton Knecht.

They acquired Doncic, who is a far superior player to Williams, over the weekend in exchange for Max Christie, Anthony Davis, and a 2029 draft pick.

After trading Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Dallas Mavericks are having a hard time getting a break.

The Los Angeles Lakers made their third deal of the year on Wednesday night, as the NBA trade season continued to go on. The Lakers negotiated a trade with the Charlotte Hornets, acquiring Mark Williams as their likely starting center after signing Dorian Finney-Smith, Luka Doncic, and other supporting players.

With an average of 15.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game, Williams is having a good season. Williams was acquired by the Lakers in exchange for a 2030 pick, a 2031 draft pick, and promising prospect Dalton Knecht.

They acquired Doncic, who is a far superior player to Williams, over the weekend in exchange for Max Christie, Anthony Davis, and a 2029 draft pick.

The Hornets, who gave up a decent player but not an already iconic face of the team, are in a better position long-term than Dallas, who left with just one pick.

For Williams, the Lakers retained their finest players.

The Lakers probably wouldn't have had the resources to finalize the deal with the Hornets if the Mavericks had forced a fair return for the Slovenian superstar or marketed Doncic on the free market.

Harrison has been a longtime friend and coworker of Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka. Although this helped establish the trust necessary to keep the deal a secret, it also cost the Slovenian the best price, and many have equated the trade to malpractice. 

The Lakers saved enough money to acquire a much-needed center to join their two superstars in the starting lineup after defrauding the Mavericks of their greatest player and adding a franchise centerpiece for the ensuing years.

It's difficult to argue that the Lakers didn't win both of the transactions, even though supporters would be right to point out that the team did overpay for Williams, who isn't worth two choices or a Rookie of the Year candidate.

In order to create a one-two punch with their new rotation, the Lakers traded their franchise center and three selections for a young, promising big man and a future Hall of Famer who hasn't reached his peak yet.

It's difficult to identify a vulnerability with any of the Lakers' positions when Williams is in town, so preserving their assets in the Doncic trade ended up being an even greater victory than supporters may have initially believed.