Mark Cuban blasts Mavericks for Luka Doncic trade return

Mark Cuban previously said he had nothing to do with the Mavericks’ shocking trade of Luka Doncic.

Now, the former Dallas majority owner is saying that the team should’ve gotten a better return from the Lakers in the late-night February blockbuster.

In the three-team trade that shocked the NBA world, the Mavericks landed Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a 2029 first-round pick.

Cuban, who still has a minority stake after selling 73 percent to the Adelson family, even reportedly urged the Mavericks to hang onto Doncic, but the trade had already been verbally agreed to.

In an interview with WFAA on Thursday night, Cuban said the Mavericks should have gotten more in any Doncic deal.

“If the Mavs are going to trade Luka, that’s one thing,” Cuban told the outlet. “Just get a better deal. I still firmly believe if we had gotten four unprotected number ones and Anthony Davis and Max Christie, this would be a different conversation.”

Cuban added that even being part of the team — in the diminished ownership capacity — has not been a great time.

“Yeah, there are parts that are not fun, obviously,” Cuban said. “Especially this month, or last month. But, y’know, they paid for that right.”

The last month-plus for the Mavericks has been a painful one for the franchise, to say the least.

Fans have protested general manager Nico Harrison inside and outside of American Airlines Center in Dallas, Anthony Davis got injured in his first game with the Mavs and, more recently, Kyrie Irving suffered a season-ending ACL tear.

Cuban added that he doesn’t have many regrets about selling his majority stake — especially if his kids were in a similar position as current ownership.

“I don’t want my kids to end up in this exact position, at some level, if they made a mistake,” Cuban added. “Imagine if I didn’t [sell], and my kids had taken over and they made a mistake like this.”

Dallas (32-31) has lost three in a row and is now in 10th place in the West.