Luka Dončić Says Fans Shouldn't Worry About Him Leaving, Wants to Win Title with Mavs
Luka Dončić is trying to ease any concerns Dallas Mavericks fans might have about him potentially leaving the franchise at some point.
In an interview with WFAA's Joe Trahan (h/t BasketNews.com), Dončić explained why Mavs fans shouldn't be concerned about things right now.
"I don't think they [should] worry about it," he said. "I have five years left here so I don't think they should be worried about it."
Dončić went on to say his goal remains helping the Mavericks win an NBA championship.
"That's everything," the three-time All-Star said. "Everybody wants to win the championship. I want to win the championship here. It's our goal. It's the same every season. It's a lot of work to do. There are so many great teams in the league. Anybody can beat you at this point. You have to be really ready."
Speculation about Dončić's future became a talking point during the offseason when Dallas' front office didn't do anything significant in the wake of losing Jalen Brunson to the New York Knicks in free agency.
In a July interview with Spanish news outlet Marca (h/t Dalton Trigg of SI.com), Dončić said his "goal is to stay and win" with the Mavs.
"Although of course, in the future you never know, but my idea, and hopefully I will succeed, is to win in Dallas," he added.
The Mavs did add Christian Wood in a trade with the Houston Rockets, but they were unable to find a second star to play alongside their franchise point guard. It felt like a missed opportunity for a franchise that was coming off an appearance in the Western Conference Finals last season.
Already regarded as one of the NBA's best players, Dončić has taken his game to another level to start this season. The 23-year-old leads the league in scoring average (34.0 points per game), ranks fourth in assists (8.1) and tied for 18th in rebounds (9.0).
Dončić's 37.6 usage percentage ranks third in the NBA among players to have played at least 10 games, behind only Giannis Antetokounmpo (37.8) and Joel Embiid (37.7).
Despite the individual success of Dončić, the Mavs are currently in 10th place in the Western Conference with a 9-8 record. He signed a five-year, $215.2 million extension in August 2021.
One key element of Dončić's extension is it doesn't include an opt-out, so he is tied to the Mavericks through the 2026-27 season. That gives Mark Cuban and the front office time to build a roster around their superstar point guard as they look to join the Western Conference hierarchy.
