Even Mavericks fans still loyal after the Dončić trade struggle with its ramifications

Fandom’s irrational. There’s not always justification for the time fans put into their teams, for the money spent on them, for the joy and the anger, for the bonds formed and rivalries created, and there never needs to be. That’s the beauty of it.

The Luka Dončić trade, however, has forced most Dallas Mavericks fans to confront and, at times, struggle with that irrationality. In our DLLS fan survey conducted earlier this month, more than 2,000 respondents — 45 percent — described their fandom being over or at least under reconsideration. Another 48 percent said they were “less” or “much less” engaged than they were before the trade.

As one disengaged respondent wrote, “What the hell do I do with all my Luka jerseys?”

In that survey, only six percent of respondents described their fandom being unchanged by the trade. That’s still 299 unique respondents, however, many who chose to elaborate on why this trade hasn’t affected this aspect of their identity. What’s revealed in their answers is that even fans who haven’t wavered in their support, ones who have kept watching even as the team has struggled, aren’t all enjoying the post-trade fallout — or even believing this team’s on the right track.

“It’s weird,” wrote one person who described their fandom as “more engaged” than before. “I want to stop caring about them but I just can’t.”

These Dallas fans, the ones whose fandoms have not been shaken by the Dončić trade, have no single unifying thread that connects their reasoning. Some were indeed frustrated with Dončić, citing his conditioning, complaints to the referees, and past injury history. “I have long been alarmed at what seemed to be Doncic’s questionable commitment (to those things),” one respondent wrote. Another enjoyed the team more when Dončić was absent, saying his play style was “hard to watch.” Some fans are just curious, even optimistic, whether this new team can be better.

“It’s easier for me to remain a fan because my favorite players are always the gritty role players,” said another respondent, once again someone who described “no change” to both their fandom or how often they watch games. “I appreciated how Luka elevated the Mavs, but I wasn’t a huge fan of him personally and was already starting to have misgivings about his future.”

Still, that same respondent continued: “I do dislike the secretive nature of the dealings. It was disrespectful to Luka and the fans.”

These 299 respondents who remained unchanged Mavericks fans were still overwhelmingly against the Dončić trade. When asked this question in the survey, “Based on the known reasons for the Dončić trade, which of the following statements most align with your opinion?”, only 10 percent of these respondents selected “the Dončić trade was justifiable as is.” (That response represented one percent of the entire survey.) Another 121 of these unchanged fans, or 40.5 percent, believed it was justifiable “if Dallas had received more in return”. The rest felt it would not have been in any circumstance.

As one of these fans wrote, “I am afraid for my team’s future outlook.” Another said, “Still a fan, just really sad.” A third respondent described themselves as more engaged right now due to the team’s bleaker future: “I have less hope for the future. Been keeping up with Mavs more lately because they only have a two-to-three year window of good basketball.” Some of those who could accept trading Dončić remain hung up on, as one person described it, the fact that Dallas “was fleeced.”

“I’m hurt, but I have a Dallas Mavericks disease,” one fan wrote. “I love them. I’ll never forgive them for trading Luka, but I am married to the team.” 

That sentiment of team fandom preceding any player was common throughout these responses. “I was a Mavs fan before Dirk and before Dončić,” another response read, even while that fan believed the team was headed toward a “downward spiral.” To fans who have completely checked out, continuing to watch the Mavericks every night might seem irrational. But that’s the quintessential nature of it, isn’t it?

“It’s not that I’m less engaged now than before but it is definitely different in a negative way,” one fan said. “I loved this team in a way that was pure and heartfelt. Even when we lost I believed in us. … It’s not pure anymore, I guess. I don’t know that I believe in this team the same way I once did.”

Undeniably, the Mavericks’ core fandom has suffered since this trade. Much of that cannot be separated from the team’s ongoing injury crisis, of course, and the majority of these comments were written prior to Kyrie Irving’s season ending with a torn ACL. But those who keep watching, for all their different and unique reasons, aren’t all sycophants for what happened. Speaking broadly to what was expressed, they just don’t know any other way but Mavericks fandom — even if, right now, it hurts.

“Either the Mavericks win a championship or Nico fails,” said one response. “I’m happy with either outcome.”