Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic ranked Miami as his No. 1 NBA city in a recent interview.
Doncic was asked to rank NBA cities without knowing which one came next.
He was given Los Angeles first, which he chose to put second. Then, he was given New York, which he placed in the No. 3 slot.
The former lottery pick was given Chicago next, which he placed fourth before making his call on Miami. Doncic chose the No. 1 spot for Miami, leaving Boston in the No. 5 spot.
He knows ball pic.twitter.com/PD1RzfT0Ts
— keion (@BucketHatKeion) September 30, 2023
While it may not mean anything about places where he’d like to play in the future, it still is interesting that Doncic liked Miami enough to put it at No. 1.
The Mavericks superstar is under contract through the 2025-26 campaign, and he has a player option for the 2026-27 season.
However, if Doncic asks for a trade from Dallas, there’s no doubt that just about every team in the NBA – including the Miami Heat – would be interested in the young superstar.
Last season, Doncic averaged 32.4 points (a career-high), 8.6 rebounds and 8.0 assists per game while shooting 49.6 percent from the field and 34.2 percent from beyond the arc. He was named to an All-Star team for the fourth time in his career in the process.
Despite Doncic’s terrific play, the Mavericks failed to make the playoffs last season. The team ended up missing the play-in tournament in the Western Conference.
The Mavericks and Doncic are hoping to turn things around in the 2023-24 season, especially since they’ll have a full season of Doncic and guard Kyrie Irving on the roster together. Dallas acquired Irving at the trade deadline last season and re-signed him this offseason.
With two star guards like Doncic and Irving, Dallas should be one of the better teams in the West in the 2023-24 campaign.
However, if the Mavericks struggle, it could be enough for Doncic to at least consider asking for a trade. The Heat, who were rumored to be in on guard Damian Lillard in the trade market this offseason, could potentially offer a package for Doncic if he becomes available.
For now, with the Mavs star still under contract, there isn’t much Miami can do to bring him to his No. 1 NBA city.
