The blockbuster Luka Doncic trade from last season still has the NBA world buzzing, and for the Los Angeles Lakers, it was nothing short of a franchise-altering gift from above. After a period of stagnation, the Lakers landed Doncic in a deal that felt like an absolute steal—sending Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a future first-round pick to the Dallas Mavericks. Almost overnight, a Mavericks team fresh off an NBA Finals appearance began its downward spiral.

How did the Lakers pull off such a seismic move without a single leak? According to team governor Jeanie Buss, the answer lies in an extraordinary cloak-and-dagger operation. In a recent appearance on the podcast "Pretty Tough with Maria Sharapova," Buss revealed that the trade talks were kept so quiet because the primary target was to keep former Mavericks owner Mark Cuban completely in the dark.

"The Dallas team wanted Anthony Davis, and he was on our team. Conversations started, but it was important they remained private," Buss explained. "Those conversations started in the beginning of January… Rob Pelinka, our general manager, was able to do that all without it leaking to the media because I think Mark Cuban might’ve jumped in front of a train to keep it from happening."

The secrecy was so tight that not even the players themselves knew. "Nobody knew—including Luka, Anthony Davis, and LeBron James. We had a game in New York that night, and the coach knew this was going to happen, but he still had to play the game. We won that night. It wasn’t a distraction," Buss added.

For context, Cuban had owned the Mavericks since 2000 but sold his majority stake in late 2023. Had he still been at the helm in early 2025, the trade almost certainly would never have happened—Cuban has openly stated he would never have parted ways with the young superstar.

The arrival of Doncic has been a revelation for the Lakers, restoring their championship mystique and reopening a title window that had seemed to close. Before the trade, Los Angeles had won just one playoff series in five years since their 2020 title run. Now, with Doncic in purple and gold, the Lakers are once again a force to be reckoned with—and it all started with a secret that stayed secret until the very last moment.