The offseason hype machine has been unable to resist the magical transformation that Luka Doncic has showcased this summer. Doncic looks like a scorned ex-partner ready to show off to the Dallas Mavericks just how much they are going to regret their decision to trade him.
"If this is an overarching, permanent change for him, I absolutely think we'll look at the trade, the ammo, and the motivation [that] was given to him," Tim Cato said on The Zach Lowe Show. "If this is what changes his career, it makes total sense to me."
Cato told Zach Lowe the big questions about Doncic's health and conditioning will truly be answered once February and April roll around. Seeing how well Luka holds up throughout the course of a full NBA season was paramount for the podcast guest.
Assuming this is the turning point in his career with relation to those concerns, the Los Angeles Lakers will continue to laugh at how well the trade ages for them. The Mavericks, on the other hand, will be forced to duck for cover at every encounter.
Luka Doncic's fuel to improve is clear as day
Everyone in Los Angeles is readying chants of MVP for the Slovenian superstar. The hype around a revitalized Doncic fueling a great 2025-26 campaign for the Lakers has been tough to ignore.
In all fairness, anyone turning a blind eye to it is doing so at their own risk. The Lakers were already good last season with Doncic far from his best. An MVP-level Luka would be a major swing factor on the ceiling of what Los Angeles can do in the upcoming campaign.
If one listens closely enough, the cries of a vengeful superstar can be heard as well. It came up when Doncic joined the broadcast booth for the New York Yankees' recent matchup against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Luka Dončić joined the broadcast booth during tonight's Yankees game and joked that the Mavericks probably saw his transformation in the latest issue of Men's Health when Michael Kay brought it up. pic.twitter.com/EBZHzi3pes
— Michael Bier (@MichaelJBier) July 29, 2025
Doncic knows the Mavericks are watching. The Lakers superstar point guard is priming himself for that sweet payback at every turn.
Lakers fans love seeing Doncic in purple and gold. They will hope they can see it for a while longer when Luka officially puts pen to paper on that new contract extension.
The truth of the matter is Doncic had no plans on leaving Dallas before the blockbuster trade went down. Dan Woike of The Athletic even suggested this body transformation could have taken place in Texas.
Woike wrote, "Some sources in Doncic's inner circle believed he was on the path toward this kind of physical transformation whether or not Dallas general manager Nico Harrison had bet against him."
Despite that, the story is that Harrison did indeed make that bet. Right now, Luka appears poised to cash that money, with the Lakers set to receive all of the profits.