Conspiracy Theorists Claim Donald Trump Called For The Luka Doncic To Lakers Trade To Distract From Tariffs

Luka Doncic was sent to the Los Angeles Lakers as part of a three-team trade that shipped Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks. Given the shock factor of the trade, the Mavericks' ties to Donald Trump, and current events taking place in the United States, some seem to believe that the President had something to do with the blockbuster move.

Believe it or not, to get the full scope of the latest anti-Trump theory gaining some steam, we have to talk about tariffs and how they, according to some, played a role in all of this.

Over the weekend, President Trump signed an executive order authorizing tariffs through a new International Emergency Economic Powers Act that will go into effect this week. The tariffs consist of a 25% additional tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico and a 10% tariff on imports from China.

The Trump administration said the legislation is a response to an "extraordinary threat posed by illegal aliens and drugs, including deadly fentanyl, (that) constitutes a national emergency."

The decision has not been well received by Democrats, and even some Canadians elected to boo the playing of the U.S. National Anthem ahead of the Ottawa Senators home game on Saturday night shortly after the executive order was signed.

The executive order on tariffs is the biggest political story in North America, and with the Doncic trade coming on the heels of it, the tin foil hat crowd has started to share some, uh, thoughts, claiming it's a distraction from the real world issues.

Many believe that the Mavericks were the losers of the Doncic-Davis trade given that Doncic is still just 25 years old and a generational talent. Trading him before he's due a super-max contract sends the clear message that Dallas didn't want to commit to him from both a time and financial standpoint.

This brings us to Mavericks' ownership and the third layer of the theory.

Miriam Adelson is the majority owner of the Mavs and happens to be a major donor to the Trump campaign, having reportedly donated $100 million to his campaign efforts during the 2024 Presidential election.

So, since Trump is good friends with the Mavericks' owner, perhaps he made a call to her asking her to trade away the face of the franchise out of absolutely nowhere to distract from the tariff talk. Seriously, that's the theory some are floating on social media.

What a time to be alive. Conspiracy theories galore about an NBA trade somehow relating to executive orders related to goods and the political beliefs of the team's owner.

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets, including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016, when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.