The Los Angeles Lakers secured a 135-118 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday to clinch Group B of the NBA Cup.
The Lakers, who won an NBA Cup title in 2023, have been rolling lately, winning five consecutive games and positioning themselves nicely for another NBA Cup championship.
Following Los Angeles' 17-point win, the organization's star point guard, Luka Doncic, took a dig at the Dallas Mavericks while speaking to reporters.
I think I never got past the group stage (in Dallas)," Doncic said." So something new for me. I've played it in Spain, something like this. So, I like it."
In 2023, Doncic and the Mavericks finished the group stage with a mediocre 2-2 record, which wasn't enough to advance to the knockout round.
However, while it's clearly already been erased from Doncic's memory, Dallas fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the knockout round last year.
It's reasonable to assume Doncic's honest mistake was intended for him to show appreciation for the Lakers and add insult to injury to a Mavericks squad still reeling from their head-scratching decision to trade the five-time All-Star to Los Angeles last year.
Doncic is thriving with the Lakers during his first full season with the organization (he's averaging 35 2points, 9.2 assists, and 8.8 rebounds per game) and wants the Mavericks' organization to continue to feel devastated about their unfortunate decision to part ways with their generational point guard.