New Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic 'excited' after shock trade from Dallas Mavericks

Luka Doncic was nearly asleep last Saturday night in Dallas when his phone buzzed. Only then did he learn that the Mavericks had just stunned the sports world by trading him to the Los Angeles Lakers.

“You can imagine how surprised I was,” 25-year-old Doncic said.

“I had to check if it was April 1. I didn’t really believe it.”

The superstar has begun to recover after his first two days in LA, and he’s growing increasingly excited about a new chapter with LeBron James and his famed new team on the sunny West Coast.

“It was a big shock,” Doncic said.

“(Dallas) was home, so it was really hard moments for me … (But now) I get to play in the greatest club in the world, and I’m excited for this new journey.”

The Lakers formally welcomed Doncic on Tuesday, less than three days after they traded Anthony Davis and Max Christie in a three-team deal for the Slovenian who won his first scoring title last season before leading the Mavs to the NBA Finals.

Doncic, a five-time All-NBA selection and a five-time All-Star, is still processing the upheaval, but is already seeing the limitless upside of a career in Los Angeles that will begin alongside the 40-year-old James, the top scorer in NBA history.

“That first day was really hard,” Doncic said.

“I felt like these last 48 hours was one month. Emotionally, it was really hard, but today was much better. This is the Lakers. It’s one of the best clubs in history, so I’m excited to be here.”

General manager Rob Pelinka didn’t hide his glee at landing Doncic when they met with the media at the Lakers’ training complex, saying Doncic’s arrival would bring “basketball joy to the world.”

“We have one of the game’s biggest superstars and an international player coming to join the Lakers,” Pelinka said.

“I think it’s going to be something incredibly special that the NBA and basketball has never seen before.”

Although James was blindsided by the deal along with the rest of the NBA, he quickly called Doncic to welcome him to the Lakers.

“It’s just like a dream come true,” Doncic said.

“I always looked up to him (James). There’s so many things I can learn from him, and I’m just excited to learn everything and get to play with him. It’s an amazing feeling.”

Doncic hasn’t played since Christmas because of a calf strain, but he is close to a return - set to participate in five-on-five work at practice on Wednesday.

The Lakers also acquired Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris in the trade with Dallas and both laughed at the widespread notion the Mavs were irredeemably concerned about Doncic’s conditioning and work ethic.

“I hear the stuff about him not being in shape, but if you can go in an NBA game and get 30 and 15 and 10 like it’s nothing, then I don’t really know what shape is,” Morris said.