Nowitzki skipped family lunch after Doncic trade: 'I was so stunned'

Dirk Nowitzki was glued to his phone after news broke in early February that the Dallas Mavericks traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Nowitzki revealed on the latest episode of the 41 Campus podcast that he was on vacation in the Maldives when his phone "exploded with calls and messages from all over the world" about the trade, per BasketNews.

"I was so stunned that I just put everything aside," the Mavs legend said. "We were supposed to go for a quick lunch with the family before flying out, but instead, I sat in my room for an hour, scrolling through X, trying to figure out if it was real."

While Nowitzki remains loyal to the Mavs, he admitted that he was hurt by the team's decision to part ways with Doncic.

"It's a tough situation, but in my tweet, I made it clear - I will always be a Mavs fan, but this trade really hurt," he said. "And it will take a while before everyone processes it and moves on."

Nowitzki played one season with Doncic in Dallas before retiring from the NBA in 2019. He attended Doncic's Lakers debut against the Utah Jazz on Feb. 10.