The Mavericks' decision to trade Luke Doncic to the Lakers was shocking for many reasons, one of which was that Dallas made the NBA Finals less than a year ago. At the time, winning the Western Conference felt like the beginning of Dallas' title window,

By now, it is safe to say that there is a very real chance the league's oldest and fiercest rivalry could spring back to life if the two old enemies on the hardwood find themselves back on the league's biggest stage competing for the claim to most titles won in Association history.

Joe Mazzulla's team handed LeBron James, Luka Doncic, and the rivals from LA its first loss in eight, and looked pretty unbeatable doing it.