Today In Sport: 2nd of February, 2025

Lakers and Mavericks make blockbuster trade, NFL to come down under, and a Chris Wood hat trick leads Nottingham Forest to a record win, plus more.

Written by Lachlan Sherriff

Doncic Flipped For Davis In Blockbuster Trade

Following a 33 point triple double from LeBron James securing a 128-112 victory in New York against the Knicks, the Los Angeles Lakers shocked the basketball world by trading star big man Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks for Luka Doncic. The trade also saw Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris join the Lakers and Max Christie and the Lakers 2029 first round pick go to Dallas. The Utah Jazz were also involved, receiving Jalen Hood-Schifino and a 2025 second round pick from both the Lakers and the Mavericks.

Davis, who didn't suit up against the Knicks, bids farewell to the Lakers after five and a half seasons in purple and gold, in which he won the 2020 NBA championship. He also made two All-NBA teams, two all defensive teams, and four all star games. 

Doncic, meanwhile, had played his entire career in Dallas up until this point, after the Mavericks traded Trae Young to Atlanta for his services on draft night. Doncic was the 2019 NBA rookie of the year, and had five straight all star appearances and five straight All-NBA first team appearance in Dallas. 

The move comes as a shock to many Dallas fans, who believed Doncic was the heir to the great Dirk Nowitzki. Like Nowitzki, Doncic lost his first NBA finals series in a Mavericks uniform, going down 4-1 to the Boston Celtics. But unlike Nowitzki, who cemented himself as the greatest Maverick of all time after winning the 2011 finals, Doncic will never get the opportunity to make amends.

There are now question marks around the fits for both teams. While the Lakers now get their next young star, the current fit between LeBron and Luka remains a question, as two ball dominant players will have to work out a compromise in order to help the Lakers. Losing Davis is also a big loss to their center rotation, as coach JJ Redick will now have to rely on Jaxson Hayes and Jarred Vanderbilt, while Christian Koloko may also see an increase in minutes.

As for Dallas, the big three of Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson simply isn't as exciting as it would have been ten years ago. And like Irving and Thompson, Davis has not been the most reliable player in recent years, with injuries constantly plaguing the former number one pick. 

Throw in the fact that the Mavericks only got one first round pick, despite the likes of Rudy Gobert and Mikal Bridges going for four in previous years, and it looks like the Lakers won this trade by a landslide.

Both Doncic and Davis are currently fighting through injuries. Doncic injured his calf on Christmas Day vs the Minnesota Timberwolves and has not played since, although there are rumours he may return right before the all star break. Davis, meanwhile, exited the game against the Philadelphia 76ers earlier this week, with his return unknown.

The Lakers take on the Clippers in their next matchup, while the Mavericks are scheduled against Cleveland tomorrow. Doncic and Davis will have a chance to play their former teams twice before the end of this season, on the 25th of February and the 9th of April.

Aaron Wiggins Records A Career Night In OKC Victory

Aaron Wiggins had a career night against Sacramento, as the OKC Thunder defeated the Kings 144-110.

Wiggins, who was a late second round pick for Oklahoma City in 2021, posted 41 points and fourteen rebounds, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander strengthened his MVP campaign with 29 points.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have been praised in recent seasons for their tight bond in the locker room, and tonight was no exception as Wiggins was showered in water immediately after the game.

“Super fun to see one of my teammates having success like that. All the work that he’s put in. He’s well deserving of everything coming his way.”

- Kenrich Williams on Aaron Wiggins 

With this win, the Thunder have gone to 38-9, 6.5 games clear of the second seed in the West. They welcome Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks to Paycom Center in their next match.

Duke Blow Out Rivals UNC

Duke have recorded the latest win in their rivalry against UNC, with the Blue Devils blowing out the Tar Heels 87-70 at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Kon Knueppel led the scoring for Duke with 22, while projected number one pick in the upcoming NBA draft Cooper Flagg was right behind him with 21. Tyrese Proctor and Sion James also scored double digits, with 17 and 13 points respectively.

It was a rough night for UNC, who were sloppy in possession with 14 turnovers and only four steals to Duke ten. No Tar Heels player scored more then twelve points all night.

Duke, who are ranked number two in the nation and improved their record to 19-2 tonight, are now 3-2 against UNC ever since Jon Scheyer became head coach. They'll hit the road in their next two games, travelling to Syracuse and Clemson respectively.

Melbourne Buys Rights To a Minimum of Three NFL Games

In a shock announcement, the NFL has confirmed it will come to Melbourne for "up to" three games, starting from 2026.

The first game is rumoured to feature the Philadelphia Eagles, who have made two Super Bowls in the last decade, winning one. They will also play another Super Bowl next week against the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Eagles look set to be taking on the Los Angeles Rams, who won the Super Bowl in 2022.

While the Eagles boast talent such as Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley and AJ Brown, the biggest selling point for Australians may be offensive tackle Jordan Maliata, who was born in Bankstown and played rugby league before making the switch to the NFL.

The NFL have played multiple games in the United Kingdom, Mexico and Germany in the past. Brazil made their NFL debut in 2024, in a game featuring the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers, while Spain are set to host their first NFL game in 2025.

All games will be hosted at the MCG, which seats over 100,000. While the MCG is an oval ground, it has hosted sports played on a rectangular pitch, such as soccer, in the past.

The deal is reported to bring tens of millions of dollars into Victoria. Victorians will learn more from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell in the coming days, as he hosts press conferences before the Super Bowl.

Nottingham Forest Slap Seagulls For Seven In Shock Victory

Following a 5-0 defeat to Bournemouth, Nottingham Forest have completely turned their luck around with a 7-0 thumping over Brighton & Hove Albion at home.

A Lewis Dunk own goal would start things off for Forest, before Anthony Elanga assisted twice in seven minutes, setting up goals for Morgan Gibbs-White and Chris Wood respectively.

Elanga would complete his hat trick of assists in the second half, assisting Wood again, before the Kiwi international completed his hat trick from the spot in the 69th minute.

Neco Williams managed to put himself on the scoresheet twenty minutes later, before Jota Silva scored his first league goal for the home side in injury time, as Forest became only the eleventh team in Premier League history to win a game 7-0.

Wood, who became the first Forest player to score a hat trick in the top tier of English football at home since Nigel Clough in 1987, was jubilant in his post match interview.

"What a difference a week can make. Down in the dumps after last week. It wasn't us, it wasn't like us, but today that was definitely us. It's fantastic, the boys have done superbly showing character to come back from last week. That is what we're about."

- Chris Wood, via TNT Sports

Nottingham Forest now sit third behind Arsenal only on goal difference. The Gunners play Manchester City at home tomorrow.

Elsewhere in the league, Mo Salah kept up his impressive form with a brace against Bournemouth, as top of the table Liverpool won 2-0. Forest and Arsenal both sit nine points behind the Reds, with Forest having played an extra game.

Ireland Come Back From Behind To Defeat Rivals England

Ireland have defeated rivals England 27-22 in their opening match of the Six Nations tournament, in a comeback victory which saw come back from behind at Aviva Stadium.

Debutant Cadan Murley had his dream start in an England shirt as he scored a try in the first half, putting England ahead 10-5 at half time.

However, tries from Bundee Aki, Tadhg Beirne and Dan Sheehan were enough to seal the game off for Ireland in the second half, despite the Sheehan's try controversially standing despite a potential forward pass.

Nonetheless, Ireland completed the victory and sit third after the first week of Six Nations games, behind second placed Scotland, who defeated Italy 31-19, and France, who sit on top after a 43-0 demolishing of Wales.

After being down at half time, Ireland's captain Caelan Doris was praised for his leadership and maturity throughout the second half.

"We needed to get back to doing things our way. A feeling at the end of the first-half that we thought we were going to break them and when we were getting into their 22 and score zone, things were going to happen for us."

- Caelan Doris, following Ireland's victory against England

Ireland will travel into Scotland for their second game next week, while England host France at home.

Jets Defeat Capitals In Overtime Thriller

In what promised to be one of the game's of the season, the Winnipeg Jets, who sit first in the Central Division, travelled into DC to take on the Washington Capitals, who are leading the Metropolitan Division.

The Jets had a dream start as they took a two goal lead through Cole Perfetti and Dylan Samberg, before Pierre-Luc Dubois pulled one back for the Capitals.

A back-and-forth game would see the Jets ahead 4-3 before Washington captain Alexander Ovechkin scored from distance to send the game to overtime. This was Ovechkin's 877th goal in the NHL, putting him seventeen behind all time leader Wayne Gretzky.

However, it would be Winnipeg who got the last laugh in overtime, as Josh Morrissey sealed off a 5-4 win for the Jets, courtesy of a Mark Scheifele assist.

This victory takes the Jets' to 37-14-3, much to the delight of coach Scott Arniel.

“We knew how we were both sitting in the standings and both having real good years. You know you’re going against some elite players on the opposite side, and we’ve been watching what they’ve been doing. You’re following them in the standings, watching them on the highlights and when you have a game like that, exciting for the fans, not so much for the coaches.”

- Scott Arniel, following the Jets sixth consecutive victory

The Jets take on the Hurricanes at home next, while the Capitals remain in D.C. to take on the Panthers.