While there has already been speculation about Luka Dončić's long-term future with the Dallas Mavericks, Nikola Jokić has extended an offer for him to join the Denver Nuggets.

During NBA All-Star Weekend, the two-time NBA MVP joked Dončić can come play for the reigning champs if he "gets pissed" with the Mavs.

Jokić and Dončić have a close friendship that was on display this weekend in Indianapolis.

Even though Jokić was joking, there is a very-real scenario in which Dončić could seek a way out of Dallas. The organization has already mortgaged a lot of its future on a series of trades that don't leave it with a lot of options going forward.

B/R's Dan Favale panned the Mavs' trade-deadline acquisition of P.J. Washington because of what it cost them going back to the offseason acquisition of Grant Williams, who was dealt to the Charlotte Hornets in that deal.

"Dating back to the sign-and-trade transaction that landed them Williams this past offseason, the Mavericks have now turned a 2027 first-rounder and an unprotected 2030 first-round swap into...P.J. Washington," Favale wrote.

If you want to go back even further, the original mistake that set all of these subsequent deals in motion was not signing Jalen Brunson to a four-year, $55.5 million extension midway through the 2021-22 that he reportedly would have signed.

The Mavs subsequently traded Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith and three draft picks, including an unprotected pick in 2029, to the Brooklyn Nets for Kyrie Irving, who was in the final season of his contract, in February 2023.

Irving signed a three-year, $120 million deal to remain in Dallas last summer.

At the end of last season, ESPN's Tim MacMahon noted there was a "fear" within the Mavericks organization that Dončić could request a trade as soon as the summer of 2024 if the team didn't make significant progress.

MacMahon also pointed out Dončić publicly and privately expressed his frustration with where the Mavericks were at least season.

Dallas has been better this season, though it still doesn't look like a title contender. The team's 32-23 record at the All-Star break ranks seventh in the Western Conference, but its only one game behind the New Orleans Pelicans for the No. 5 spot.

If Dončić finds himself in a position where he does want out of Dallas in the near-future, the Nuggets could be in need of a point guard after next season. Jamal Murray's current contract is set to expire at the end of the 2024-25 campaign.

It would seem highly unlikely