The Wonder Boy

Luka Doncic and the Curse of Greatness

By: Tim MacMahon

Narrated by: Tim MacMahon, Charles Constant

ESPN’s Tim MacMahon goes behind the scenes of Luka Dončić’s years with the Dallas Mavericks—before his trade to the Lakers stunned the basketball world—telling the story of a franchise’s quest to build a championship team around a prodigy.

In 2018, the Dallas Mavericks landed the most hyped prospect in basketball history—teenaged Luka Dončić. With The Wonder Boy, MacMahon takes us beyond the highlights to the madness that ensues as the Mavericks try to avoid blowing their golden opportunity. From the internal power struggles in owner Mark Cuban’s front office during the early years of Dončić’s career, to the new regime’s effort to earn Dončić’s loyalty and put the ruthless competitor in position to win, readers will learn never-before-reported details about the saga’s biggest moments, including:

• The blockbuster deal for Kristaps Porzingis that blew up in the Mavs’ faces
• The divorces with coach Rick Carlisle and GM Donnie Nelson
• Jalen Brunson’s exit after a run to the Western Conference finals
• The new pairing with the mercurial Kyrie Irving
• The improbable journey to the 2024 Finals

The Wonder Boy pulls back the curtain on on the Mavs’ quest to win it all with their irreplaceable young star, a dilemma every NBA team would love to have.

Critic reviews

"From Doncic's childhood through the Mavericks run to the 2024 NBA Finals, MacMahon unearths fascinating new details about Doncic's unlikely path to Dallas and the challenges of building around a generational superstar. This is a true insider account—a must-have for any basketball fan."
—Zach Lowe, NBA analyst and host of the “Lowe Post” podcast

Exceptional attention to detail both on and off the court.

What captivated me about this book was its detailed unraveling of the Mavericks organization’s journey, both on and off the court. The author expertly weaves the timeline together, using creative storytelling techniques that really bring the events to life.

Everything

I liked how soothing the story was because it was about basketball I listened to it when I went to sleep

Howdy partners!

Big Tim coming through big. Loved the storytelling. We def need a follow up. Adios amigos.

Insightful and Engaging

As a former Mavs fan it was a tough read emotionally, but it was very insightful as to how we got here. Thankful to be able to relive the good times through the storytelling. I’ll read it again in the future.

Please pick better narrators

I love Tim MacMahon. I think his insights are fantastic and he understands how to plant the seeds of a story with small details that lead to incredible importance later on. The intro (in his own voice) discussing the draft and all of the players and executives that will have significant meaning later on is expertly done. And he has a great voice that would work for this audiobook (I’m sure Bontemps would make a joke about a look for radio, but I would never).

All that said, this narrator is offensive. Why didn’t MacMahon narrate this himself? Here are some mispronunciations over the first few chapters:
-Celtics with a hard C
-Rudy Gobert that rhymes with Dilbert
-Deron Williams like this narrator assumes black names have to be pronounced with extra emphasis
-I don’t know how the f to describe what he does with Haralabos Voulgaris

I can’t listen to this garbage anymore. But to support MacMahon, Im going to buy a hardcopy because I very much appreciate the work