Mavericks delete hype video that fans thought blurred out Luka Dončić, musician takes responsibility

Hours after a Dallas Mavericks hype video went viral for all of the wrong reasons, the musician who made it is taking the fall.

Dallas rapper Dorrough Music, who wrote and performed a song for the Mavericks in a video released Friday, has apologized for the apparent choice to blur out former guard Luka Dončić. As Mavericks highlights played during the song, the video blurred out a few players with Dallas' colors and logo.

Although none of the players who were censored out were Dončić, the video stung for Dallas fans who were already sensitive about the recent trade that sent Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers. The Mavericks later deleted the video.

In a social media statement, Dorrough clarified that other former players, not Dončić, were the one who were blacked out.

"As a lifelong Mavericks fan and someone who takes great pride in the game of basketball, I would never be part of anything intended to remove, censor, or disrespect Luka Dončić," Dorrough said in the statement. "The video was produced by my team with the intention of energizing and uniting Mavericks fans, and there was never any intent to erase any player's contributions to the franchise."

As for Dončić: "Luka is, and always will be, a part of Mavericks history. I have nothing but respect for him and everything he had done for this franchise," Dorrough said.

Local outlet WFAA tracked down the original clips and found that the censored players were Quentin Grimes and Maxi Kleber, not Dončić. Grimes was sent to the Philadelphia 76ers in a trade earlier this month, while Kleber went to the Lakers as part of the Dončić trade. However, both players were visible at other parts of the video.

Even removed, the video struck a nerve for fans in Dallas, who have felt betrayed not only by the trade, but by the Mavericks' attempts to seemingly erase Dončić from the franchise's history. In the weeks since the trade, Mavs fans have been vocal about their displeasure with the franchise and with general manager Nico Harrison, who organized the trade.