Dallas Mavericks fans may finally get what they want months after the front office, led by general manager Nico Harrison, traded star Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers. The Mavericks were reportedly fed up with Luka because of his off-court habits, such as his diet and commitment. This, of course, makes little sense given Doncic led Dallas to the 2024 NBA Finals and is consistently mentioned among the best young players in the league.
Harrison has since faced protest from Dallas fans calling for his head. If the Mavericks should fall short in the NBA Playoffs – they currently hold the 10 seed and a play-in spot – it would give ownership headlined by the Adelson family to cut Harrison loose as a fall guy. One trade could very well be Harrison's undoing, despite all the savvy decisions he made along the way to build a team around Doncic. All the Adelsons care about is the bottom line, and there's little doubt trading away a franchise icon like Luka will hurt their wallets.
Dallas Mavericks could fire Nico Harrison in aftermath of Nuggets, Grizzlies moves
Thankfully for Mavericks fans and possibly ownership, the Denver Nuggets and Memphis Grizzlies have given them an out. If Dallas is fed up with Harrison, they would be well within bounds to let him go. Memphis fired head coach Taylor Jenkins under mysterious circumstances, while the Nuggets fired Michael Malone and general manager Calvin Booth. Denver won an NBA title in 2023, led by Nikola Jocic, and are the fourth seed in the Western Conference as of this writing. If the Nuggets felt the need to cut the chord, then what is the Mavericks excuse?
Still, NBA Insider Marc Stein has questioned whether Mavericks leadership would be willing to make such a drastic change. Getting rid of Harrison isn't going to bring Luka back, after all.
"Several of Harrison’s moves with the Mavericks were initially questioned — like the Irving trade — but then worked out. As a result, Harrison awoke Feb. 1 with a sky-high approval rating among Mavericks fans. Now it is routinely asked all over town whether Harrison can hang onto his job amid so much widespread external dismay with his decision," Stein wrote.
However, two drastic decisions in the Western Conference – both directly correlated to urgency and failed expectations – could force the Mavericks hand, and give them an out in the process.