Where Do the Mavericks Go After Firing Nico Harrison?
by Sam Cox | by Tyler Doty
Following months of fan unrest and a slow start to the season, the Dallas Mavericks finally decided to move on from Nico Harrison. Extreme fortune in the draft lottery wasn’t enough to save Harrison after the inexplicable decision to trade Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers earlier this year.
Beyond deciding to trade Dončić, Harrison’s tenure was riddled with other errors, including the return he got for the Slovenian superstar and the puzzling move to flip Quentin Grimes to the Philadelphia 76ers.
Dallas sits 4-11 on Nov. 19. Kyrie Irving is out until 2026 at the very least, Anthony Davis is unlikely to play until December, and Dereck Lively II has played five games all season.
Only two Western Conference teams have a worse record. The Mavericks have the worst offense in the NBA and sit 24th in net rating.
Build Around Flagg
Dallas doesn’t own its first-round pick between 2027 and 2030 thanks to a string of win-now trades around the aforementioned Dončić. This hampers their team-building flexibility around Cooper Flagg in the coming years.
Harrison admitted to shortening their contention window, but Flagg’s arrival should change the Mavs’ outlook. It should all be about the future of the team with Flagg as the centerpiece, which means considering trading away Davis and Irving.
Irving cannot be traded until December, and it’s worth the Mavs – or any acquiring team – waiting to see how he looks after a long-term injury. Davis, in line for a massive contract next summer, is movable right now and could help the Mavs replenish a couple of draft assets.
Trading away at least one of the two veteran stars makes it easier for the Mavericks to tank in a loaded 2026 draft. They must get a lottery pick to provide a player on the same timeline as Flagg.
Possible Trades
It’s not as easy to trade Davis as his reputation might suggest. He’s in his age-32 season, injuries have been a career-long problem, and his next contract is enough to make basketball executives wince.
That’s before getting to the restrictions imposed on Dallas by the apron, meaning they can’t receive more back in a salary than they send out. Other teams are similarly hampered, further complicating a possible Davis trade by the need for a third – or even fourth – team.
Is there a world where the Milwaukee Bucks send Myles Turner and Kyle Kuzma in a last-gasp attempt to content in a wide-open east with Giannis Antetokounmpo? What if the Chicago Bulls package Nikola Vučević, Zach Collins, and a couple of firsts for Davis and a salary filler?
The usual rumors will come up surrounding the Minnesota Timberwolves flipping Rudy Gobert, the Los Angeles Clippers in desperation mode, and the Miami Heat trying to add another star. All feel very far-fetched at this juncture – Davis’ contract is hard to trade, and Dallas isn’t going to get much value in return (the two firsts mentioned from the Bulls might be ambitious).
Irving’s contract – almost $18 million less than Davis’ and with two more years of team control – is more tradeable if he looks good when he gets back on the court, but the Mavs might be better off waiting until the offseason for such a move.
Embrace Losing
Unfortunately, the Mavericks have to embrace losing for the remainder of the season. It is the best path for the franchise in the wake of Harrison’s calamitous spell.
Trading Davis is the ideal outcome, and the same goes for Irving once he’s back, but it won’t be easy. The Mavs might have to hold Davis out of some games if they can’t deal him – he’s the biggest risk to their lottery odds as it stands, even in a stacked Western Conference.
Give plenty of minutes to Ryan Nembhard. Get Lively healthy. Keep Jaden Hardy playing big minutes and see how big a role Max Christie can handle. Put Flagg into a position to succeed, and avoid too many minutes running the offense, which could prove detrimental to his development.
It’s going to be another painful season for Dallas, but it’s the best path for the long-term.
