Transcription
Sorry for Nico Harrison, but at the end of the day, you traded Luca Donic. And if you're trading Luca Donic, you can't be 3 and 8 on the season. Mav's ownership is more responsible for this than anyone for letting it happen. But in the end, owners don't fire themselves. They find somebody to blame and Nico Harrison went all in. He knew that it could eventually cost him. And unfortunately, it has.
They actually did it. After months of fire, Nico chance echoing through American Airlines Center. [cheering] After protests outside of the arena, after a literal funeral for the fact that the Mavericks traded Luca Donic, after 9 months of complete chaos following the Luca Donuch trade, the Dallas Mavericks have officially fired general manager Nico Harrison. This might be the craziest case of sabotage I have ever seen in NBA history. a general manager that literally got his team to the Western Conference Finals twice, got his team to the NBA finals once, sabotaged his team so badly that he was fired in the beginning of this year.
So, how did we get here? Before we get to the content, we are giving away a jersey of your choice. You just have to subscribe and turn on our notifications on this channel and just comment what jersey you want in the comment [music] section down below. I'm going to announce the giveaway winners Friday in my community post. And now that we got all that out of the way, cue the intro.
>> [music] >> Mic check 1212. What's going on everybody? ESPN Shamps Shirana broke the news this morning that Nico Harrison and owner Pat Dumont met at 10:00 a.m. Central on Tuesday and Harrison was let go. This comes less than 24 hours after the Mavericks lost to the Milwaukee Bucks to fall to 3 and 8 dead last in the Western Conference. The fans were chanting fire Nico again during that game. Fire.
The Mavs are dead last in the Western Conference. Nico Harrison had special emergency exit stairs built into the arena so he could run away so fans couldn't heckle him anymore. And fans took every opportunity they could to heckle this man.
>> Nico, what's up, man? >> Good to meet you. >> We all still hate you. >> All right, good. Good talk, brother.
And it looks like this time those fire Nico chants really hit home because ownership finally listened. You got to understand how crazy this story is. Yesterday we talked about how Harrison's job was in jeopardy. We talked about the pressure mounting, the disaster unfolding, the worst offense in NBA history. But I don't think anyone expected to happen this fast. And I definitely didn't expect what happened Monday night to be the final straw because Patrick Dumont, the Maverick's governor, who had been defending Harrison for months, was caught on camera at courtside talking to a fan wearing a Lakers Luca Donuch jersey. And you know what Dumont did? He took accountability for the trade and he admitted it was a mistake. Think about that. The Mavs governor who said in Nico we trust back in February just admitted to a random fan that trading Luca was a massive mistake. And less than 24 hours later, Nico Harrison is out of a job. That tells you everything about how this ended.
Let's go back to the beginning because to understand how spectacular this collapse was, you need to understand how promising it all looked. First, on June 28th, 2021, Donnie Nelson gets fired from the Dallas Mavericks after over two decades of service. Mark Cuban hires Nico Harrison as the Maverick's new general manager and president of basketball operations. This wasn't your typical NBA executive. Harrison had never worked in an NBA front office before. He spent 19 years at Nike, climbing all the way to vice president of North American basketball operations. He had relationships with everybody. He knew Kobe, worked with Michael Jordan, had connections with basically every major player in the league. The Mavericks were banking on those connections to help them build around Luca Donuch. And for a while, it actually looked like it was working.
Harrison's first major move was in February of 2022. He traded Chrisaps Porzingis to Washington for Spencer Denwitty and Davis Bertton. At the time, this looked brilliant. Porzingis wasn't working next to Luca. He couldn't stay healthy. The fit was awkward. Getting Denwy gave them another ball handler. And suddenly, the Mavericks had flexibility. 3 months later, the Mavericks make the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2011. Nico Harrison looked like a genius, but there was already a massive problem brewing. one that would haunt Harrison's entire tenure and eventually contribute to his downfall. Jaylen Brunson.
So, the Mavericks just made the Western Conference Finals. Jaylen Brunson, the second round pick who nobody believed in, just averaged 21.6 points and 3.7 assists in the playoffs. He proved that he could be a starting point guard on a contender. The Mavericks could have extended him before the season for around $14 million a year. They didn't. After his playoff performance, the Knicks offered a 4-year, $104 million deal, and Harrison didn't match. Mark Cuban said that there was some foul play here.
>> I honestly thought it would work out. I really, really, really did. But it didn't. And that's okay. >> The only thing that I didn't like about the whole situation was when Mark said when the parents got involved, that's when things got messy. >> I didn't want to go there here, right? It wasn't just a jab, JB, for real.
When asked about it, Nico Harrison basically shrugged it off, saying that Brunson's connections to New York made it inevitable. His dad had just been hired as a Knicks assistant coach. But here's the thing. Brunson's family was begging Dallas for an opportunity to stay. They wanted to match, but Harrison said no. Now Brunson is a two-time all-star averaging [music] 26 points and seven assists for the Knicks. He's one of the top point guards in the entire NBA. And he left $113 million on the table to stay in New York and build a contender.
And typically, this would be the type of mistake that haunts a franchise. But even when he made a mistake, Nico Harrison's pivot [music] was excellent. In February of 2023, the Mavericks were 28 and 26, going nowhere fast without a true second star next to Luca. So Harrison pulls off a blockbuster, trading Spencer Denwitty, Dorian Finny Smith, a 2029 firstround pick and two second round picks to Brooklyn for Kyrie Irving. This was the ultimate high-risk, highreward move. Kyrie had baggage, lots of it. But Harrison had a personal relationship with Kyrie dating back to his AAOU days. He believed he could manage him. And you know what? At first, [music] it actually worked. The Kyrie Luca duo took time to gel. They tanked the end of the 2022 to 23 season, but that was also brilliant because as a result of tanking their last few games, the Mavericks were able to select Derek Lively II in the 2023 offseason. And by the 2023 to 24 offseason, they figured it out. Harrison made deadline moves to acquire PJ Washington and Daniel Gaffford. And suddenly, [music] the Mavericks had versatility, an ideal lob threat for Luca Donuch, and elite defense to go [music] with their offensive firepower. They made the 2024 NBA Finals. Yeah, they lost to the Celtics, sure, but Harrison just took this team to the finals. In June of 2024, right after making the finals, the Mavericks gave him a multi-year contract extension, and they would be foolish not to at this point. Harrison demonstrated an ability to not necessarily always make the right move, but at the very minimum consistently pivot to build the perfect roster around Luca Donuch. This should have been the pinnacle [music] of Harrison's career. He'd proven the doubters wrong. He built a finals team. But instead of building on that success, he was about to make the worst decision in modern NBA history.
The 2024 off season actually started pretty well for Harrison. In a 16 trade, Dallas acquired Klay Thompson from the Golden State Warriors, a future Hall of Famer, a four-time champion, one of the greatest shooters ever. This is exactly what they needed, more shooting around Luca and Kyrie. They signed Thompson into a three-year $50 million deal. Spencer Denwy chose the Dallas Mavericks over the Los Angeles Lakers on a veteran minimum contract. They added Naji Marshall and they traded for Quinton Grimes. On paper, this looked like a team that could win it all. They addressed their shooting needs, kept their defensive identity with Washington and Gaffford, and had championship level star power. But here's where everything went wrong. Harrison became obsessed with the idea that defense wins championships. The Mavericks lost the finals to Boston, and Harrison convinced himself it was because they didn't have enough defensive firepower. [music] Never mind that they were the sixth best defense in the league. Never mind that the offense actually struggled against Boston's elite defense. Harrison decided that the problem was that Luca Donuch wasn't a good enough defender. And that's when he made the trade that would effectively end his career.
On the night of February 1st, going into February 2nd, 2025, Nico Harrison and his longtime friend Rob Pelinka executed one of the most shocking trades in NBA history. Luca Donuch to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 firstround pick. The reaction was immediate and brutal. Maverick's fans rioted outside of the American Airlines Center. Death threats poured in. Fire Nico Chance started that very night and never stopped. People couldn't believe that Harrison had just traded away a 25-year-old fivetime first team allNBA player who had just led them to the finals. And fans were not happy about the return that they got either. Harrison's reasoning was defense wins championships. Anthony Davis is an elite defender. The Mavericks needed to shift their identity. But here's what made it even worse. The return was terrible. Dallas didn't get Austin Reeves, who was emerging as a star. They didn't get Dalton Connect, the promising rookie. They didn't get any meaningful draft capital beyond a single 2029 pick. The Lakers could have offered a 2031 first round pick, plus swap rights in 2026, 2028, and 2030. They kept all of that because Rob Pelinka convinced Nico Harrison that he was taking on a huge risk with Luca Donuch. It was very clear that Nico Harrison got fleeced in this trade and then the injury issue started immediately. Davis was injured when they acquired him and aggravated it upon his return. Irving tore his ACL soon after the trade and hasn't played yet this season. The Mavericks finished 39 and 43. Meanwhile, Luca Donic is out here currently averaging 37 points, 10 rebounds, and nine assists for the 8 and 3 Lakers while playing elite defense. Everything Harrison said that Luca couldn't do, he's doing it in LA.
Less than a week after Luca returned to Dallas as a Laker and cried during his tribute video, Patrick Dumont forced Harrison to hold a press conference. It was supposed to calm the fan base down. Instead, it made everything worse. The press conference was invite only. No audio or video recordings allowed. Harrison kept defaulting to defense wins championships for basically every question. He dismissed input from Mark Cuban and Dirk Nitzky because they weren't in the building on a constant basis. He wouldn't commit to staying beyond his contract even though he traded away all the team's first round picks through 2030. When asked directly why he shouldn't be fired, he said this.
Why shouldn't you be fired? >> One, I think I've done a really good job here and I don't think I can be judged by the injuries this year. And you'll see next year when our team comes back, we're going to be competing for a championship.
Competing for a championship. He said that in April. We're now in November and they're 3 and 8 with the worst offense in NBA history. Those words aged like milk left out in the Texas sun.
Here's the crazy part. Mavericks won the 2025 NBA draft lottery despite having only a 1.8% chance at the number one pick. They got Cooper Flag, one of the most hyped prospects in recent history. A generational defensive talent who could do everything. This should have saved Harrison. The fan base was still furious, but at least now they had hope. They had Flag. They'd get Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving back healthy. And maybe, just maybe, this could work out. Except Harrison immediately made things worse with his 2025 offseason moves.
With Kyrie Irving out until at least January with his ACL recovery, the Mavericks desperately needed a point guard. So, what did they do? He signed D'Angelo Russell to a 2-year, $13 million deal. Now, on the surface, that's not a terrible price for a former all-star. But here's the problem. Russell just came off of the worst shooting season of his career, shooting 31.4% from three and 39% from the field overall. And he's one of the worst defenders in the entire league, which makes this podcast clip even more hilarious.
Like I'm high level, bro. Like I see when you're open. You don't even know you're open. Like be ready for me, bro.
Remember Harrison's whole philosophy was defense wins championships. That was literally his justification for trading Luca. And his first major move to replace Luca's playmaking was to sign one of the worst defensive point guards in basketball. But Harrison wasn't done making questionable decisions there. In September, he gave PJ Washington a 4-year, $90 million contract extension. Now, Washington was good for them. He helped them reach the finals in 2024. But here's the problem. Washington is shooting 28% from three this season with a negative plus minus. And Harrison locked him up for five more years at $90 million. These are the kind of moves that showed Harrison was making reactionary decisions without a clear plan. He was throwing money at players who had helped them win before without considering whether they fit the new roster construction or whether their performance was sustainable.
And then the season started and it's been an absolute nightmare. The Mavericks are sitting dead last in the Western Conference. They have an offensive rating of 103.9, ranking 29th in the NBA. They average a league worst 106.5 points per game when the league averages 116.7. To put that into perspective, the Mavericks currently have the worst offensive rating in NBA history. Not this season, but in NBA history. Cooper Flag, the generational prospect, started the season playing completely out of position. Jason Kit tried to use him as a point forward to run the offense, and it was a disaster for the first seven games. Flag looked lost, his efficiency cratered, and people were starting to wonder if he was a bust. Now, I read some of your comments in my previous video on the Dallas Mavericks, and some of you guys have suggested that Jason Kid did this with Giannis and Ted Kmpo when he was in Milwaukee with him just to develop his playmaking. And that could very well be the case. But this isn't even the worst of the Maverick's problems.
Anthony Davis showed up to camp out of shape and is already dealing with injuries again. I mean, look at this photo that went viral of Anthony Davis. It's insane. Kyrie Irving hasn't played a single game. Klay Thompson has been so terrible that the Mavericks benched him. I think there's a reason why he was pretending to act like he really enjoyed Megan the Stallion's catfish and spaghetti dish.
>> It is the best thing I've ever tasted. my favorite meal >> because this man went from bad to worse and currently the Mavericks are looking at trading him. At least that's what Nico Harrison was thinking of doing. D'Angelo Russell has been exactly what you'd expect. Bad defense, inefficient offense. And through it all, Luca Donuch is out in LA averaging 3710 and N playing defensive player of the year level defense and leading the Mavericks to an 8 and 3 start without LeBron James. Every single night, the gap between what the Mavericks have and what they gave up gets wider.
So, we get to Monday night. The Mavericks lose to the Bucks to fall to 3-8. The fire Nico chance rain down again. And after the game, something remarkable happens. Patrick Dumont is seen courtside sitting next to a fan wearing a Lakers Luca Donuch jersey on camera in front of everyone. Dumont took accountability for the Luca trade and accepted it was a mistake. This is what was allegedly said. Dumont told the fan that he felt bad for the Luca trade. What he did wasn't in the best interest of the franchise. He made a mistake and he's trying to rectify it and he wants to win back the fan base. Think about what this means. Back in February, Dumont said in Nico we trust. He defended the trade. He had given Harrison an extension in June of 2024, but 9 months of disaster has finally broken through. The owner is now admitting to random fans that trading Luca was a mistake. And less than 24 hours later, Nico Harrison is out of a job. That tells you everything you need to know about how quickly this relationship deteriorated.
So, what went wrong? What was Nico Harrison's biggest mistake? Was it letting Brunson walk? Was it trading Luca? Was it bringing on Klay Thompson? Was it the PJ Washington extension? Was it the D'Angelo Russell signing? Honestly, it was all of it. But clearly, the Luca Donuch trade took the cake. It was a complete lack of a coherent vision. Harrison kept saying that defense wins championships, but then he'd sign bad defenders. He'd talk about building for the future, but then he'd extend players who were clearly past their prime or overpay for inconsistent role players. The Luca trade was supposed to be about creating a defensive identity. But despite acquiring Anthony Davis and drafting Cooper Flag, the Mavericks are 29th in defensive efficiency this season. The one thing that Harrison said they'd be elite at, they're terrible at. And that's because Harrison was reacting [music] instead of planning. He saw the finals loss to Boston and panicked. He saw Kyrie's injury and panic. Every decision was a reaction to the last crisis instead of part of a long-term strategy.
But at the same time, you can make the exact same argument [music] for what the Dallas Mavericks are doing here. They saw their 3-8 start to the season, Cooper Flag's lack of development, and the fact that they stopped selling out home games and immediately ruled the Luca Donic [music] trade to be a failure. Anthony Davis hasn't been fully healthy. Kyrie Irving hasn't been fully healthy. This team hasn't been at full strength yet. Each and every one of these players is reportedly already in trade rumors. The Dallas Mavericks went from being one piece away potentially to wanting to blow it all up.
So, what's next here? Well, assistant general managers Michael Finley and Matt Ricardi are being promoted to lead the Maverick's basketball operations department on an interim basis. This makes sense for a few reasons. Michael Finley is a Maverick's legend. He formed that big three with Dirk Nitzky and Steve Nash during the late 90s and early 2000s. He's been in the front office since 2021 as vice president of basketball operations. He knows the organization. He knows what championship culture looks like. Most importantly, the fan base trusts him. Matt Ricardi is a Dallas native who spent 13 years with Brooklyn before joining the Mavericks in 2022. He's been quietly influential in the organization and he was the Mavs representative in the draft lottery room when they won Cooper flag.
So, what is Nico Harrison's legacy with the Dallas Mavericks? Is he the worst general manager in NBA history like some people are saying? Here's the thing, and this is what's very confusing to me. Nico Harrison was an elite general manager up until the Luca Donuch trade. I mean, yes, he made a huge misstep with not signing Jaylen Brunson, but aside from that, he pivoted quickly and traded for Kyrie Irving when everyone saw Kyrie Irving as a troubled player. He acquired PJ Washington and Daniel Gaffford at the deadline, and those moves helped get Dallas to the finals. He showed he could make aggressive moves and wasn't afraid to take risks. But it's very strange. It's like he was making these elite moves and then one day woke up and decided that he needed to trade Luca Donuch due to injury concerns for one of the most injuryprone players in the entire NBA. And that is something that will never make sense to me that I don't question very often because well my favorite team got Luca freaking Donic. You can make an argument that the bad outweighs the good. He let Jaylen Brunson walk for nothing and Brunson became a superstar. He traded Luca Donic for an injuryp-prone 32-year-old and minimal assets. He preached defenses but built one of the worst defenses in the league. He got Cooper flag at number one and so far it doesn't look so good for him in the beginning of the season. As bizarre as the Luca Donuch trade was, we never got to see Nico Harrison's full vision play out again. Kyrie Irving is still injured till December. Anthony Davis has been injured to start the season and came into the season overweight. At the end of the day, Nico Harrison's legacy will forever be trading a 25-year-old Luca Donuch for an injury-prone 32-year-old Anthony Davis and blowing up one of the most promising cores in NBA history for absolutely no reason. And that's how he will be remembered in NBA history.
Let me know what you guys think about this in the comment section down below. If you're a Mavericks fan, are you happy that Nico Harrison has been fired? Or do you think this is just a knee-jerk reaction from the Dallas Mavericks organization? I like to hear what you have to say. Aside from that, I'm your boy Mike and I'm dropping our mic until our next upload. [music]