Is Nico Harrison getting fired this offseason? Although everything points to the Dallas Mavericks general manager staying put, rumoured front office moves could place him under the spotlight once again.
Is Nico Harrison Getting Fired This Offseason?
Since mid-February, ‘Fire Nico’ chants have echoed around the American Airlines Center, as the animosity towards the Dallas Mavericks front office shows little signs of letting up.
Luka Doncic’s trade away to the LA Lakers in return for one of the most injury-prone stars in the NBA, and just one first-round pick, will continue to baffle fans for decades to come. A 10th-placed finish in the Western Conference and a season with the playoffs has done little to patch-up that open wound.
Although no changes have been made to the front office in Dallas, Harrison took it upon himself to fire some prominent backroom staff, including athletic performance director Keith Belton and head athletic trainer Dionne Calhoun.
Fans have since accused Harrison of hiding behind a season plagued by injuries, using Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis’ layoffs as a shield, and claiming the trade would have been viewed as a success, had it not been for a roster ravaged by absences.
Patrick Dumont, the franchise’s new majority owner out of Las Vegas, has reportedly paid the Mavs several visits since the curtain came down on their season in April, and NBA insiders claim that he is backing Harrison as GM to carry the team forwards.
Dallas were of course handed a miraculous saving grace which may have inadvertently eased the pressure on Harrison, albeit momentarily. Having successfully landed the first pick despite holding a mere 1.8% chance of winning the NBA Draft Lottery, the Mavericks now have the rare chance to build for the future with projected number one overall pick Cooper Flagg, while also chasing a ring.
NBA fans, and even Utah Jazz co-owner Dwayne Wade, alluded to the fact that the Draft Lottery is rigged in order to fit a scarcely believable script for Dallas’ season.
For now, short-term stability is in their best interests, but given Harrison’s track record of juggling with future jeopardy, fans are still not convinced.
Rumours of what Dallas plan to achieve in the offseason has only fuelled the flame, so it is worth unpicking how they may approach the coming season, and what it could mean for Harrison.
Rumours of Dallas Mavericks Offseason Moves Proving Unpopular
Dallas Mavericks offseason moves will be studied in great detail by the fans and media alike, but they are already handicapped.
Almost all of the Mavs’ future draft picks having been traded by Harrison already. It leaves them with just two of their own picks without swap rights; first-round picks in 2026 and 2031.
Dallas have an extremely limited scope to begin building around Flagg, even if he is being billed as the future.
Even with Dallas Mavericks trade rumours linking them to Jrue Holiday and Lonzo Ball — both much-needed players for a limited backcourt — they simply can not afford to spend one of their first round picks on what could be another short-term gamble.
Although beyond the first round picks the vault is looking limited for the Mavs, they can still choose to build consistently for the future. However, Nico Harrison’s propensity for frivolously spending first round picks means we can almost certainly expect another short-sighted gamble.
When asked why he sanctioned the Doncic trade, Harrison said: “the future is three to four years from now,” and that in a decade “they’ll probably bury me and [Jason] Kidd by then.”
Of course, jokes aren’t to be taken at face value, but it’s hard to ignore the underlying sentiment behind it.
The Mavericks would be better explore another of their rumoured pick-ups, Chris Paul, who could be available on the free agency market. That way, Dallas doesn’t have to trade away their rights for a soon-to-be 35-year-old Jrue Holiday, or Lonzo Ball, who has played just 41 games since the start of 2022.
If Harrison continues to threaten the long-term future of the Mavericks, Patrick Dumont may need to step in to safeguard the franchise’s ability to provide Cooper Flagg with a supporting cast, beyond the Irving-Davis era.
