Nico Harrison has ‘no regrets’ on Luka Dončić trade, says ‘defense wins championships’

Nico Harrison has “no regrets” about his decision to trade Luka Dončić.

On Tuesday, the Dallas Mavericks general manager defended his February decision to send Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a first-round pick, only eight months after Dončić led the Mavericks to an NBA Finals run.

“When you look at this trade, we targeted A.D. with our philosophy of defense wins championships,” Harrison said. “We wanted a two-way player to lead our team, and that was Anthony Davis. And so everybody’s going to have their critics. … But we got what we wanted.”

Since that Feb. 1 trade, the Mavericks have posted a 13-20 record and slipped to 10th place in the Western Conference. The Lakers are 23-13 post-trade and locked up the West’s No. 3 seed.

Harrison said he believes the Mavericks are still a “championship-caliber team” as long as they are healthy. Davis suffered a left adductor strain in his first game as a Maverick on Feb. 8, which sidelined him for six weeks. Guard Kyrie Irving tore the ACL in his left knee on March 3, which is expected to keep him out for a significant portion of next season.

“The team post-trade that was intended to be on the floor … that’s a championship-caliber team,” Harrison said. “You guys were able to see it for 2 1/2 quarters. Unfortunately, that’s a small sample size.”

Harrison has made 15 trades since he joined the Mavericks front office in 2021. He cited the team’s decision to acquire Irving in 2023 as an example of a move that drew initial criticism but that eventually worked out in the Mavericks’ favor.

“Every trade I’ve made since I’ve been here has not been regarded as a good trade,” Harrison said. “And so sometimes it takes time. When I traded for Kyrie, it was met with a lot of skepticism and it was graded as a terrible trade and you didn’t see it right away, but eventually everyone agreed that that was a great trade.”

To acquire Irving, the Mavericks traded Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith and a first-round pick. To acquire Davis, the Mavericks traded one of the best young players in NBA history.

Dončić, who has made the All-NBA First Team five times, was set to sign a five-year, $345 supermax contract extension with the Mavericks this summer. He wanted to spend his entire career in Dallas and was close to purchasing a home in the city when he found out the Mavericks were moving him.

“Luka is an extremely talented player, as we all know,” Harrison said. “We’ve all seen he’s probably dropped the most points when maybe he’s not in the best conditioning. So he can do that. That’s not an issue. When you make a trade like this, you have to really look at it in its totality. We’re thorough, we looked at everything, and again, just felt that it was in the best interest of our team going forward. I keep saying this, but defense wins championships.”

Harrison worked primarily with Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka to complete the league-altering deal. Harrison limited trade discussions involving Dončić because of his belief that “you can’t shop your best player.”

“It’s not responsible because a trade might not work,” Harrison said. “And then they have to ultimately play under the scrutiny of being shopped. And then you also have a player who this summer would’ve had a decision to make — a big decision — whether he signs the supermax or he waits. And for anybody to trade for a player that only has one year left, you’re not going to get maximum value.”

Last week, Dončić played in Dallas for the first time as a Laker. He scored 45 points in the Lakers’ 112-97 win against the Mavericks. Throughout the game, Mavericks fans repeatedly chanted “FIRE NICO!” when Dallas players were shooting free throws.

“The beauty of Dallas is it is a passionate fan base,” Harrison said. “For us to reach our goals, we need that fan base.”

The team Harrison has assembled is built to win now. Davis is 32 years old, Irving is 33 years old and the Mavericks don’t control any of their first-round picks in 2027, 2028, 2029 or 2030.

Harrison said Tuesday that he has three years left on his contract, and he intends to remain in Dallas for the entirety of it.

“I see myself finishing it out,” Harrison said. “In terms of Dallas, this is our home. My family, they’re going to finish school here. This is where we live. So this is where I’m living.”

(Photo: Sam Hodde / Getty Images)