The signs of Nico Harrison’s downfall as Mavericks general manager were visible long before the Luka Doncic trade. According to Tim Cato, one of the biggest red flags came in the form of a questionable player comparison that raised eyebrows inside the organization.
“One team source recalls a document where Harrison placed Jrue Holiday within the same tier of talent as Nikola Jokic,” Cato reported. “While at Nike, Harrison’s role involved talent evaluation. But from the very first moment he was hired, several league sources say, there were questions whether those evaluations would translate to coherent team building.”
Publicly, while the team showed support for Nico, there were internal doubts from the very beginning that his path would result in winning. From communication breakdowns to poorly judged trade offers, and even poor availability in the field, the signs were there that he was not up for the job.
“In the first years, front office executives around the league found it curious how difficult it was to reach him on the phone, league sources said, until more of those responsibilities were shifted to assistant general manager Matt Riccardi,” added Cato. “Some trades were surprisingly pricy for the returns; others that likely would’ve been mistakes, like how Harrison attempted to deal two first-rounders for Kyle Kuzma, went unpunished despite Harrison’s best efforts.”
Nico Harrison was initially hired in 2021 as President and GM of the Mavericks. For years, he worked to build a contender around Luka Doncic and had a lot of success with multiple deep playoff runs.
When Mark Cuban sold his majority share of the team, however, everything changed. Nico pushed Cuban out and seized control to carry out his vision, one that did not include Doncic.
For Harrison, defense is important in the NBA, and that is why he valued Anthony Davis over Luka. He felt that by doubling down on a defensive-first guy like AD, he could unlock the Mavericks’ true potential and finally bring a title back to Dallas.
What Nico did not realize is that Luka’s game is not so easily replaced. For all his shortcomings on defense, he more than makes up for it on the other end, as we are seeing on the Lakers this season with averages of 37.1 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 9.1 assists per game on 49.1 percent shooting.
Meanwhile, the Mavericks are down to 14th in the West at 3-8. Amid injuries and major shooting struggles, wins have been in short supply. The chants from fans have made home games a nightmare for the players, and owner Patrick Dumont is already feeling a sense of regret.
It remains to be seen how this saga ends for Dallas, but Nico will not be around to see his creation through. Someone else will have to clean up his mess now, and he will take it as a lesson about what happens to those who break the NBA’s cardinal team-building rule.
Whether or not Harrison’s vision ever had a real shot, it no longer matters. The Mavericks are hitting reset once again, and with Luka Doncic thriving in Los Angeles, the pressure is on to rebuild smarter this time. The margin for error is gone.
