When Nico Harrison was appointed as general manager and president of basketball operations in 2021, there was genuine optimism in Dallas. A respected Nike executive with strong player relationships and a sharp business background, Harrison was seen as a modern front-office leader who could blend corporate intelligence with locker-room understanding. Four years later, that optimism has rotted into despair. The Mavericks, sitting at 3–7 and 14th in the Western Conference, are an example of how a single executive’s miscalculations can dismantle a contender in record time.
- 1. Trading Luka Doncic: The Worst Trade In NBA History
- 2. Failing To Extend Jalen Brunson
- 3. Trading Quentin Grimes For Injured Caleb Martin
- 4. Firing Casey Smith, The NBA’s Most Respected Trainer
- 5. Destroying The Team’s Future Flexibility
- 6. Mishandling Kristaps Porzingis
- 7. Forcing Mark Cuban Out Of Operations
- 8. Publicly Questioning Luka’s Work Ethic
- 9. Alienating Dirk Nowitzki
- 10. Letting Derrick Jones Jr. Walk
- The Aftermath: A Franchise In Ruins
From the Luka Doncic trade debacle to alienating franchise legends, Harrison’s tenure has been a masterclass in how not to run a team. Here are ten decisions that have systematically ruined the Dallas Mavericks.
1. Trading Luka Doncic: The Worst Trade In NBA History
The decision that defines Nico Harrison’s legacy and will likely end his tenure was trading Luka Doncic, a generational superstar and perennial MVP candidate, to the Los Angeles Lakers in February 2025.
In return, Dallas received Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a single first-round pick. That’s it. Luka Doncic, at 25, coming off a Finals appearance and already a five-time All-NBA First Team selection, was swapped for a 32-year-old power forward with chronic injuries and a wing rotation piece. The Lakers even had more to offer: Austin Reaves, Dalton Knecht, one more unprotected first, and two pick swaps, but Harrison didn’t negotiate for them.
Nine months later, Doncic is averaging 37.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 9.5 assists for the Lakers, while Davis is already injured again, and Max Christie is averaging under 8 points per game. Luka has transformed Los Angeles into a contender, while Dallas has imploded. It’s not just the worst trade of the decade; it might be the worst in league history.
2. Failing To Extend Jalen Brunson
Before Luka’s departure, Harrison had already made a fatal mistake: failing to extend Jalen Brunson.
The Mavericks could have locked him up for $14 million per year, but Nico passed, only to watch Brunson lead Dallas to the Western Conference Finals in 2022. Even then, he refused to match New York’s offer. a modest 4-year, $104 million deal, despite Brunson’s family begging for an opportunity to stay.
Today, Brunson is an All-Star and a top-10 player in the East, averaging over 26 points and running the Knicks’ offense with the poise of a seasoned floor general. Dallas, meanwhile, has no true point guard and the ghost of that decision haunts them nightly.
3. Trading Quentin Grimes For Injured Caleb Martin
One of Harrison’s more baffling recent moves came when he traded Quentin Grimes, then averaging 17.9 points per game, for Caleb Martin, who was injured at the time.
Grimes has since blossomed into a legitimate 20-point scorer in Philadelphia, while Martin is averaging 1.4 points and has barely suited up this season. Worse, Dallas lost Grimes’ restricted free agent rights in the deal, which could have allowed them to keep him long-term or sign-and-trade him for real value.
Another rotation player gone, another trade that made Dallas older and thinner.
4. Firing Casey Smith, The NBA’s Most Respected Trainer
Perhaps the most indefensible off-court move was firing Casey Smith, the Mavericks’ longtime athletic trainer and a key figure in player health and morale. Smith, who also served as Team USA’s lead trainer, was dismissed reportedly for being ‘too negative’, while he was on leave caring for his dying mother.
Since Smith’s firing, the Mavericks have been among the most injury-prone teams in the league, cycling through two unqualified replacements in under a year. Smith, now with the Knicks, has helped New York become one of the league’s healthiest teams. The contrast is glaring.
5. Destroying The Team’s Future Flexibility
Between 2027 and 2030, the Mavericks have traded nearly all of their first-round picks, swaps, and several seconds. Those moves were designed to build a ‘defensive core’ around Luka Doncic, adding P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford; however, Luka was traded before those assets could be utilized.
Now, with Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving both on the decline and overlapping roles at the 4/5, Dallas has no clear direction. Their future draft capital is tied up, and even rookie Cooper Flagg, the one bright spot, can’t save them from the lack of flexibility.
6. Mishandling Kristaps Porzingis
In 2022, Harrison dumped Kristaps Porzingis and a second-round pick for two players, Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans, who are now out of the league. It was billed as a ‘salary dump.’
Porzingis, freed from Dallas, went on to average over 20 points per game in Washington and win a championship with Boston in 2024. While injuries were a concern, the Mavs’ solution was simply trading one injury-prone big for another in Davis, a lateral move that worsened their cap and their chemistry.
7. Forcing Mark Cuban Out Of Operations
Harrison’s political maneuvering inside the organization played a role in pushing Mark Cuban out of de facto basketball operations after the Adelson family purchased a controlling stake in the team.
While Cuban had promised to stay active in team decisions, Harrison reportedly convinced ownership to give him full autonomy. That independence directly led to the Luka Doncic trade, a decision Cuban almost certainly would have blocked.
Since then, Cuban has been notably quiet about the team, and fans have noticed.
8. Publicly Questioning Luka’s Work Ethic
In the aftermath of the Doncic trade backlash, Harrison attempted to defend himself by criticizing Luka’s work ethic in a press conference. The comments, widely viewed as petty, were immediately refuted by former teammates, including Dirk Nowitzki and JJ Barea, who praised Luka’s dedication.
That single remark burned what little goodwill Harrison had left. If trading Doncic lost him the locker room, publicly insulting him finished the job.
9. Alienating Dirk Nowitzki
Dirk Nowitzki, the face of the franchise and its greatest player, has become a distant figure under Harrison’s watch.
Reports suggest Harrison told associates that it’s ‘not my job to make Dirk happy.’ Since then, Nowitzki has attended more games for other franchises, including Los Angeles, Milwaukee, and Boston, than Mavericks games, despite living in Dallas.
For fans, Dirk is the soul of the Mavericks. Alienating him was a mistake that deepened the rift between the front office and the fanbase.
10. Letting Derrick Jones Jr. Walk
After a breakout season that saw Derrick Jones Jr. become a key two-way contributor during the Mavs’ Finals run, Harrison inexplicably let him walk in free agency. Jones’ defense, energy, and corner three-point shooting had made him an ideal fit next to Luka, but Dallas refused to match a modest offer from Chicago.
Without him, the Mavs lost one of their few perimeter defenders, further exposing their already fragile defensive core.
The Aftermath: A Franchise In Ruins
Today’s Dallas Mavericks are a shell of what they were less than two years ago. Once defined by Luka’s genius and modern spacing, they are now a slow, injury-riddled mess with no offensive identity and no clear leader. Dirk Nowitzki has called their offense ‘tough to watch.’ Anthony Davis is on the injury report again. Klay Thompson has been benched. Kyrie Irving is still rehabbing his ACL.
Meanwhile, Luka Doncic is thriving in Los Angeles, leading the Lakers to a 7–3 start while averaging near a 40-point triple-double. It’s salt in the wound for Dallas fans who now realize their franchise’s greatest player since Dirk was traded away for pennies.
Fittingly, the sentiment that has spread through the Mavericks fanbase was summed up best by one Reddit user who first outlined these disastrous moves. Writing under the handle ‘devilmaskrascal,’ the fan meticulously listed the chain of errors that have plagued the Mavericks since Nico Harrison took over.
For a team that just 18 months ago looked like a rising dynasty, that’s the most devastating truth of all.
Unless ownership steps in soon, Nico Harrison’s legacy will forever be synonymous with the fall of the Dallas Mavericks, a cautionary tale of arrogance, mismanagement, and how one executive can dismantle greatness piece by piece.
