The Dallas Mavericks did the inevitable on Tuesday morning, deciding to officially part ways with general manager Nico Harrison just over four years into his tenure as general manager.
The 52-year-old former Nike executive was hired by Dallas in June 2021, and while his time overseeing their personnel department will forever be marred by the unforgivable trade of superstar Luka Dončić to the Lakers last February, Harrison did assist in building a team that reached the Western Conference Finals twice and the NBA Finals once—a feat that saw him sign a multi-year extension with the club in the spring of 2024.
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Said roster construction included several notable signings, NBA draft selections, and blockbuster-adjacent trades that helped shape the Mavericks' recent run of success.
We’ve talked enough about the Dončić deal, so here’s a look back at some of the other trades that Harrison made during his tenure as GM in Dallas.
February 2022: Mavericks trade Kristaps Porziņģis to Wizards
One of the first big moves Harrison made after he was handed the keys to the Mavericks was shipping off big man Kristaps Porziņģis.
Marred by injuries throughout his career, The Unicorn entered the 2021-22 campaign healthy—a bill of health quickly deteriorated due to back tightness just three games into the season. While Porziņģis began to turn things on toward the second half of the year, Harrison and the Mavericks decided to move him at the NBA trade deadline.
The trade: Porziņģis and a protected 2022 second-round pick to the Wizards in exchange for Spencer Dinwiddie and Dāvis Bertāns.
June 2022: Christian Wood dealt from Rockets to Mavericks in six-player deal
Christian Wood took the NBA by relative storm in the late 2010s, putting up a handful of respectful seasons with the Pelicans and Pistons before agreeing to a sign-and-trade with the Rockets on a three-year, $41 million deal in 2020.
After two seasons in Houston, Wood was acquired by Harrison and the Mavericks in a whopping six-player deal that sent four players—and the draft rights to another—to the Rockets in exchange for the versatile big man.
Wood became the first player in Mavericks history to score at least 25 points in his first two games with the club, but only played one year in Dallas before signing with the Lakers the following offseason.
The trade: Wood to the Mavericks in exchange for Boban Marjanović, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss, Sterling Brown, and the draft rights to Wendell Moore Jr.
February 2023: Mavericks land superstar Kyrie Irving in trade with Nets
Harrison decided to go big-game hunting at the 2022-23 trade deadline with his then-Mavericks team sitting at 28–26 through the first 54 games of the season.
At the time, contract extension talks between Kyrie Irving and the Nets began to fall apart and in turn, the superstar guard requested a trade out of Brooklyn. Dallas decided to pounce on the opportunity and acquired him in a blockbuster.
Irving made his Mavs debut that February and—although the team fell apart down the stretch, finishing just 38–44—signed a three-year extension with the club the following offseason. He's since helped lead Dallas to a Finals appearance in 2023-24, unfortunately tore his ACL early last March, and then signed another three-year deal that keeps him tied to the Mavericks through the 2027-28 season.
The trade: Irving and Markieff Morris to the Mavericks in exchange for Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, an unprotected 2029 first-round pick, and second-round picks in 2027 and 2029
February 2024: Dallas deals for P.J. Washington, bolstering roster for Finals run
A move that perhaps perfectly explains the dichotomy that was Harrison’s tenure in Dallas is the trade that sent forward P.J. Washington from the Hornets to the Mavericks.
With his team middling down the stretch of the 2023-24 season, the GM doubled down on his push for success, sending a haul to Charlotte in exchange for the 6’7” forward.
Following the acquisition of Washington, Dallas went 22–9 over their final 31 games, earned the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference Playoffs, and made their way to the NBA Finals before losing to the Celtics in five games. Washington, meanwhile, started 28 of his 29 games played with the Mavericks that season—scoring 11.7 points per game and grabbing 6.2 rebounds—and remains with the franchise to this day.
The trade: Washington and two future second–round picks to the Mavericks in exchange for Seth Curry, Grant Williams, and a 2027 first–round pick (top 2 protected)
July 2024: Mavericks acquire Klay Thompson via sign-and-trade with Warriors
In what became the first six-team deal in NBA history, Harrison and the Mavericks landed four-time NBA champion Klay Thompson in a sign-and-trade from the Golden State Warriors. The move saw Dallas continue to build around Dončić, a strategy they quickly gave up as they traded him just seven months later.
All the while, Thompson has been average at best over his first season and a half with the Mavs. Through 82 games played, the 35-year-old is averaging 13.2 points, 3.3 rebounds, and two assists per game while shooting 37.8% on three-pointers.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as A Look Back At Some of Nico Harrison’s Non-Luka Dončić Trades From Tenure As Mavericks GM.
