The Mavericks are working to pick up the pieces left behind by Nico Harrison’s controversial tenure as general manager following his firing last week. As the team assesses its next steps, new reports have emerged detailing some of the friction that was impacting the organization’s front office over the last few years, particularly between Harrison and Mark Cuban.
Cuban has publicly hinted that Harrison played a role in his departure from the organization after Cuban sold the team to the Dumont family in 2023. Cuban had initially expected to remain on and head up the team’s basketball operations, but that never came to fruition. That’s largely due to Harrison, who convinced the Dumont’s that Cuban’s involvement was more meddlesome than beneficial.
ESPN’s Tim MacMahon reported Wednesday that Harrison blamed Cuban for a pair of particularly impactful personnel decisions that ultimately proved to be mistakes.
“Harrison blamed Cuban for what he believed were the Mavs’ biggest personnel mistakes during his tenure, which came in summer 2022: allowing Jalen Brunson to get away in free agency and trading for Christian Wood, a player Kidd didn't want to coach and resented having on the roster. Several members of the coaching staff and front office also faulted Cuban for those moves,” wrote MacMahon.
The Brunson deal is certainly one that fans and the organization look back on with regret. The guard has flourished into a superstar with the Knicks after Dallas refused to hand him a four-year, $55.5 million extension after his rookie contract expired. He left the team in free agency and signed a deal with New York that paid him almost double that amount, and now he’s the face of the franchise in one of the biggest basketball markets on the planet.
Wood, despite his success in Dallas, has played in just 50 games since leaving the organization and is not currently on a roster. Still, letting those players leave the franchise is something Harrison faults Cuban for, and he reportedly used that to earn favor with Patrick Dumont.
After a pair of successful mid-season trades––landing Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington––helped fuel the Mavericks’ unexpected run to the NBA Finals in ‘24, Harrison was able to sway Dumont in his favor. That ultimately led the Mavs owner to sign off on what was actually the biggest personnel mistake of Harrison’s tenure: quietly trading Luka Dončić to the Lakers for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a first-round pick.
More NBA on Sports Illustrated
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Nico Harrison Blamed Mark Cuban for Pair of Costly Mavericks Personnel 'Mistakes'.
