This past February, Dallas Mavericks general manager, Nico Harrison, shocked the world of basketball in his decision to trade star player and five-time first-team All-NBA selection, Luka Doncic, to the Los Angeles Lakers. Since what the Wall Street Journal called “by every conceivable measure and near-universal consensus, the most shocking trade in the history of the NBA”, Harrison has faced persistent and unwavering scrutiny.
Just this past Monday night, multiple chants of “Fire Nico!” erupted at the American Airlines Center during the Dallas Mavericks game against the Milwaukee Bucks. While the game saw a 26-point performance and career-high from Mavericks first-round pick, Cooper Flagg, the Bucks ultimately mounted a comeback, defeating the Mavs 116 – 114. The Dallas Mavericks record is presently an underwhelming 3 – 8.
Now, nine months later, it appears that the Dallas Mavericks are ready to part with Harrison; according to reports by ESPN, the Mavs are set to fire Harrison as soon as this Tuesday, November 11.
Harrison was brought on to replace Donnie Nelson in 2001, after Nelson had been with the team for nearly 20 years. Previously, Harrison was an executive at Nike, with no NBA team experience outside his relationship with Kobe Bryant. It was during this time that Harrison struck a relationship with Bryant’s manager, Rob Pelinka. Pelinka would later become the Lakers’ general manager and play a key role in making the Doncic trade happen, which yielded the Mavs Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick in return.
At the time of this article, the Dallas Mavericks have yet to confirm the firing of Nico Harrison. In turn, it remains to be seen who the team is considering to replace Harrison. The Dallas Mavericks next game is scheduled against the Phoenix Suns this Wednesday.