Nico Harrison decides to double down on stupid

[Effigy]

Of course he doesn't regret it. He was paid to do it. And even if he gets fired after this year, he still gets paid for 3. Someone made the decision to send Luka to the Lakers and Nico did what he was paid to do.

[BliscoSantos]

We keep on searching for answers,reasons, for why this trade happen but it's become prety obvious that Nico didn't like Luka, and never had....maybe he was jealous of him because he made it seem so effortlessly...he didn't like his work ethic, although you don't become a Player Luka is Just based on talent...Nico is almost obsessed with working out,diet, maybe he was envious that Luka made it Look so easy...maybe he didn't like him because he's white,who knows...I think he was jealous of him,resented him his talent and let his ego get in the way...he Got rid of everybody in the organization Luka was close to...I think he planned on trading him in the summer but Luka messed his plan up by taking DAL to the finals...and yes Luka was bad on D but he was also pretty banged up(injured) and also the only one who could do something on O in the finals,despite all the attention being on him...I Love Kyrie ,but where the hell was he in the finals?he was horrible...as were Lively and Gafford who Got outplayed by Horford...also the D was pretty good in the finals...it was the lack of O that killed them

[Ryoga Hibiki]

I really think there's no need for conspiracy and league involvement:
- Nico full of himself after the Mavs went to the finals
- Nico owes his career to Kobe, and sees him as a model for how a professional athlete should behave
- Nico doesn't like Luka, as a persona and as a professional basketball player
- Nico grabbing more and more power as Cuban sold and was left out from all basketball operations
- Nico pushing out from the organization all Luka guys and circling himself of yes man
- Nico foolishly sharing his frustrations with his 'friend" Pelinka
- Nico big fan of Anthony Davis, with whom he has a long timed relationship, and wants him in particular
- Pelinka smelling the opportunity and starts playing Nico like a violin, to the point Nico thinks he's the one who suggested the trade
- Nico drinking more and more of his own koolaid
- The new owner is not a basketball person, without his own network of people to ask, and he doesn't even think about consulting with Cuban (they must have an awful relationship)
- Nico mentions the 'biggest contract of all time" to a guy who doesn't understand the CBA, explains him that Luka is a fat alcoholic, unlike the real legends who were working all the time (like Shaq)
- The owner trusts his basketball expert, who was the main driving force for the Mavs reaching the finals
- Pelinka makes sure the trade remains secret because reasons, uses all the info Nico shared with him over the years to negotiate the price down
- Nico very proud for being the most powerful person in the organization. More than Cuban and more than Luka, now.

No need for conspiracies.
All I see is a narcissist, power hungry, incompetent person in a perfect storm situation without proper checks and balances.
It sounds like a metaphor of the US as a whole, actually, lol.

People love conspiracies but this is it. Frankly, I think Dumont would be a good owner. Most sports owners suck because they are too hands on. Here Dumont assumed Nico was a proven GM and deferred to him. if Cuban had hired a good GM and created a good management structure the team would be in a great spot.

Instead Cuban basically treated basketball ops as his toy and never bothered to create a real structure before he left.

a good owner must be able to keep his front office in check, that's basic company governance. Not asking around when he comes with something so enormous is serious malpractice.
There's a balance somewhere between Dumont and Ishbia.

[SA37]

The Mavericks franchise will never recover from the Luka trade. The damage its done to the fanbase is irreversible. And they keep digging themselves into a deeper hole.

That's pretty hyperbolic.

Just some recent examples: OKC recovered after trading Harden and losing Durant. Cleveland has recovered from losing LeBron a 2nd time. Houston has recovered after moving Harden. Miami recovered from losing LeBron and Bosh.

While the Mavericks trading Doncic has its own special circumstances, winning cures a lot. But, barring something crazy, Mavericks fans will watch Luka's career wondering "what if".

Harrison is getting all the heat here, but the owners of the franchise had to have signed off on this. Whether the "red-flag" was financial, behavioral, or a combo of both, the Mavericks organization was clearly dead-set on moving Doncic. And while they could/should have squeezed more out of the Lakers, they will still field a competitive team assuming Irving re-signs.

[meekrab]

The one really great thing social media has done is completely dispel the idea that rich people are necessarily smart.

[Sofia]

I really think there's no need for conspiracy and league involvement:
- Nico full of himself after the Mavs went to the finals
- Nico owes his career to Kobe, and sees him as a model for how a professional athlete should behave
- Nico doesn't like Luka, as a persona and as a professional basketball player
- Nico grabbing more and more power as Cuban sold and was left out from all basketball operations
- Nico pushing out from the organization all Luka guys and circling himself of yes man
- Nico foolishly sharing his frustrations with his 'friend" Pelinka
- Nico big fan of Anthony Davis, with whom he has a long timed relationship, and wants him in particular
- Pelinka smelling the opportunity and starts playing Nico like a violin, to the point Nico thinks he's the one who suggested the trade
- Nico drinking more and more of his own koolaid
- The new owner is not a basketball person, without his own network of people to ask, and he doesn't even think about consulting with Cuban (they must have an awful relationship)
- Nico mentions the 'biggest contract of all time" to a guy who doesn't understand the CBA, explains him that Luka is a fat alcoholic, unlike the real legends who were working all the time (like Shaq)
- The owner trusts his basketball expert, who was the main driving force for the Mavs reaching the finals
- Pelinka makes sure the trade remains secret because reasons, uses all the info Nico shared with him over the years to negotiate the price down
- Nico very proud for being the most powerful person in the organization. More than Cuban and more than Luka, now.

No need for conspiracies.
All I see is a narcissist, power hungry, incompetent person in a perfect storm situation without proper checks and balances.
It sounds like a metaphor of the US as a whole, actually, lol.

I think this is all very good, but the potential flaw is that I don’t know that billionaires are that sloppy with such a large chunk of their money and the potential risk of damage to their large investment.

[sp6r=underrated]

I really think there's no need for conspiracy and league involvement:
- Nico full of himself after the Mavs went to the finals
- Nico owes his career to Kobe, and sees him as a model for how a professional athlete should behave
- Nico doesn't like Luka, as a persona and as a professional basketball player
- Nico grabbing more and more power as Cuban sold and was left out from all basketball operations
- Nico pushing out from the organization all Luka guys and circling himself of yes man
- Nico foolishly sharing his frustrations with his 'friend" Pelinka
- Nico big fan of Anthony Davis, with whom he has a long timed relationship, and wants him in particular
- Pelinka smelling the opportunity and starts playing Nico like a violin, to the point Nico thinks he's the one who suggested the trade
- Nico drinking more and more of his own koolaid
- The new owner is not a basketball person, without his own network of people to ask, and he doesn't even think about consulting with Cuban (they must have an awful relationship)
- Nico mentions the 'biggest contract of all time" to a guy who doesn't understand the CBA, explains him that Luka is a fat alcoholic, unlike the real legends who were working all the time (like Shaq)
- The owner trusts his basketball expert, who was the main driving force for the Mavs reaching the finals
- Pelinka makes sure the trade remains secret because reasons, uses all the info Nico shared with him over the years to negotiate the price down
- Nico very proud for being the most powerful person in the organization. More than Cuban and more than Luka, now.

No need for conspiracies.
All I see is a narcissist, power hungry, incompetent person in a perfect storm situation without proper checks and balances.
It sounds like a metaphor of the US as a whole, actually, lol.

People love conspiracies but this is it. Frankly, I think Dumont would be a good owner. Most sports owners suck because they are too hands on. Here Dumont assumed Nico was a proven GM and deferred to him. if Cuban had hired a good GM and created a good management structure the team would be in a great spot.

Instead Cuban basically treated basketball ops as his toy and never bothered to create a real structure before he left.

a good owner must be able to keep his front office in check, that's basic company governance. Not asking around when he comes with something so enormous is serious malpractice.
There's a balance somewhere between Dumont and Ishbia.

very fair respoinse.

[fansse]

He should of been fired on the spot.. that's 100% malpractice.

I just don't understand Cuban's reaction. Love Cuban, great guy and was an amazing owner, but not sure why he's so annoyed at the 'fire Nico chants' especially since he didn't agree with the trade and thinks it was a mistake

[fansse]

He should of been fired on the spot.. that's 100% malpractice.

I just don't understand Cuban's reaction. Love Cuban, great guy and was an amazing owner, but not sure why he's so annoyed at the 'fire Nico chants' especially since he didn't agree with the trade and thinks it was a mistake

[sp6r=underrated]

The Mavericks franchise will never recover from the Luka trade. The damage its done to the fanbase is irreversible. And they keep digging themselves into a deeper hole.

That's pretty hyperbolic.

Just some recent examples: OKC recovered after trading Harden and losing Durant. Cleveland has recovered from losing LeBron a 2nd time. Houston has recovered after moving Harden. Miami recovered from losing LeBron and Bosh.

While the Mavericks trading Doncic has its own special circumstances, winning cures a lot. But, barring something crazy, Mavericks fans will watch Luka's career wondering "what if".

Harrison is getting all the heat here, but the owners of the franchise had to have signed off on this. Whether the "red-flag" was financial, behavioral, or a combo of both, the Mavericks organization was clearly dead-set on moving Doncic. And while they could/should have squeezed more out of the Lakers, they will still field a competitive team assuming Irving re-signs.

In all those cases the player left or was near the end of the run. Fans can find that much easier to forgive than a team wilfully giving away a top talent.

I don't think Dallas is doomed but normally fans will get excited about a 48 win team (even if tankers hate em). I don't think Dallas fans will.

Dallas management is in a very weird spot where they're going to have to spend years trying to rebuild credibility with their fans. Their brand is tainted.

They can and probably will recover from this. But this is way harder than Lebron leaving for Cleaveland or OKC having four very good young players and trading one of em away.

They gave away a top 5 player for a 32 year old.

[Rich Michmond]

[SA37]

Spoiler:

That's pretty hyperbolic.

Just some recent examples: OKC recovered after trading Harden and losing Durant. Cleveland has recovered from losing LeBron a 2nd time. Houston has recovered after moving Harden. Miami recovered from losing LeBron and Bosh.

While the Mavericks trading Doncic has its own special circumstances, winning cures a lot. But, barring something crazy, Mavericks fans will watch Luka's career wondering "what if".

Harrison is getting all the heat here, but the owners of the franchise had to have signed off on this. Whether the "red-flag" was financial, behavioral, or a combo of both, the Mavericks organization was clearly dead-set on moving Doncic. And while they could/should have squeezed more out of the Lakers, they will still field a competitive team assuming Irving re-signs.

In all those cases the player left or was near the end of the run. Fans can find that much easier to forgive than a team wilfully giving away a top talent.

I don't think Dallas is doomed but normally fans will get excited about a 48 win team (even if tankers hate em). I don't think Dallas fans will.

Dallas management is in a very weird spot where they're going to have to spend years trying to rebuild credibility with their fans. Their brand is tainted.

They can and probably will recover from this. But this is way harder than Lebron leaving for Cleaveland or OKC having four very good young players and trading one of em away.

They gave away a top 5 player for a 32 year old.

The Harden trade looked horrific in retrospect for OKC. The difference is no one knew Harden was going to blow up like he did whereas Luka had already blown up. (Sadly for Mavs fans, they had an OKC-Harden-like experience both with Nash and with Jalen Brunson.)

The bigger issue rather than the fans, imo, is whether this will make good players think twice about signing in Dallas. I mean, if they'll trade Doncic, how committed are they going to be to you?

[CBS7]

The Mavericks franchise will never recover from the Luka trade. The damage its done to the fanbase is irreversible. And they keep digging themselves into a deeper hole.

That's pretty hyperbolic.

Just some recent examples: OKC recovered after trading Harden and losing Durant. Cleveland has recovered from losing LeBron a 2nd time. Houston has recovered after moving Harden. Miami recovered from losing LeBron and Bosh.

While the Mavericks trading Doncic has its own special circumstances, winning cures a lot. But, barring something crazy, Mavericks fans will watch Luka's career wondering "what if".

Harrison is getting all the heat here, but the owners of the franchise had to have signed off on this. Whether the "red-flag" was financial, behavioral, or a combo of both, the Mavericks organization was clearly dead-set on moving Doncic. And while they could/should have squeezed more out of the Lakers, they will still field a competitive team assuming Irving re-signs.

A lot of Mavs die hards have said they'd rather lose with Luka than win without him.
They've built a brand and culture emphasizing loyalty. This has destroyed all that. Many fans view it as an ultimate betrayal. This is different from OKC losing Harden/Durant.

It may not be logical, but winning will absolutely not cure all with Mavs fans. On top of that... they're outlook for winning doesn't seem all too great.

[CobraCommander]

I thought Nico was delusional before - now after reading more from the people in the meeting… this needs to be investigated.

New owner-

Trade high value player-

No upside material upside - Luka is a better player than AD when they are both HEALTHY- and AD is not as healthy as Luka on avg… Luka is younger and more beloved - higher tier performer - more marketable- bigger game performer- better in playoffs- home grown- so you got the benefit of his rookie deal while Luka was making all nba teams - was just in finals - and the GM Nico built the team AROUND Luka that went to the finals last year… so gave away the future to help Luka …. All of that to turn around dump Luka ???

Post presser with Nico and after the AD vs Luka game- this is beyond fishy

[sp6r=underrated]

Spoiler:

That's pretty hyperbolic.

Just some recent examples: OKC recovered after trading Harden and losing Durant. Cleveland has recovered from losing LeBron a 2nd time. Houston has recovered after moving Harden. Miami recovered from losing LeBron and Bosh.

While the Mavericks trading Doncic has its own special circumstances, winning cures a lot. But, barring something crazy, Mavericks fans will watch Luka's career wondering "what if".

Harrison is getting all the heat here, but the owners of the franchise had to have signed off on this. Whether the "red-flag" was financial, behavioral, or a combo of both, the Mavericks organization was clearly dead-set on moving Doncic. And while they could/should have squeezed more out of the Lakers, they will still field a competitive team assuming Irving re-signs.

In all those cases the player left or was near the end of the run. Fans can find that much easier to forgive than a team wilfully giving away a top talent.

I don't think Dallas is doomed but normally fans will get excited about a 48 win team (even if tankers hate em). I don't think Dallas fans will.

Dallas management is in a very weird spot where they're going to have to spend years trying to rebuild credibility with their fans. Their brand is tainted.

They can and probably will recover from this. But this is way harder than Lebron leaving for Cleaveland or OKC having four very good young players and trading one of em away.

They gave away a top 5 player for a 32 year old.

The Harden trade looked horrific in retrospect for OKC. The difference is no one knew Harden was going to blow up like he did whereas Luka had already blown up. (Sadly for Mavs fans, they had an OKC-Harden-like experience both with Nash and with Jalen Brunson.)

The bigger issue rather than the fans, imo, is whether this will make good players think twice about signing in Dallas. I mean, if they'll trade Doncic, how committed are they going to be to you?

I disagree. I think the fans are the primary issue. Unlike most teams I don't think you can assume fans will return unless they net an MVP level player. They just aren't going to be excited about an Indy type team for the forseeable future.

[SA37]

A lot of Mavs die hards have said they'd rather lose with Luka than win without him.
They've built a brand and culture emphasizing loyalty. This has destroyed all that. Many fans view it as an ultimate betrayal. This is different from OKC losing Harden/Durant.

It may not be logical, but winning will absolutely not cure all with Mavs fans. On top of that... they're outlook for winning doesn't seem all too great.

I don't blame the fans, and I agree this was a very destructive move by the Mavs in terms of their brand.

No one is going to forget this move for so many reasons, but winning would go a long way towards helping the healing process. I'm not sure how realistic Dallas's chances are because Irving's status is in the air, but Dallas is going to have a very good team if Irving makes a full recovery and re-signs with Dallas.

Imagine if Dallas got knocked out of the play-in and Dallas won the Draft Lottery....

[CBS7]

A lot of Mavs die hards have said they'd rather lose with Luka than win without him.
They've built a brand and culture emphasizing loyalty. This has destroyed all that. Many fans view it as an ultimate betrayal. This is different from OKC losing Harden/Durant.

It may not be logical, but winning will absolutely not cure all with Mavs fans. On top of that... they're outlook for winning doesn't seem all too great.

I don't blame the fans, and I agree this was a very destructive move by the Mavs in terms of their brand.

No one is going to forget this move for so many reasons, but winning would go a long way towards helping the healing process. I'm not sure how realistic Dallas's chances are because Irving's status is in the air, but Dallas is going to have a very good team if Irving makes a full recovery and re-signs with Dallas.

Imagine if Dallas got knocked out of the play-in and Dallas won the Draft Lottery....

Still doesn't change what they did. You're underestimating the feeling of betrayal. Casual fans may be intrigued by a winner or getting Flagg but they have lost every die hard I've talked to.

Its coming out now that Dirk is extremely turned off by the franchise too.

I'm telling you, living in Dallas, they will never fully recover from the move. The city loved Luka, management stabbed him and the fans in the back.

[scrabbarista]

I thought Nico was delusional before - now after reading more from the people in the meeting… this needs to be investigated.

New owner-

Trade high value player-

No upside material upside - Luka is a better player than AD when they are both HEALTHY- and AD is not as healthy as Luka on avg… Luka is younger and more beloved - higher tier performer - more marketable- bigger game performer- better in playoffs- home grown- so you got the benefit of his rookie deal while Luka was making all nba teams - was just in finals - and the GM Nico built the team AROUND Luka that went to the finals last year… so gave away the future to help Luka …. All of that to turn around dump Luka ???

Post presser with Nico and after the AD vs Luka game- this is beyond fishy

You were a bit slow to come around, but you nailed it pretty good.

[Saints14]

What’s really gross about this trade other than the complete disregard for the fanbase is Nico fully admitting that as GM he’ll probably get fired sooner or later anyways and that he has no obligation to position the franchise for success in a future where he’s not in charge. Not that the trade made them better now, but it sure as hell sets them up horribly 3 years down the road

[Bad Bart]

I really think there's no need for conspiracy and league involvement:
- Nico full of himself after the Mavs went to the finals
- Nico owes his career to Kobe, and sees him as a model for how a professional athlete should behave
- Nico doesn't like Luka, as a persona and as a professional basketball player
- Nico grabbing more and more power as Cuban sold and was left out from all basketball operations
- Nico pushing out from the organization all Luka guys and circling himself of yes man
- Nico foolishly sharing his frustrations with his 'friend" Pelinka
- Nico big fan of Anthony Davis, with whom he has a long timed relationship, and wants him in particular
- Pelinka smelling the opportunity and starts playing Nico like a violin, to the point Nico thinks he's the one who suggested the trade
- Nico drinking more and more of his own koolaid
- The new owner is not a basketball person, without his own network of people to ask, and he doesn't even think about consulting with Cuban (they must have an awful relationship)
- Nico mentions the 'biggest contract of all time" to a guy who doesn't understand the CBA, explains him that Luka is a fat alcoholic, unlike the real legends who were working all the time (like Shaq)
- The owner trusts his basketball expert, who was the main driving force for the Mavs reaching the finals
- Pelinka makes sure the trade remains secret because reasons, uses all the info Nico shared with him over the years to negotiate the price down
- Nico very proud for being the most powerful person in the organization. More than Cuban and more than Luka, now.

No need for conspiracies.
All I see is a narcissist, power hungry, incompetent person in a perfect storm situation without proper checks and balances.
It sounds like a metaphor of the US as a whole, actually, lol.

How is this any less conjecture than believing ownership made Nico the fall guy? A narrative based completely on imagination. Did someone call this list of made up scenarios 'Occam's Razor'? Some of you are unbelievably weird.