Breaking: Reports Claims Nico Harrison Wanted to Trade Luka Doncic – What’s Going On in Dallas?
According to NBA insider Marc Stein, Nico Harrison no longer wanted the Dallas Mavericks to orbit around Luka Doncic.
Harrison would have tried to trade Doncic in the summer if the Los Angeles Lakers deal didn’t happen.
“Yet naturally now, with a bit of distance from the initial shock, you have begun to hear more of the whispers that the Mavericks had somehow concealed for months,” Stein wrote. “Whispers via league sources suggesting that Dallas’ decision-makers, most notably general manager Nico Harrison, no longer wanted Planet Mavericks to orbit around Dončić and had grown determined to trade him by this summer at the latest.”
The Mavericks traded Doncic, Markieff Morris and Maxi Kleber to the Lakers for Anthony Davis and Max Christie.
Dallas plays Los Angeles tonight (2/25) at Crypto.com Arena.
Doncic was eligible to sign a five-year, $345 million extension with the Mavericks this summer.
According to The Athletic, Dallas was never going to offer Doncic the NBA supermax extension.
“Had he remained in Dallas, Dončić would have been eligible to sign a five-year, $345 million contract. The estimation from the outside, one that The Athletic confirmed once the trade completed, was that he wanted to re-up with the organization for the long term come July. Dončić said as much when he arrived for his introduction in Los Angeles. But there was one twist: The Mavericks were never going to offer Dončić that mega deal, league sources said. And a general manager identifying one star to trade, negotiating with only one GM he knows and trusts and targeting only one player who he’s worked with before and whose character he can vouch for — just as Nico Harrison did with Dončić, Rob Pelinka and Davis — was no accident.”
Doncic appeared in 422 games with the Mavericks. He averaged 28.6 points, 8.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists and made five All-Star teams and five All-NBA teams.
The Mavericks were not happy with Doncic’s weight and conditioning.
During an interview with NBA reporter Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News, Dallas governor Patrick Dumont insinuated that Doncic didn’t work hard.
“If you look at the greats in the league, the people you and I grew up with — [Michael] Jordan, [Larry] Bird, Kobe [Bryant], Shaq [O’Neal] — they worked really hard, every day, with a singular focus to win,” Dumont said. “And if you don’t have that, it doesn’t work. And if you don’t have that, you shouldn’t be part of the Dallas Mavericks. That’s who we want. I’m unwavering on this. The entire organization knows this. This is how I operate outside of basketball. This is the only way to be competitive and win. If you want to take a vacation, don’t do it with us.”
