The Nico Harrison era is over in Dallas. There will be plenty of retrospective analysis of his time as general manager of the Mavericks, but for the organization, this move was about the future. It is an acceptance that Harrison’s vision of a championship contender featuring Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving was not going to work. The decision was made because, despite the devastating fallout of the Luka Dončić trade, the Mavericks do have hope for the future in the form of Cooper Flagg—and ownership decided Harrison was not the man to maximize the rookie’s potential.
The Mavericks will search for a long-term answer; in the meantime, the role will be filled by Michael Finley and Matt Riccardi. But there is no time to waste. They need to start making moves immediately to recognize their new reality.
