Mavericks fans made sure their anger was heard.
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A number of fans gathered outside American Airlines Arena in Dallas on Sunday to protest the team’s decision to trade Luka Doncic, who had been the face of the franchise, to the Lakers.
As part of the stunning three-team trade, the Lakers received Doncic, Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris, the Mavericks received Anthony Davis, Max Christie and the Lakers’ 2029 first-round pick and the Jazz received Jalen Hood-Schifino, the Clippers’ 2025 second-round pick and the Mavericks’ 2025 second-round selection.
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Some chanted “sell the team” and others held up a variety of signs, with messages that read “I’m sick,” “worst trade in NBA history,” and a number directed at general manager Nico Harrison, including “f–k Nico,” “fire Nico” and “Nico is corrupt.”
Fans also brought a blue casket in order to hold a fake funeral for the Mavericks while playing Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth’s “See You Again” in the background.
At one point, security had to power wash a profane message directed at Harrison that was written on the concrete, according to the Dallas Morning News.
The trade shocked the NBA world, with most holding the sentiment that the Mavericks did not get enough in return.
Doncic spent six-plus years with the Mavericks, who drafted him with the No. 3 pick in 2018.
He was named to the All-NBA First Team each of the last five seasons after winning rookie of the year and led the Mavericks to an NBA Finals appearance last year.
Harrison spoke to reporters on Sunday and explained his rationale.
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“I think the long-term is the time frame,” Harrison said on Sunday at a press conference announcing the trade. “[Davis] fits our time-frame. If you pair him with Kyrie [Irving] and the rest of the guys, he fits right along with our time-frame to win now and win in the future.
“And the future to me is three, four years from now. Ten years from now, they’ll probably bury me and [head coach Jason Kidd] by then. Or we bury ourselves.”
Harrison said that he and Lakers vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka had been working on the trade for weeks.
“I’d like to give Rob Pelinka a lot of credit,” Harrison said. “Trades don’t happen, at the smallest level, without stuff getting out. Rob and I were able to have really intense conversations over the course of three or four weeks. It started out as a coffee [meetings], it was more ‘hey, would you ever?’ ‘Uh, I don’t know, would I? Let me think.’ It built upon that.
“We kept it between us. We had to, we had to keep it tight. [Kidd] didn’t know about it. But [Kidd] and I are aligned and we talk about archetypes and we talk about the culture we want to create. I know the type of players that he likes without actually talking to him.”
He added: “We think defense wins championships and we’re bringing in one of the best two-way players in the league. We’re excited to feel like we’re built to win now as well as in the future.”
Asked if he could understand the frustration of fans at seeing a generational talent being traded away, Harrison replied: “I’m sorry they’re frustrated, but it’s something that we believe in as an organization that’s going to make us better.
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“We believe that it sets us up to win, not only now, but also in the future, and when we win, I believe the frustration will go away.”
Harrison also suggested the Mavericks were obliged to act pre-emptively ahead of contract extension negotiations with Doncic this summer, heading off the possibility of having to scramble to rebuild the team in the event the Slovenian sought a move.
“He was going to be able to make his own decision at some point of whether he wants to be here or not,” Harrison said. “I think we had to take all that into consideration and feel like we got out in front of what could have been a tumultuous summer.”
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