The Mavericks were 1-3 this past week, and remain in 14th place in the West. The lone win came against Washington (111-105), while the three losses came in Memphis (118-104) and at home to New Orleans
(101-99) and Milwaukee (116-113). Cooper Flagg, for the first time in his young career, led the team in scoring over the last week with 17.5 points per game. Anthony Davis (calf), Kyrie Irving (knee), Dante Exum (knee), and Dereck Lively (knee) all remained out.
Grade: C+
From a basketball standpoint, this was a stretch that left much to be desired. Without exaggeration, the performances Dallas put together against the Pelicans and Grizzlies were two of the more pathetic showings I have seen from a team that is trying to win. Fortunately, they avoided a season sweep against Washington and actually put together a good game at home against the Bucks.
This week will likely not be remembered for the basketball, however. The game against the Bucks should be memorialized as a sign of fight and promise. But the reason Dallas gets a C+, even with three ugly basketball games, is that they have moved on from general manager Nico Harrison and unveiled their city edition uniforms, which are pretty sweet:
Straight A’s: Naji Marshall
Marshall has been one of my favorite players since Dallas signed him. He made more sense on a previous version of this team, but he still has a lot of value. His versatility was on display in the last four games, where he averaged nearly 16 points, six rebounds, and four assists on over 50 percent shooting. His 30 points against the Wizards single-handedly won them that game, and he makes plays that most of the guys on this team cannot. As the Mavericks’ priorities likely shift over the coming weeks, Marshall is a guy who could be beneficial to keep around for a while.
Currently Failing: Nico Harrison
As many have said, the war is over. Harrison has officially been fired as the Mavericks’ general manager, and this is incredibly important for two reasons. The first being obvious: he cannot hurt us any longer. The man who is responsible for the worst trade in the history of American sports is no longer employed in Dallas. He can’t make any more roster moves that torpedo the franchise or enrage the fanbase.
The second is simply that the cloud has been lifted. Lifted from the organization, from Mavericks fandom, and from the players themselves. It has been a bizarre nine months. The crowd in Dallas has been frustrated, with “Fire Nico!” chants ringing out in every moment of adversity, even if the team was leading in a game. It was hard to want the team to be good because you knew that meant letting Harrison win. There were protests, season tickets lost, plenty of anger online, and a toxic environment that seemed like it would never heal. That is all over now. To Patrick Dumont’s credit, he finally recognized the necessity to sever ties with Harrison. The Mavericks can accept the fact that they need to start over with Cooper Flagg and work towards winning their fanbase back. There is a palpable joy in Dallas after the news of the firing. For many people, Wednesday night may be the first time since last Christmas that they feel comfortable being excited for the Mavericks to go out and win. The road ahead will be long, but at long last, it is starting to be traversed.
Extra Credit: Cooper Flagg
On the same night that Dumont decided to fire Nico Harrison, Flagg had his career-best outing. He dropped 26 points (career-high), grabbed nine rebounds, dished out four assists, and had the play of the game for Dallas when he drove in and finished over Giannis Antetokounmpo to take the lead late:
It’s a play like this, where he goes coast-to-coast, spins, and scores on one of the best interior defenders in the world, that shows you what Flagg can be. His poise at just 18 years old is remarkable, and the completeness with which he played against the Bucks erased the sour taste of a couple of stinkers before that. This was the type of performance that could catapult Flagg for the rest of the season. It was poetry: on the night Dallas’ rookie phenom took off, the tenure of the man responsible for Dallas being in a position to draft him came to a close.
