Luka Doncic Real Madrid Coach to Replace Mavs' Jason Kidd if Fired: NBA Rumor
Despite the Dallas Mavericks being five games under .500 at 37-42 and on the verge of missing the playoffs for the first time since the 2018-19 season – Luka Doncic's rookie year – GM Nico Harrison voiced his support for second-year coach Jason Kidd in an interview on 97.1 The Freak last week.
"[Jason] Kidd still has the [ear] of the locker room," Harrison said. "He's still the guy."
Harrison believes Kidd's message is still resonating in the locker room, but unfortunately, the results on the court suggest otherwise, as the Mavs have now lost seven of their last eight games and are sitting in the No. 11 spot outside of the NBA play-in tournament with three games remaining.
To be completely fair to Kidd, injuries to his stars and overall roster construction haven't really gone in his favor this season, but many people will always look at the coach first when things go haywire.
According to one rumor out of Madrid, via okdiario.com, Doncic's former Real Madrid coach Pablo Laso could be next in line to coach the Mavs if Kidd gets let go.
Editor's note: the following was translated from its original Spanish text to English.
Pablo Laso could return to the bench next season as the head coach of the Dallas Mavericks. The coach from Vitoria has been recommended by Luka Doncic to replace Jason Kidd at the helm of the American franchise after a disappointing second part of the season that could leave them out of the playoffs.
The last time Doncic and Laso were together, Real Madrid won EuroBasket 2018 before Doncic flew to the U.S. to get drafted. Given the duo's prior success, it wouldn't be shocking if Doncic was in favor of this potential move.
This is merely a rumor at this point and should be taken with a grain of salt, but it's an interesting bit of speculation that makes us raise our eyebrows as the season nears its conclusion.
The Mavs have a big summer ahead with Kyrie Irving being a free agent, and changes will have to be made in one form or another. Dallas is insisting that the change won't be at head coach. But the Mavs' failures will likely continue to be a source of speculation.
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