Dallas Basketball

Lakers’ LeBron James reacts to Dallas Mavericks’ big loss to team

James weighed in on the Dallas Mavericks' latest coaching change.
Apr 9, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) during the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Los Angeles Lakers at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Apr 9, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) during the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Los Angeles Lakers at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

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The Dallas Mavericks have undergone some major changes to their coaching staff this offseason.

The Mavericks are running it back with head coach Jason Kidd despite persistent rumors that the New York Knicks were interested in hiring him. Those whispers have been put to rest after the Knicks brought on veteran coach Mike Brown to lead the franchise.

With that being said, the rest of the bench is changing around Kidd. In recent weeks, assistant coaches such as Jared Dudley (Denver Nuggets), Sean Sweeney (San Antonio Spurs), and God Shammgod (Orlando Magic) have departed for other positions.

READ MORE: Ex-Mavericks GM slams Luka Doncic-Lakers trade

LeBron James
Apr 30, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) reacts during the first half in game five of first round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

The Mavericks have supplemented the losses with the addition of Frank Vogel. However, it remains to be seen just what kind of impact the shakeup will have on the franchise.

Shammgod worked in Dallas for six years while Dudley and Sweeney had both been with the team since the beginning of Kidd's tenure as head coach of the franchise.

Dudley has quickly risen up the coaching ranks after retiring from the NBA to join Kidd's staff in 2021. He earned a much-deserved promotion earlier this month as the Denver Nuggets hired him as their top assistant under head coach David Adelman.

Jared Dudley
Nov 6, 2021; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks assistant coach Jared Dudley works with the Mavericks before the game against the Boston Celtics at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The move drew the attention of Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, who has been connected to the Mavericks this offseason. James and Dudley were teammates in Los Angeles from 2019-21.

In fact, Dudley was on the Lakers' roster when the franchise won its most recent NBA Championship in 2020. James was named the Finals MVP as Los Angeles took down the Miami Heat in six games.

James showed his respect for Dudley as his former teammate continues the next chapter of his career.

"Congrats my brother!! Well deserved," James wrote with a clapping emoji on Instagram.

LeBron James
LeBron James/Instagram

Clearly, James is excited for Dudley. He's never been shy about celebrating the accomplishments of others during his vast professional career.

2025 will mark Dudley's fifth season as a coach at the NBA level. He'll be searching for his first ring as an assistant after winning one as a player. Dudley came close to achieving that goal with the Mavericks last year.


READ MORE: NBA champion dislikes Mavericks signing D'Angelo Russell

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Dustin Lewis
DUSTIN LEWIS

Lewis joined BucsGameday when it was founded in 2022. He's also the Editor-In-Chief of NoleGameday. A graduate of Florida State, Lewis has worked for NG since 2016.

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