Nico Harrison's treatment of former Mavericks employee should be the last straw

One of the most highly-respected staff members in the NBA was treated like trash by Nico Harrison.

Jan 3, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Portland Trail Blazers general manager Joe Cronin (left) and Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison (right) before the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Portland Trail Blazers at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

With the Dallas Mavericks' season over without even making the playoffs, the hit pieces are flying about general manager Nico Harrison and the abominable job he's done running the organization, showing his ego-filled rise to the top and how he surrounds himself with "yes men."

Arguably the most damning revelation was in Tim MacMahon's piece on ESPN about the Harrison's dismissal of Casey Smith, the team's former director of health and performance. Smith is arguably the most respected individual in his profession, was the head athletic trainer for Team USA Basketball, and is now the vice president of sports medicine for the New York Knicks. He was considered a close friend of franchise icon Dirk Nowitzki, even being in the travel party for Nowitzki's Hall-of-Fame induction ceremony, and was highly regarded by Luka Doncic and Jalen Brunson during their time with the team.

READ MORE: Reporter goes viral for asking Mavs' Nico Harrison why he shouldn't be fired

Jan. 28, 2010; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Dallas Mavericks athletic trainer Casey Smith against the Phoenix Suns at the US Airways Center. Phoenix defeated Dallas 112-106. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Casey Smith was reportedly pushed out of the organization because he was "too negative," according to MacMahon. But they way Nico Harrison went about it is just wrong.

Harrison informed Smith they needed to meet after getting back from Nowitzki's Hall-of-Fame induction, but Smith had to go home to Ohio to be with his sick mother in the final weeks of her life. Instead of waiting for Smith to get back to Dallas with the organization, Harrison fired Smith over a video meeting, with MacMahon's sources stating that Harrison "was 100 percent threatened by" Smith because of how much weight his voice carried in the organization. Smith sat in on free agency meetings and team decisions, which was well-earned given his status among people in the NBA.

But to fire someone while they're tending to their ill mother over a video conference is disrespectful on multiple fronts. It doesn't help that the medical staff Harrison put in place is incompetent, with the athletic performance director not even being certified by the NBA to hold his position.

Harrison says the season can't be judged fairly because of all of the injuries, but it can because he traded for injured players and pushed out arguably the greatest in his profession for a medical staff that can't properly evaluate when players should come back from injury and don't have a working relationship.

Harrison was even offended by Tim MacMahon asking about Casey Smith in last week's secret media roundtable, responding, "You bringing up Casey is like almost, it's kind of a joke. Like last year, Casey wasn't around, and we made it to the Finals. No one brought up Casey last year. So, to bring him up this year doesn't really make sense. He's been away for two years. So it's -- I'm not even going to comment on that."

The Mavericks went from three games away from winning a championship to the biggest laughing stock in all of American sports in ten months because of one man. And somehow he still has a job.

READ MORE: Nico Harrison admits he didn't understand Luka Doncic's importance to Mavericks fans

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