Reports say Mavericks front office was 'terrified' of Luka Doncic before Lakers trade

The trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers and Anthony Davis to the Los Angeles Lakers continues to make no sense, even as we are now more than two weeks removed from the deal. And the more reports that come out, the more the Mavericks look like absolute fools.

Former Mavericks executive Haralabos Voulgaris appeared on the podcast "My First Million" recently and said, “Every person who worked at the Mavericks, except for me, was terrified of this guy," in regards to Luka Doncic. Voulgaris was with the Mavericks from 2018-2021 and never technically crossed paths with Nico Harrison in Dallas, but he remained good friends with Mark Cuban.

Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison walks on to the court before the game between the Dallas and the Sacramento Kings at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

A few writers for The Athletic collaborated on an article about Nico Harrison and talked about how Doncic wasn't his ideal player, saying, "Dončić drinks beer and smokes a hookah, neither of which is atypical for a 25-year-old. But those behaviors didn’t fit Harrison’s mold. Management unsuccessfully pushed him to get into better shape, even as he dominated the league, averaging at least 27 points, at least eight rebounds and at least eight assists during each of the five seasons following his first in the NBA. Dončić controlled more day-to-day decisions than the average player does, such as practice schedules, though superstars on other teams receive similar treatment."

Every reason that has come out about Doncic looks like Nico Harrison and his PR team trying to save face, saying things like he didn't have the "Mamba Mentality," was vastly overweight, didn't take conditioning seriously, didn't fit the culture, and they didn't believe they could win with him.

And yet, Kobe Bryant loved watching Luka Doncic play and made a point to go to Staples Center to watch him play before Bryant's tragic passing. LeBron James has called Doncic one of his favorite players to watch in the NBA for a few years now. But Nico Harrison had it stuck in his mind that he couldn't win anymore with Doncic despite just going to the NBA Finals.

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