Mavericks Reportedly Giving Duke's Jon Scheyer Every Chance to be Next Coach

The Dallas Mavericks have still yet to announce who their next head coach will be, despite the 2026 NBA Draft being just a few days away. Today marks a month since they let go of Jason Kidd, as Masai Ujiri decided it was best to go with a clean slate into next season.

Most people around the NBA expect the Mavericks to go after a rising assistant coach, with names like Minnesota's Micah Nori and Toronto's Jama Mahlalela mentioned as leading candidates. However, there seems to be one big name that they are making say "No" before moving on to other candidates.

NBA insider Marc Stein released his latest on trade and coaching whispers around the league on Thursday night, revealing that the Mavs would love to have Duke head coach Jon Scheyer.

"Dallas has wanted to give Duke's Jon Scheyer every conceivable opportunity to consider a leap to the NBA," Stein wrote.

Stein also mentioned that there is "persistent pessimism" that the Mavericks would be able to lure Scheyer away from Duke, as he "wants to stay where he is after four seasons as Mike Krzyzewski's hand-picked successor."

There is a lot of connective tissue between the Mavericks and Scheyer. He was the head coach for the college careers of Cooper Flagg and Dereck Lively II at Duke, with Scheyer even telling Flagg how much he'd love Dallas because Lively was there. Scheyer also played at Duke, passing the point guard torch to Kyrie Irving.

Is this a world where Cooper Flagg is pushing for his former coach to lead him once again? Possibly, as Flagg was just back in Durham this week working out on his old stomping grounds. It seems unlikely that Flagg would make that kind of demand, especially coming off his rookie season.

Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer watches down court Thursday, March 19, 2026, during the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament first round game against the Siena Saints at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. | Alex Martin/Greenville News / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

If It's Not Jon Scheyer For The Mavericks, Who Will It Be?

Jon Scheyer shouldn't be considered the favorite, even if the Mavericks would love to have him, apparently. We know team governor Patrick Dumont loves chasing big names, but this doesn't feel realistic.

Jama Mahlalela, Micah Nori, Houston's Royal Ivey, and Boston's Tony Dobbins have been named as assistant coach candidates who could be the next head coach for the Mavs. Former Portland Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts has also been named as a candidate.

However, this new group of management for the Mavericks has been keeping things very quiet. No one is exactly sure how far along they are in the process, and while they'd like to have a candidate in place before the draft, there's no guarantee that happens.

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