Nico Harrison thinks he's done a good job with the Mavericks, here's why he's wrong

"I think I've done a really good job here. And I don't think I can be judged by the injuries this year, you have to judge in totality from the beginning to end... You'll see next year when our team comes back, we're going to be competing for a championship."

That's how Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison answered a question on Monday afternoon in an end-of-season exit interview about why he shouldn't be fired after this season, one that saw him make two unbelievably disastrous trades, sending Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis and Max Christie, and trading Quentin Grimes and the 35th overall pick in this year's draft to the Philadelphia 76ers for Caleb Martin and a 2030 second-round pick (which only got added after Martin's physical revealed he'd miss extended time with a hip strain).

Harrison thinks he's done a good job, so here's a comprehensive list of every move he's made since he took over on June 28th, 2021, and whether it was a good or bad move. 10-day and two-way contracts won't be listed unless they're notable. This will mainly stick to trades, mostly main signings (sorry Facundo Campazzo), and re-signings.

Apr 11, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) reacts before the game against the Houston Rockets at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images | Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images

July 31, 2021- Traded Josh Richardson to the Boston Celtics for Moses Brown

Richardson just didn't work in Dallas, averaging 12.1 PPG but shooting 33% from three-point range. But they could've gotten more than Moses Brown, who played 26 games in his first stint with Dallas before being waived. A few months after this trade, the Celtics turned Josh Richardson, Romeo Langford, and a late 2022 first-round pick (which became Blake Wesley) for Derrick White, who developed into a key starter for the Celtics' 2024 championship team... that beat Dallas.

Good moves: 0; Bad moves: 1; Meh moves: 0

August 6th, 2021- Signed Reggie Bullock to a three-year, $30.04 million contract

Bullock became a starter for a team that made the Western Conference Finals, but he was out of the league the second this contract was over. He averaged 7.8 PPG while shooting 37% from three in his two seasons in Dallas. Other players who signed similar contracts this offseason include Alex Caruso and Josh Hart. Not terrible, but not great either.

Good moves: 0; Bad moves: 1; Meh moves: 1

August 9th, 2021- Signed Sterling Brown to a two-year, $6 million contract

Brown played in 49 games and scored 160 points before being traded after one season. He would be waived before entering the second year of that contract and would play four NBA games ever again. This isn't a move that handicaps a team, but it's not a great one.

Good moves: 0; Bad moves: 2; Meh moves: 1

August 9th, 2021- Signed Boban Marjanovic to a two-year, $7 million contract

Marjanovic was a key locker room presence, a great friend of Luka Doncic, and a fan favorite. His on-court impact was never amazing, but he was solid in the two years for Dallas before signing this contract. His first year after signing it wasn't the best, but we can't discredit Boban.

Good moves: 0; Bad moves: 2; Meh moves: 2

August 9th, 2021- Re-signed Tim Hardaway Jr. to a four-year, $75 million contract

At the time, this felt rich for Hardaway, but he was coming off a season where he finished 5th in the Sixth Man of the Year voting and averaged 16.6 PPG while shooting 39.1% from deep. The New Orleans Pelicans were reportedly ready to hand Hardaway a big contract, and Harrison probably should've let them. Over his next three seasons in Dallas, Hardaway shot 36.2% from three and was often unplayable in the playoffs. Harrison had to dump him along with three second-round picks just to get off the final year of Hardaway's contract.

Good moves: 0; Bad moves: 3; Meh moves: 2

August 10, 2021- Re-signed Luka Doncic to a five-year, $215.16 million rookie extension

Congratulations on your first good move as a GM, Nico Harrison! This was the easiest possible decision one could make.

Good moves: 1; Bad moves: 3; Meh moves: 2

September 17, 2021- Signed Frank Ntilikina to a two-year, $3.82 million contract

After two seasons with the Mavs, in which he played 105 games, Ntilikina would play in just five NBA games ever again. But it was cheap enough to not really matter, and he was an above-average defender.

Good moves: 1; Bad moves: 3; Meh moves: 3

January 15, 2022- Signed Marquese Chriss a two-year, rest-of-season contract

This was an odd signing but one made out of necessity due to how bad Dallas' center rotation was at the time. But this would be his last season in the NBA, surely they could've done better.

Good moves: 1; Bad moves: 4; Meh moves: 3

Spencer Dinwiddie and Kristaps Porzingis — Jan 25, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Spencer Dinwiddie (26) shoots over Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis (8) during the first half at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

February 10, 2022- Traded Kristaps Porzingis and a 2022 second-round pick (became the 54th overall pick, Yannick Nzosa) for Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans

This is an interesting one, but Harrison basically salary-dumped Kristaps Porzingis when it became obvious that he wasn't going to fit alongside Luka Doncic, and Spencer Dinwiddie was a key piece to making the Western Conference Finals a few months later. But... this is all they could get for Porzingis? He rehabbed his value in his one year with the Wizards enough to be traded to the Celtics in a three-team trade that included the Celtics giving up a first-round pick and Marcus Smart. Surely the Mavericks could've gotten more than two contracts that were seen as bad values at the time. But Dinwiddie also rehabbed his value enough in the WCF run to be part of the package in a later trade. Tough call.

Good moves: 1; Bad moves: 4; Meh moves: 4

February 10, 2022- Re-signed Dorian Finney-Smith a four-year, $52 million deal

Another easy decision, Finney-Smith blossomed into a key three-and-D player in his time in Dallas, was a fan-favorite, and had great chemistry with Luka Doncic. It could be seen as a slight overpay in hindsight, but this was a good move.

Good moves: 2; Bad moves: 4; Meh moves: 4

June 24th, 2022- Traded Sterling Brown, Boban Marjanovic, Marquese Chriss, Trey Burke, and a 2022 first-round pick (Wendell Moore Jr., 26th overall) for Christian Wood

While the contracts traded were all below-average players, Christian Wood was a bad fit in Dallas. His counting stats look fine with 16.6 PPG and 7.3 RPG, he was a horrible defender and a big reason why the team missed the playoffs that year. Two years later, he's out of the league. That 26th overall pick could've become Nikola Jovic, Peyton Watson, Andrew Nembhard, or Max Christie if the Mavericks held onto it and made their own selection. A lot of Mavericks' staffers had concerns about this trade, but Nico Harrison was hellbent on making it happen.

Good moves: 2; Bad moves: 5; Meh moves: 4

June 24th, 2022- Traded a 2024 second-round pick (became the 54th overall pick, Anton Watson) and a 2028 second-round pick to the Sacramento Kings for the 37th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft (Jaden Hardy)

A year ago, this looked like a solid trade. Jaden Hardy was on the verge of becoming a decent rotation player and with Luka Doncic on the roster, they're pretty much guaranteed to be giving up late second-round picks in trades. However, trading Doncic for an older Anthony Davis makes that 2028 second-round pick a potentially juicy one. And Hardy regressed this season while also spraining his right ankle four times. This is still a TBD trade, but for now, it's whatever.

Good moves: 2; Bad moves: 5; Meh moves: 5

July 6th, 2022 - Re-signed Theo Pinson to a one-year, $1.97 contract

Pinson was a great bench and locker room presence and he had a triple-double in his last game in the NBA. Legend.

Good moves: 2; Bad moves: 5; Meh moves: 6

July 9th, 2022 - Signed JaVale McGee to a three-year, $17.2 million deal

This was an abysmal signing. McGee was signed to be Dallas' starting center (again), but he played just 42 games in his first season back with the Mavs, averaging 4.4 PPG and 2.5 RPG. He was so bad with the Mavs that they had to stretch the final two years of his contract when waiving him, and they'll have a $2.2 million dead cap hit through the 2027-28 season because of it.

Good moves: 2; Bad moves: 6; Meh moves: 6

September 8, 2022- Extended Maxi Kleber on a three-year, $33 million contract

From the moment Kleber signed this contract, things started going downhill for him, especially with injuries. He appeared in 114 of a possible 246 games and shot 33.2% from three over the next three seasons. At the time of the extension, he was still projected to be a positionally versatile defender and floor-stretcher, but injuries sapped a lot of his versatility. His salary really handicapped the team's options moving forward, so, unfortunately, this was a bad move.

Good moves: 2; Bad moves: 7; Meh moves: 6

February 5th, 2023- Traded Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, a 2029 first-round pick, and 2027 and 2029 second-round picks to the Brooklyn Nets for Kyrie Irving and Markieff Morris

This trade was widely panned at the time due to how controversial Kyrie Irving was viewed around the NBA, but the Mavericks didn't give up much for him at the time. There wasn't a huge market for Irving, and Harrison and Jason Kidd had past relationships with Irving, and that helped Irving be the happiest he's ever been with a basketball team. They'd do this again in a heartbeat, even if those picks are looking a lot more valuable than they were at the time time of the trade. Markieff Morris was also a valuable locker-room leader in his time.

Good moves: 3; Bad moves: 7; Meh moves: 6

Jan 9, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Dereck Lively II (2) and guard Quentin Grimes (5) celebrate during the second half against the Portland Trail Blazers at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

July 6th, 2023- Traded the draft rights of Cason Wallace (10th overall pick) to the Oklahoma City Thunder for the draft rights of Dereck Lively II (12th overall pick) and Davis Bertans

This is where Nico Harrison heats up. Dallas tanked the final two games of the regular season to keep their top-10 protected pick. With them keeping their pick, they were able to trade back two spots, offload the bloated salary of Davis Bertans, and bring in Dereck Lively II, a center who was a perfect complement to Luka Doncic. With Doncic gone, it'll be interesting to see how Lively develops, and with how botched his injury was handled this season. But this was a great move.

Good moves: 4; Bad moves: 7; Meh moves: 6

July 6th, 2023- Traded $110,000 to the Sacramento Kings for Richaun Holmes and the draft rights to Olivier-Maxence Prosper (24th overall pick)

Another good move for the Mavericks, as they got a raw but talented prospect in Prosper for taking on the salary of Richaun Holmes, who never really contributed to Dallas. Prosper had bright moments this season, but he's still a long way away from reaching his ceiling. Even if he never gets there, this was a worthwhile gamble.

Good moves: 5; Bad moves: 7; Meh moves: 6

July 7th, 2023- Re-signed Kyrie Irving to a three-year, $126 million deal

For all of the reasons above, this was a no-brainer, but the Mavericks also had no choice. Irving had a lot of leverage with what the team gave up. If anything, Dallas maybe would've preferred to add an extra year to the deal.

Good moves: 6; Bad moves: 7; Meh moves: 6

July 9th, 2023, Re-signed Dwight Powell to a three-year, $12 million deal

Powell isn't good enough for consistent minutes, but he's a valued member of the locker room. This money probably could've been best used elsewhere, but it doesn't hurt much in the grand scheme of things.

Good moves: 6; Bad moves: 7; Meh moves: 7

July 12th, 2023- Dallas Mavericks acquire 2025 and 2028 second-round picks (Spurs) and Grant Williams in a sign-and-trade on a four-year, $53.34 million deal; sent Reggie Bullock and a 2030 first-round pick swap to the San Antonio Spurs; sent a 2024 second-round pick (Spurs, 41st overall Adem Bona), 2025 second-round pick swap, and a 2030 second-round pick (Dallas) to the Boston Celtics

Yeah, so, this was awful. There's no sugar-coating it. Williams was a terrible fit with the Mavericks and was traded away a few months after signing. And sending out all of those picks in this trade is going to come back to bite the team very soon.

Good moves: 6; Bad moves: 8; Meh moves: 7

July 14th, 2023- Signed Seth Curry to a two-year, $8 million deal

Curry loves signing with the Mavericks to be traded away soon after. This was the worst three-point shooting season of his career, but the idea of it made sense.

Good moves: 6; Bad moves: 8; Meh moves: 8

July 14th, 2023- Signed Dante Exum to a two-year, $6.15 million deal

These are the types of end-of-roster moves that help teams become championship contenders. Exum had washed out of the league due to injuries, but he revived his career overseas and came back into the NBA with a chip on his shoulder. His reworked three-point shot, size, and ball-handling were huge for the 2023-24 team, and while injuries really held him back this season, this contract was worth every penny.

Good moves: 7; Bad moves: 8; Meh moves: 8

August 18th, 2023- Signed Derrick Jones Jr. to a one-year, $2.7 million deal

Another key signing, Jones became a starter on a team that went to the NBA Finals due to his defense and athleticism. His three-point shot came and went, but he quickly emerged as a fan-favorite and beloved personality in the locker room. Dallas decided to not bring him back after the season, but this way arguably the best move of Harrison's tenure.

Good moves: 8; Bad moves: 8; Meh moves: 8

October 23, 2023- Extended Josh Green on a three-year, $41 million deal

This was rich at the time, even for the biggest believers in Josh Green. He averaged 9.1 PPG on 40.2% three-point shooting the season before signing this, but he wasn't taking a lot of threes. I didn't like this deal at the time, and it was proven to be a bad deal when the Mavs had to attach picks to offload his salary before he even played a second on the new extension. Even if you argue it as a contract signed to be a salary-filler in a trade, he was not worth this contract.

Good moves: 8; Bad moves: 9; Meh moves: 8

Mar 31, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Daniel Gafford (21) grimaces as he runs back up the court during the second half against the Brooklyn Nets at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

February 8th, 2024- Traded a 2028 first-round pick swap to the OKC Thunder for a 2024 first-round pick; sent OKC's 2024 first-round pick and Richaun Holmes to the Washington Wizards for Daniel Gafford

Although that 2028 first-round pick swap could really come back to bite the Mavs, as the Thunder should be one of the NBA's best teams for the rest of the decade and the Mavericks don't have a future, this was a worthwhile gamble that gave the Mavericks a perfect center pairing to go with Luka Doncic, and it was a big reason they made the NBA Finals last season.

Good moves: 9; Bad moves: 9; Meh moves: 8

February 8th, 2024- Traded Grant Williams, Seth Curry, and a 2027 top-2 protected first-round pick to the Charlotte Hornets for P.J. Washington, a 2024 second-round pick (58th overall, became Ariel Hukporti) and a 2028 second-round pick

Another move that helped improve Dallas' defense as they ran to the NBA Finals, and Washington instantly endeared himself with the Mavericks fans, especially in the playoffs. In a vacuum, this is a good trade. However, because of how much they gave up to acquire Grant Williams (including a now valuable pick swap) just to have to add more draft capital to get rid of him, and if Nico Harrison initially had his way, he would've sent two first-round picks to the Wizards for Kyle Kuzma instead of getting Washington and Gafford. This is a good trade, but wanting Kyle Kuzma instead gets an asterisk.

Good moves: 10*; Bad moves: 9; Meh moves: 8

June 27th, 2024- acquired the draft rights to Melvin Ajinca (51st overall pick) for cash, the draft rights to Ariel Hukporti (58th overall pick), cash, and the draft rights of Petteri Koponen (30th overall pick of the 2007 Draft)

There's a good chance Ajinca never makes it to the NBA, but there's not much to make of this trade right now.

Good moves: 10*; Bad moves: 9; Meh moves: 9

July 6th, 2024- traded Tim Hardaway Jr., a 2025 second-round pick (Toronto, 37th overall), and two 2028 second-round picks for Quentin Grimes

In a vacuum, this was a good trade, as Grimes was a good player for Dallas. But they turned around and traded him away a few months later in an awful move, which makes this tough to look at, as they lost a few second-round picks for basically nothing. If they could've given Grimes at least the whole season, this would be marked as a good trade, but because of how quickly the team moved on, this is a meh trade.

Good moves: 10*; Bad moves: 9; Meh moves: 10

July 6th, 2024- Signed Naji Marshall to a three-year, $27 million deal

Dallas moved on from their "top priority" in the offseason, Derrick Jones Jr., quickly and pivoted to Naji Marshall. The three-point shot wasn't there, but he showcased an improved ball-handling and play-making ability while being solid on defense. This is a good signing, hopefully, he stays.

Good moves: 11*; Bad moves: 9; Meh moves: 10

Apr 18, 2025; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson (31) reacts during the third quarter against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

July 6th, 2024- Traded Josh Green to the Charlotte Hornets, a 2025 second-round pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves, and a 2031 second-round pick to the Philadelphia 76ers for a 2025 second-round pick from the Hornets, and allowing a sign-and-trade for Klay Thompson on a three-year, $50 million deal. Six-team trade in total

Thompson was supposed to be the missing piece to a potential championship, getting easy looks from Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. He had a solid first season in Dallas, averaging 14 PPG and shooting 39.1% from three-point range. While his future with the team doesn't look as promising, his voice was one of the few sane ones in an insane season.

Good moves: 12*; Bad moves: 9; Meh moves: 10

August 3rd, 2024- Signed Spencer Dinwiddie to a one-year, $3.3 million deal

Dinwiddie led the Mavericks in minutes for the 2024-25 season, which tells you more about how banged up the team was than anything. He was very up-and-down, costing the team some games while also having some big performances here and there. Solid deal who was relied upon way more often than expected.

Good moves: 12*; Bad moves: 9; Meh moves: 11

October 22, 2024- Extended Jaden Hardy on a three-year, $18 million deal

This is already a bad contract and it hasn't even kicked in yet. This will likely try to be a salary filler in a future trade, but Hardy is too inconsistent as a playmaker and scorer to be a member of a rotation on a winning team.

Good moves: 12*; Bad moves: 10; Meh moves: 11

February 2nd, 2025- Traded Luka Doncic, Maxi Kleber, and Markieff Morris to the Los Angeles Lakers and a 2025 second-round pick (42nd/43rd pick) to the Utah Jazz for Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick (via Lakers)

A day that will live in infamy. Harrison can say history will be the judge of this trade and that it needs time to show it can be worth it, but it will never be worth it. Trading a player with the caliber of Luka Doncic should've come with much more than Davis, Christie, and one first-round pick. Dallas had to give up a second-round pick in this deal, too. Awful, awful trade; arguably the worst in NBA history. This should be worth infinity points.

Good moves: 12*; Bad moves: 11; Meh moves: 11

February 4th, 2025- Traded Quentin Grimes and a 2025 second-round pick (35th overall) to the Philadelphia 76ers for Caleb Martin; a failed physical from Martin added a 2030 second-round pick to the deal

I don't even know where to begin with how bad this move was. Grimes went to the 76ers and immediately broke out as a star, while Martin hardly played or contributed to the Mavericks in a meaningful way. The trade pushed the Mavericks up against the tax apron so they couldn't sign a 15th player until the final days of the season, something they could've used because of all the injuries, and the pick they gave up ended up becoming the 35th overall pick in what is expected to be a really good draft. If they wanted to move on from Martin's contract, it would likely involve having to get rid of draft capital to get off of it when the trade should've just been negated once he failed his physical. Grimes would've been a restricted free agent this summer, and while he likely would've demanded a contract bigger than Dallas could give, they could've at least worked out a better sign-and-trade than this. Another abominable trade.

Final tally: Good moves: 12*; Bad moves: 12; Meh moves: 11

Apr 22, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) warms up before a game two of first round for the 2024 NBA Playoffs against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Of the 35 transactions we covered, with apologies to Markieff Morris' re-signing, Brandon Williams and Justin Holiday signing end-of-season contracts, and other minimal moves (which all would've been mehs), 12 would be considered good for a hit rate of 34.3%. If you want to establish a point system for each, with a good move getting one point and a meh move getting a half point, that's a total of 17.5 points out of 35.

Some could've gone different ways, like the Spencer Dinwiddie signing, the Kristaps Porzingis trade, or the P.J. Washington trade, but overall, it hasn't been amazing.

Does that seem like Nico Harrison has been "really good," as he said in his press conference? He got lucky that Kyle Kuzma said he didn't want to be traded to Dallas, otherwise, this could look a lot worse. But a big reason a lot of these moves worked or were covered up is because he had Luka Doncic, an offensive supernova who makes everyone around him better. Does the Derrick Jones Jr. deal work if Doncic isn't there? Is Daniel Gafford as impactful as he was without Doncic? These are things we may never know. But even if Harrison earned a contract extension after the 2024 NBA Finals, he can't continue to lead this team.

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