Next GM Watch

[F Gump]

1 It’s good to kick the tires on Presti but not happening —
2 maybe one of his assistants. How about Dirk?

1 I am the one driving the Presti bus, and your "kick the tires" approach is the typical response. Respectfully to you and all, I really HATE that thinking.

Yes, it's possible Presti, or his representatives, would have no interest and would slam the door shut before talks ever started. And/or OKC. I get it. It's obvious. But that doesn't deter me from wanting Presti as the Mavs GM, and wanting them to pursue him fully and vigorously (not just a cursory going through the motions and assuming it's not going anywhere and moving on), until the door is slammed shut - and slammed and slammed. The idea we assume defeat before we ever try, and need to be dismissive and quickly deterred from chasing THE BEST (and what we really want), is not the world I want to live in.

Negotiating in a winning way isn't about waiting for easy deals. It's about figuring what you really want, and then working to find a way to get to "yes." 

As an aside, I will add this: if the Mavs do pursue Presti, I wager it would not be known until the deal is just about to happen (like, in June after the playoffs end). And if there was a pursuit that went nowhere, I don't think we'd ever know it happened. 

2 " maybe one of his assistants. How about Dirk" -- I have no interest. We need an expert, not an experiment. We need the trainer, not the trainee. My cutoff is limiting it to someone who has previously negotiated and proven excellence in such things over time.

Dirk needs to be in the FO mix, that's for sure. He embodies what you want this team and organization to look like. But they need to enlist him to participate in ways that use some of his many strengths - taking him out of his lane would be bad for him, and bad for you.