NEWS: Donnie out | Nico Harrison (Nike) as Pres/GM | Fin as VP | Dirk as Advisor

[cow]

Re: Cubes

The best part about 2011 was seeing Dirk win a Championship.  The worst part about 2011 is it empowered Cuban to say, "I told you so" and continue down his merry way.  It gave him the same pig headedness as the Jones family in that if they did it once, they think they can do it again.  

Has Mark learned something lately?  This will be a great litmus test.  Dirk is my favorite athlete ever mostly because of the person he is.  He is a great, great player and I appreciate the Mark always showed faith in Dirk, even when he took a hit nationally on his basketball viability, and in turn Dirk showed faith in Mark.  Dirk is a great, great, great player.  Luka, however, is in another stratosphere and is something the franchise has never had.  My hope is that Cuban realizes this and knows he needs to change to be successful.  My hope is that his public bolstering aside, he realizes how much of a mess the team is on and off the court.  I'm hoping the way KP hasn't worked out has also made the lightbulb go off.  Time will tell and lucky for us, we'll know fairly soon.

And I like a lot of what Cuban does.  While I was EXTREMLY disappointed with all the stuff that came out from regarding sexual harassments stuff years back (hey dude, spend less time shooting baskets at games and be more involved with your team), Cynt was one of our best talent acquisitions in a long time.  I also love what Cuban has done with Delonte.  I think there is a lot of good him.

[ClutchDirk]

CJeter left this on discord earlier...

"As one rival team executive shared Wednesday, there were times when talking to the Mavericks about trade possibilities meant inevitable confusion. Nelson would paint one picture, so to speak, discussing the possible pieces and players involved in an attempt to get a deal done. But Voulgaris, who this rival executive said had talked to his team simultaneously about a particular deal, would tell a different story. And because Voulgaris was widely known to have a direct line to Cuban, this dynamic was seen by Nelson as damaging to his credibility. When asked over the phone about this assertion on Wednesday, Cuban refuted the idea that Voulgaris had negatively impacted the process."

[Dahlsim]

So much about how Luka is pissed...

https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine/status/...wcon%5Es3_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fbleacherreport.com%2Fdallas-mavericks

Ouch!     Reading his own statement, its not good from a Dallas perspective. 

So does this mean Cuban didn't even consult with his young franchise making player?  
If he did I might expect a little bit friendlier tone or something toward the franchise itself.  
Feels more like putting some distance between himself and the people that 'make the decisions there'.

[Kammrath]

Ouch!     Reading his own statement, its not good from a Dallas perspective. 

So does this mean Cuban didn't even consult with his young franchise making player?  
If he did I might expect a little bit friendlier tone or something toward the franchise itself.  
Feels more like putting some distance between himself and the people that 'make the decisions there'.

Nah.

[ItsGoTime]

Hmmm, bit of a frightening thought. What if Cuban is trying to get this press behind him so he and Voulgaris can play slap ass in the FO?

[ItsGoTime]

Knowing Cuban will remain the constant here this is my thought. The GM we get needs to have stellar interpersonal and negotiation skills on top of good player evaluation skills (or a good team behind him that does). That way, when Cuban says, go get Rondo at all costs, he can hopefully negotiate a deal more deserving of the players fit on our team. Best middle ground I can think of at least.

[fifteenth]

I started in this thread saying "I just realized Cuban is Jerry. I think I may be out." 

After a couple of days of discussion I may be coming back to that thought. 

What Mark does with this decision might tell me whether or not he's full Jerry. If he is, I'm probably out.

[Dahlsim]

Nah.

Ok reading the source piece not just the tweet.  reading more from the source more than just the tweet, it helps some, especially because Doncic is expected to sign the extension. 
It still sounds overall though like some distance is there between Doncic and Dallas brass.  

But when news broke Wednesday that the Mavericks and longtime team president Donnie Nelson had “mutually” parted ways, Doncic’s current feelings about the NBA franchise for which he plays became very relevant.

Doncic and Nelson have been close since Doncic was a teenager, so it was not surprising Thursday when Doncic expressed personal disappointment about Nelson’s departure.
“It was kind of tough to me,” Doncic told reporters during the press conference in his hometown of Ljubljana, Slovenia.

“I really like Donnie. [I’ve known] him since I was a kid and he was the one that drafted me. It was tough to me, seeing that, but I’m not the one making decisions there.”

“There” of course is Dallas, where for the first time since 1997 a Nelson is not general manager of the Mavericks. Don Nelson was coach and general manager from 1997 to 2005. When Don stepped down in 2005, Donnie added the title of general manager to that of president of basketball operations, which he earned in July 2002.

A source told The News that Doncic did not learn that Nelson and the Mavericks were parting ways until Wednesday, and that he spent much of the evening digesting the news. Slovenia is seven hours ahead of Dallas, so when he spoke on Thursday it was afternoon in Slovenia.
Despite the jarring news, all indications are that nothing has changed Doncic’s mind about signing the five-year, $201.5 million supermax contract extension for which he qualified for after making the All-NBA team twice in his first three seasons as a Maverick.

Dallas are essentially protected by the rules add to the CBA to prevent young players from bolting quickly from the team that drafted them.  Good thing for sure that has slowed the Lebron era player pick up era. 

We have seen though that players get around this somewhat when the contract nears an end by simply letting it be known they want out.  Cuban and Mavs fortunately have time on their side after the contract is signed.

[ItsGoTime]

I started in this thread saying "I just realized Cuban is Jerry. I think I may be out." 

After a couple of days of discussion I may be coming back to that thought. 

What Mark does with this decision might tell me whether or not he's full Jerry. If he is, I'm probably out.

Honestly, I might be right there with you. The NBA product as a whole has become less desirable to me over the years. Main thing that has kept me interested is this team. This might be the pivotal moment for me to find a new past time.

[hakeemfaan]

"Bleacher Report: 3 Possible Ways The Knicks Could Trade for Luka

Luka reportedly wants out of Dallas after their disappointing loss the 1st Round of the Playoffs, and would likely love a chance to join a Knicks team that showed a tremendous amount of promise that narrowly missed a chance to make it to the 2nd round of the playoffs. 

Possiblity 1:  Obi Tobben  + Mitchell Robison + 21st Pick in the Draft  for Luka Doncic 

--->  Click here for Possibility 2

I saw a Celtics post on fansided for Smart and Brown for Doncic. Post said Tatum is an untouchable and so we cannot give him up.  I got annoyed for a sec and then remembered we throw in dumb proposals too if we feel some stud is available

[fifteenth]

Honestly, I might be right there with you. The NBA product as a whole has become less desirable to me over the years. Main thing that has kept me interested is this team. This might be the pivotal moment for me to find a new past time.

I actually like the NBA product. But I don't have time or emotion to expend on a doomed interprise. A Jerry like front office that allows his decision makers to get undercut by his buddies most likely can't succeed, not matter how great Luka is.

[Tyler]

I saw a Celtics post on fansided for Smart and Brown for Doncic. Post said Tatum is an untouchable and so we cannot give him up.  I got annoyed for a sec and then remembered we throw in dumb proposals too if we feel some stud is available

Fantasizing about unrealistic trade ideas is just part of being a fan. I totally support it, and am already working on my list of far-fetched options for acquiring Zion. 

Now if the media rags could just stop publishing similar unrealistic trade ideas -- involving players whose names they often can't even pronounce correctly -- as anonymous "rumors" just for the clicks, that would be great.

[Scott41theMavs]

People rooting for other teams don't seem to realize that Luka is the single most valuable trade commodity in the entire league by a crushing margin right now. Nothing else, not picks, not players, comes close. Mark is dumb as dirt, but still not as dumb as these people think he is. If Luka ever demands a trade, the ask will leave the team he goes to with nothing left of worth but him, starting at ground zero, regardless of how many trade assets they had at their disposal.

[ItsGoTime]

People rooting for other teams don't seem to realize that Luka is the single most valuable trade commodity in the entire league by a crushing margin right now. Nothing else, not picks, not players, comes close. Mark is dumb as dirt, but still not as dumb as these people think he is. If Luka ever demands a trade, the ask will leave the team he goes to with nothing left of worth but him, starting at ground zero, regardless of how many trade assets they had at their disposal.

“All the draft picks! No, not just all of yours, ALL OF THEM!”

[Scott41theMavs]

I started in this thread saying "I just realized Cuban is Jerry. I think I may be out." 

After a couple of days of discussion I may be coming back to that thought. 

What Mark does with this decision might tell me whether or not he's full Jerry. If he is, I'm probably out.

I'm not making any demands or ultimatums in those terms as long as Luka is on roster. He dragged this team of ne'er-do-wells to seven games with the Clippers. His personal improvement alone could bring us to a championship. 

Of course, if Cuban poops the bed with regard to Luka, I will probably lose interest pretty quickly.

[Tyler]

“All the draft picks! No, not just all of yours, ALL OF THEM!”

Presti: "Got it. I'm on it."

[omahen]

Mark is dumb as dirt

Cuban is a billionaire, owns his own NBA franchise and won a ring with it. So I guess it is good to be dumb...

[fifteenth]

Cuban is a billionaire, owns his own NBA franchise and won a ring with it. So I guess it is good to be dumb...

Yeah, of course he's not "dumb". But all people have their blnd spots. If Mark thinks it's a good idea to put someone in charge and then let them get sabotaged by a usurper then he's got a blind spot.

[Kammrath]

If Mark thinks it's a good idea to put someone in charge and then let them get sabotaged by a usurper then he's got a blind spot.

Maybe Cuban made it VERY clear there was a change of responsibility and Donnie was clearly being usurped in authority. Maybe Donnie was told that and knew it, tried to make it work but still hated it. Maybe Cuban isn't as responsible for the mess as many are assuming. Maybe he is. We don't know.

[bin610]

At this point anyone who mispronounces Luka's last name I automatically ignore what they have to say regarding the matter. I get that he's from another country but he's a top 5 nba player for the next decade at least. Also, it's not a difficult last name like Giannis'. Maybe learn to say his name correctly? /rant