Dallas Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki is reportedly “turned off” by the organization and is no longer involved with decision-making in the aftermath of the Luka Dončić trade.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, the Mavericks have received immense criticism following one of the most shocking trades in NBA history, with many fans calling for General Manager Nico Harrison to be fired.
The Mavericks attempted to explain the trade during a recent media session, though this meeting was held behind closed doors for select media members, and recording devices were strictly prohibited.
Tim McMahon of ESPN attended the Mavericks’ closed-door meeting earlier this week and asked Harrison why Nowitzki was not consulted before the controversial trade.
“[Harrison] basically said, ‘If they’re not in the building, they don’t know what’s going on,’” said McMahon, per Sports Illustrated.
“Stay tuned for the reason Dirk’s not in the building and the reason Cuban’s not in the building. Because Nico made sure he got his butt kicked out of basketball operations once that trade went through,” McMahon added.
McMahon said Nowitzki is largely done with the organization and hinted that he had inside knowledge of the reasoning.
“Dirk is completely turned off by this franchise. I’ll have more on that situation coming out once they’re eliminated, probably Thursday morning,” he said on The Hoop Collective podcast.
McMahon pointed to potentially releasing that information on Thursday following the play-in tournament, but a Mavericks victory over the Sacramento Kings presumably pushed back the release of this information.
The rift between Nowitzki and the Mavericks has been evident following the trade, with Nowitzki saying that he felt “sad” and “disappointed” for how Dončić was treated during the process.
Harrison even took shots at the former NBA Champion during the recent media session, going out of his way to say that he does not care what Nowitzki thinks about the moves made by the franchise.
“Some of those decisions are going to be unpopular, maybe to Dirk and maybe to the fans, but my obligation is to the Dallas Mavericks,” he said, as previously reported by DX.
While it is still unclear what has happened between Nowitzki and the Mavericks behind the scenes, McMahon is expected to release this information at the end of the season.
That end could come as early as tonight, as the Mavericks are set to take on the Memphis Grizzlies at 8:30 p.m. in the final play-in tournament game to determine which team will secure the eighth seed in the Western Conference playoffs.