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Tim McMahon
Dallas–many Mavericks Fans recently expressed their frustration in familiar fashion in Dallas, chanting for the firing of general manager Nico Harrison at the last minute on Friday night. 117-107 defeat till washington wizards,
“Fire Nico!” Chants have been heard frequently at American Airlines Center since the surprise trade of luka doncic till Los Angeles Lakers On February 2, months after the homegrown superstar led the Mavs to the 2024 NBA Finals.
Dallas’ improbable win in the draft lottery that delivered the No. 1 pick cooper flag For the Mavs, the summer revitalized the fan base somewhat. But the Mavs stormed out of the gate and lost by 33 runs at home San Antonio Spurs in Wednesday’s opener before losing by double digits to a Washington team coming off an 18-64 season.
There were scattered “Fire Nico!” The chants during the season-opening defeat, although “Go Spurs Go!” and “MVP!” Mantra for San Antonio Superstar Victor Wembanyama Were louder. By the time the chanting started several times after Friday’s defeat, thousands of seats in the arena were empty.
“I think they have the right to speak openly, but also have patience [needed],” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. “It’s a different team, it’s a new team. We are just understanding each other. We will keep learning from each other. So I would say be patient, but I understand the frustration. We all want to win. We all want to compete at a high level, but this is a game of expression and fans have the right to express themselves. But that doesn’t stop us from coming to work tomorrow, getting better and ready for Sunday [against the Toronto Raptors],
Kidd signed a multiyear contract extension during the preseason, negotiations that began after the Mavs declined to new York Knicks Allowing him to pursue their head coaching vacancy in the offseason. Sources told ESPN there have been no discussions about a contract extension for Harrison, who has two years remaining on his deal.
The Mavs, who are starting flags at point guard despite playing forward at Duke, rank last in the league in offensive efficiency after two games, averaging just 95.5 points per 100 possessions. Dallas is averaging 18.5 turnovers per game, including 20 turnovers in the loss to the Wizards.
“Everything is improvable and internal,” the power forward said. anthony davisThe headliner in the package the Mavs got in the Doncic deal, he had 27 points, 13 rebounds and five turnovers in Friday’s loss. “We’re killing ourselves and as long as we’re doing that, we might as well make it,” he said. “But we also have to learn from it and be ready for Sunday.”
Doncic, meanwhile, leads the NBA in scoring with 46.0 points per game. He had 49 points, 11 rebounds and 8 assists in the Lakers’ 128–110 win. minnesota timberwolves on Friday night.
Flagg praised the energy of the Dallas crowd on Friday night, particularly during the fourth quarter, when the Mavs rallied to trim a deficit that at one point was 17 points to four.
“The fans showed up. They were amazing tonight,” said Flagg, who had 11 of 18 points in the fourth quarter and also finished with five rebounds, six assists and five turnovers. “I thought we competed at a high level in that fourth quarter. A lot of things were right – getting stops, playing the way we want to play, and that kind of summed it up. Tonight was just periods, and we had to be able to sustain that for the whole game. I think we took some steps in the right direction, but it needs to be a lot better.”
Flagg said he did not hear the chants calling for Harrison to be fired, saying he was “caught up in the game” and listening to his coaches and teammates. experienced shooting guard clay thompson Said that players should be blamed.
“You’ve got to give them something to cheer about,” said Thompson, who had eight points on 2-of-7 shooting in just 17 minutes. “I’ve got to give them something to please. It’s the nature of the game, man. I’ve been there. I was a fan for 20 years before I came to the NBA. I definitely would have criticized the players. I mean, we deserve a lot of criticism. We’re the ones who are making it possible.”
Thompson described his concerns about Dallas’ slow start as “high”, but expressed optimism that the Mavs would work their way out of the situation.
“There’s always this urgency,” Thompson said. “We’re all competitive. It’s embarrassing, especially for me [after] There’s talk of a championship preseason, all that. But I mean, that’s the only thing I play for right now. So it’s not fun, but there’s only one way. Stay united and get better and work harder every day. I know I will do it and I know everyone else will too. So it’s not just a matter of being patient, but being consistent in our efforts.”
Asked about his concern level after the 0-2 start, Davis said, “Zero.” He emphasized that the Mavs’ improvement must start on the defensive end, but Davis sidestepped questions about how the Mavs and Flagg would handle adversity.
“Is this a disaster? What is a disaster?” Davis said. “We have 80 games left. You can play 10 straight [wins] and then what? That’s how I see it and I’m sure he sees it that way too, and that’s what we talked about. We know we have to get better at both levels, but the NBA season is going to be up and down, so we’re staying positive.”
The poor start for the 18-year-old flag was particularly bad in the overseas arena. In his only college season, Duke went 35–4 and never lost consecutive games.
“I know I’m kicking myself and obviously I’m not happy,” Flagg said. “I’m a little nervous. I mean, it’s just that I’m a competitor. I love to win and I want to win as many games as possible, so this is not a good start. We have a lot of film to watch, a lot of things to look at and a lot of things to improve on.”
