The Dallas Mavericks reached a deal with the Hall of Fame point guard Jason kidd to be its head coach and veteran Nike executive Nico Harrison to be its general manager and run the franchise’s basketball operations, sources told ESPN’s Tim MacMahon on Friday.
Kidd, who spent two spells with the Mavericks during his playing career and started on the 2010-11 championship team, has had the support of Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki and others who have been advising the owner of the team, Mark Cuban. Nowitzki recently returned to the franchise as a special advisor to help Cuban search for a new basketball coach and chief executive officer in the wake of the departure of Donnie Nelson and Rick Carlisle.
Sources told ESPN’s Tim MacMahon and Adrian Wojnarowski Thursday that Kidd had begun the early stages of forming a coaching staff.
Harrison, who has been hunted by other teams for central office positions, has well-established connections with players throughout the NBA that stem from his two decades with Nike. Has a strong relationship with Luka doncic, having played a pivotal role in the switch from Nike’s Mavericks star to the Jordan brand in the fall of 2019.
The Mavericks vice president of basketball operations, Michael finley, stay in the franchise and work alongside Harrison, the sources said.
Kidd has a career record of 183-190 as head coach. He coached the Brooklyn Nets in 2013-14 and the Milwaukee Bucks from 2014 to 2018. Kidd, who has spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Lakers, is 9-15 in the playoffs, advancing to second. round in his only season with the Nets.
The 48-year-old Kidd, a 10-time All-Star who won five assist titles, was selected by the Mavericks with the No. 2 overall pick in 1994. He was traded to the Phoenix Suns in December 1996 and returned to Dallas. in February 2008 after stints with the Suns and then-New Jersey Nets.
Kidd spent five seasons with the Mavericks during his second cycle in Dallas, forging strong relationships with Cuban and several others who remain at Dallas headquarters.