Mavericks fans' worst fear with the new GM finally erased

While fans can rejoice at Nico Harrison finally being out as GM of the Dallas Mavericks, the crushing blow of the Luka Doncic trade will continue to have ripple effects on the Mavericks for the foreseeable future, as they still have 70 games left in the season while sitting at 3-9. Newly appointed co-general managers Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley will be tasked with unravelling this mess, but Mavericks fans will be happy to know Finley was on their side (subscription required) when it came to the Doncic trade.

Per NBA insider Marc Stein, Finley voiced some of the most opposition to the Doncic trade out of anyone in Dallas' front office when it was presented to him, as Finley has been around the league and Mavericks forever, and it's clear he disagreed with Harrison's move, regardless if he was told in time to take any actionable steps to prevent it.

Stein also included context to the viral clip of Finley taking a beer from Doncic following Dallas' series-clinching victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2024 Western Conference Finals, as Finley returned the beer to Doncic when the team started celebrating in the locker room. He only took the beer because Dallas wanted to maintain a high optical/PR perception to the public since Doncic was still in the arena tunnel.

Michael Finley isn't the villain some Mavericks fans paint him to be

Finley and Riccardi will have some huge decisions to make in aggregate with governor Patrick Dumont and the rest of Dallas' front office in the coming weeks and months, but it could also serve as a proving ground for someone like Finley, as the Mavericks could look to promote from within as far as their next full-time GM is concerned.

Given Finley's massive success as a player in Dallas, as well as how long he's been in a prominent front office role for the Mavericks, he could be a great option as a full-time GM, especially since he's business savvy as well as player-friendly. Mavericks fans also at least know he would never do anything on par with Harrison's trade deadline blunder from last season, even if he has never been a lead executive or GM in his front office career yet.

Finley is extremely close with Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki, and him spearheading the front office alongside Riccardi could potentially prompt Nowitzki to re-ignite with the franchise in some sort of formal or informal role. Having two of Nowitzki's favorite teammates in Jason Kidd and Finley at head coach and GM, respectively, would definitely be a decent bid to get Nowitzki to return to Dallas' organization in some capacity.

These next few months will be crucial for both Finley and Riccardi in terms of proving themselves to be ready for a lead front office position if they ever want it, whether that's in Dallas or elsewhere. Mavericks fans can at least take a sigh of relief that Finley has their backs when it came to the franchise-altering disaster from February 1, as moral victories are the only sort of victories the Mavericks are getting right now.