Mavericks are quietly crafting the perfect pitch to bring Luka Doncic home

When Nico Harrison decided to trade Luka Doncic on February 2, he completely fractured the loyalty the Dallas Mavericks prided themselves on through the Dirk Nowitzki era, but many fans are holding out hope that Doncic could still return to Dallas one day. Of course, Doncic owes nothing to the Mavericks, given the way he was ousted from Dallas, but the Mavs could be putting together the proper infrastructure to make a Doncic return possible in the future, if nothing else.

Dennis Lindsey, who helped construct Dallas’ 2024 NBA Finals squad and is now second in command in the Detroit Pistons’ front office, has been rumored as a potential GM target for the Mavericks. Lindsey has been linked to Doncic and his camp for years, as his agent Bill Duffy and business manager Lara Beth Seager pushed for the Mavericks to hire him back in 2023.

There have also been rumors that Dallas wants to re-integrate Dirk Nowitzki into the franchise in some capacity, so the Mavericks could have much more favorable figureheads in their organization for Doncic by the time he becomes a free agent in 2028 or 2029.

Dallas is building the perfect plan to bring Luka Doncic home

It's also worth noting that Mark Cuban is back in the fold and involved in basketball decision-making once again, and he would likely love to bring Doncic back to Dallas one day if he has the chance.

It’s still a far fetch to think Doncic would want to return to Dallas anytime soon, but he was clearly distraught over the trade and wanted to remain a Maverick as long as he could, so perhaps there’s still some part of him that would want to return to Dallas one day, granted there would be new people he likes in leadership roles.

It’s long been known that Doncic and Nowitzki are very close after having played together for one season. It was a gut-punch for Mavericks fans to see Nowitzki FaceTiming Doncic in the Amazon Prime studio following Dallas’ loss to Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers last Friday, as Nowitzki has made it known he didn’t support the Doncic trade whatsoever.

Even if it isn’t while he’s still in his prime, Doncic coming back to Dallas would be on the same magnitude as LeBron James returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers, as it would display a sense of loyalty that is seldom seen in professional sports, especially after everything Doncic poured into Dallas during his initial tenure.

A different infrastructure in place with someone like Lindsey at the helm, and Nowitzki back with the Mavericks in some capacity, would be about as favorable a setup as the Mavericks can formulate to give themselves any sort of chance at bringing Doncic back. However, there are also ulterior factors to consider, as Doncic may end up winning a championship in Los Angeles and wants to stay there, or decides to join another team later in his career.

So long as Patrick Dumont remains governor of the Mavericks, Dallas can’t avoid that their primary decision-maker ultimately gave the final sign-off on the Doncic trade, so it’s more likely than not that Doncic doesn’t come back to Dallas at any time in the foreseeable future.

However, it’s undeniable that Doncic coming back should at least be mentioned as a possibility, as Dumont and the organization are already trying to play catch-up for the atrocity they committed, and this started with firing Harrison. Even if Doncic were to come back toward the tail-end of his career, it would be something that Mavericks fans would hold in deep reverence forever, despite the fact that they can never mend the wound of Harrison’s past transgression.