Mark Cuban finally admits his biggest blunder Mavericks fans knew all along

To put it lightly, Nico Harrison's tenure as general manager of the Dallas Mavericks was an unmitigated disaster. Even at its worst, when fan-favorite superstar Luka Doncic was abruptly shipped out midseason, Harrison faced no public criticism from Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont or former majority owner Mark Cuban, who had helped bring him in.

It took Dumont until November of last year to publicly denounce Harrison, a moment that ultimately coincided with his decision to fire the team’s lead decision-maker. But it wasn’t Dumont’s opinion that fans of the Mavericks were most eager to hear. It was that of Cuban, who brought the franchise back to relevance after purchasing it in 2000 before selling his majority stake in 2023.

The move Mark Cuban now admits was a mistake

While Cuban admitted he was irked by not being consulted on the trade that sent Doncic packing, he never directly denounced Harrison, only the decision-making behind the move. It wasn’t until February that Cuban publicly called the trade a poor decision. Yet the elephant in the room remained his own role in bringing Harrison aboard in the first place. That question lingered until just days ago, when Cuban addressed it during an appearance on The Adam Friedland Show.

When asked if he regretted hiring Harrison, Cuban didn’t hesitate: “Yeah, in hindsight now, it was a mistake…”

Finally, the remark may not be music to Dallas Mavericks fans’ ears — the damage has already been done — but at least it’s an admission.

Harrison’s tenure didn’t get off to a bad start in Dallas. He pulled off a heist by acquiring Kyrie Irving from the Brooklyn Nets, drafting Dereck Lively II, signing Derrick Jones Jr. to a veteran minimum deal, and adding both P. J. Washington and Daniel Gafford at the 2024 trade deadline, moves that helped propel the Dallas Mavericks to an NBA Finals appearance.

How Nico Harrison's Mavericks journey came crashing down

Yet it all came crashing down soon after. The trade that sent Doncic away sparked the loudest outrage, and rightfully so, but it wasn’t the only controversial move. Harrison also dealt Quentin Grimes and a 2025 second-round pick for Caleb Martin, signed D'Angelo Russell as a stopgap point guard, and prematurely moved on from former first-round pick Olivier-Maxence Prosper. Shortly thereafter, Harrison was fired by the Dallas Mavericks.

Fans of the Mavericks largely knew how Cuban felt about Harrison’s decision-making after the string of questionable moves that followed. But many still held Cuban responsible for once standing by the much-maligned GM. Now, at least in part, that resentment can fade. Cuban helped set the snowball in motion by hiring Harrison, but more than a year after the ill-fated trade, he has finally admitted it was a mistake.