Nico Harrison twists knife into Mavericks fans with tone-deaf Cooper Flagg 'vision'

Almost five months after Luka Doncic was traded right before midnight, the Dallas Mavericks have officially welcomed Cooper Flagg to their organization. The odds were completely stacked against the Mavericks. They only had a 1.8 percent chance of getting the No. 1 pick of the draft. While there were talks about some wild conspiracies, the official NBA account on X even posted a video of the ping pong ball process, thus ending any talks of conspiracies.

Other teams like the Washington Wizards, Utah Jazz, and Charlotte Hornets all had a great shot of getting the No. 1 pick, but the odds fell in Dallas' favor, in the best possible season. The Wizards, the worst team all season long, got the No. 6 pick in the draft, erasing all the relevant messages that teams use to tank for the top pick. Dallas getting the No. 1 pick was luck, but apparently that didn't stop Nico Harrison from trying to erase himself from the conflict that followed him after the Donic trade.

Harrison was the face of the Mavs' doom from early February until the end of the season. The team became the laughingstock of the season when Doncic was traded. Of course, injuries played their part, so that's not Harrison's fault. His words in the Flagg press conference made it apparent that he really hasn't learned a thing since the Doncic trade, at all.

Harrison is still trying to take credit for the Mavs landing Flagg

All Harrison did was be the face at the scene when the lottery fell in Dallas' favor. We saw the ping pong balls fall in Dallas' favor. Harrison didn't do anything to make up for Mavs fans' frustration. The fans still chanted "fire Nico" inside American Airlines Center during the Mavs' draft party. They know Harrison didn't do anything; it was all luck. Harrison said that fans are “finally start(ing) to see the vision," during Flagg's introductory press conference when asked about repairing his relationship with the fans. This isn't a way to make up for trading away Doncic, and fans are seeing right through that.

The Mavs had one of the lowest odds to get Flagg, as they were one game away from making the playoffs. Just the Mavs getting at least the No. 4 pick was oddly stunning enough, maybe going for a name like Kon Knueppel, but now he's off to the Hornets. Getting Flagg is generational, and with the odds completely stacked against the Mavs already, this was something that was totally unexpected.

Unexpected enough that Harrison should not speak of the fans or try and take credit for Flagg being in Dallas. There's really no other way to put it other than the Mavs got lucky when the odds were stacked far against them, that no human is responsible for Flagg landing in Dallas.

After fans had their heart ripped away, it seemed like things were never going to get better. Instead, a door opened up, and Flagg has made it abundantly clear that he's going to be on his own path to not replace Doncic. While they're the same generational stars in the making, the two players are vastly different anyway. Flagg's size, defense, and shooting are NBA-ready, while Doncic is working on his conditioning to be an all-around talent.

Harrison has been a PR nightmare this season, and perhaps it's time for him to start thinking before speaking.