3 Disastrous events Mavericks must avoid to keep Luka Doncic happy

1. There is a rift between Doncic and another member of the Mavericks organization

Out of the three disastrous events the Mavericks must avoid to keep Luka Doncic happy that we've listed, this situation is the most unlikely one to prevail.

That doesn't mean it is rooted completely out of thin air though. Back in 2021, reports surfaced that there was a "shadow GM" within the Mavericks' front office (subscription required). Reports also surfaced that this same individual had a fractured relationship with Luka Doncic.

Who was that team employee you may ask? It was none other than Haralabos Voulgaris, esteemed sports bettor and former Director of Quantitative Research and Development for the Mavs.

Per reports, Doncic grew to dislike Voulgaris enough to where the team made a point to actively remove Voulgaris from the same setting as Doncic. This came after an incident in February of 2021 where Voulgaris supposedly signaled Doncic to calm down in a game versus the Golden State Warriors.

Apparently, Doncic’s relationship with Voulgaris had been waning before then, and it’s very clear Voulgaris overextended himself beyond his mere title of ‘Director of Quantitative Research and Development' in multiple areas.

The Mavs will need to avoid bringing any individual into their organization that may collide with Doncic on a personal level, whether it’s a teammate, front office member, or even coach. Luckily, Dallas was able to mend the situation in 2021 by removing Voulgaris from the organization after the season, but things could’ve been worse.

Luka is a very fun and easygoing guy, but definitely not someone worth angering. Mark Cuban will need to read the room better when making any acquisitions, and Luka Doncic’s peace of mind will need to be at the forefront of his thought process when deciding on any new candidate.

I preface that it is extremely unlikely a scenario like this will happen again, but the Mavericks won’t get the benefit of the doubt that Luka would be content if this did occur again.