Father of former Mavericks guard blasts Jason Kidd's lack of 'dignity'

The 2023-24 season was filled with ups and downs for former Dallas Mavericks guard Tim Hardaway Jr., and the second half of his season couldn't have gone worse for him.

Hardaway Jr. went from being a potential Sixth Man of the Year candidate to not having a role in the NBA Finals, and his future in Dallas looked to be a huge question mark. Reports eventually surfaced after the conclusion of the Finals that the Mavs would look to trade Hardaway Jr., and it didn't take them long to send him elsewhere.

The Mavs traded Hardaway Jr. and three second-round picks to the Detroit Pistons for Quentin Grimes, and this move should help Dallas on both ends. Hardaway Jr. will go from playing for a contender to one of the worst teams in the league, and his father recently opened up about the end of Hardaway Jr.'s time in Dallas.

Tim Hardaway Sr. criticizes the way Mavericks handled his son

Tim Hardaway Sr. appeared on "ALL THE SMOKE" with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, and they went into some of the details of Hardaway Jr. going from a key piece to not playing at all.

"Jason Kidd and Nico (Harrison) are not telling nobody what's the deal," Hardaway Sr. said about Hardaway Jr. not playing. "(Kidd) don't have the dignity to go to my son and just say 'hey, this x, y, y. This is why I'm not playing you."

Hardaway Sr. then talked about how Hardaway Jr. wasn't shooting well but also wasn't getting the ball much, saying "it's all up to Luka because Luka running the whole show there." Hardaway Sr. doesn't seem to be a fan of Doncic's game to begin with, and he knew that the Mavs would trade Hardaway Jr. right after the season ended.

Hardaway Sr. was seen multiple times talking poorly about the Mavs and how they played last season, and his recent appearance on "ALL THE SMOKE" shows that he doesn't like the way Kidd and Harrison handled the end of Hardaway Jr.'s tenure in Dallas.

Hardaway Jr. not having clarity of what his role would be was a common theme early in last season, and he even said that he didn't know if he'd be back with the Mavs at media day last season. His role wasn't crystal clear from the jump last season, and Hardway Sr. seems to have taken exception to the way that Kidd managed his son.

Hardaway Sr. continued to say that he was always there for his son through it all, and let him know that there were "better days to come." He obviously wanted his son to play more, and Kidd gave Hardaway Jr. every chance to prove that he should be a part of the rotation, but he struggled for months. Hardaway Jr. wasn't the same player he had been in the past, and the Mavs decided to trade his expiring contract.

It was time for both sides to move, and Hardaway Jr. should be able to have a more solidified role with the Pistons.