Ex-ESPN Analyst Named As Nico Harrison Replacement As Mavericks General Manager

The Dallas Mavericks have finally found the replacement for controversial former general manager Nico Harrison on Saturday, May 9. In an announcement made by the team, the Mavericks hired former ESPN analyst Mike Schmitz as the squad’s next general manager. 

This came after the team announced the appointment of Masai Ujiri as the Mavericks’ President for Basketball Operations. 

Schmitz is an acclaimed former top scout of Draftexpress before taking an analyst job with ESPN. Schmitz is the assistant general manager for the Portland Trail Blazers this season, helping the squad build a playoff contender around Deni Avdija, Donovan Clinga, and Shaedon Sharpe, and Scoot Henderson. 

In a statement, Ujiri, a former general manager himself for the Toronto Raptors, who won the 2019 NBA championship, believed Schmitz’s marquee eye for talent and team building would be beneficial to the Mavericks. 

“Mike is one of the most respected evaluators and basketball minds in the NBA,” the statement reads. “He brings intelligence, discipline, humility and a relentless work ethic to everything he does. Just as importantly, he understands how to build an aligned, collaborative culture across every part of a basketball organization.”

“We are building something special in Dallas, and Mike will be a major part of that vision.”

Schmitz inherits a team with a mix of young stars and veterans from the Mavericks’ former iterations under former GM Harrison. 

The infamous Harrison was most known for deciding to trade Luka Doncic, who led the Mavericks to the 2024 NBA Finals, in February 2025 to the LA Lakers for a package centered around Anthony Davis. Davis never found his footing in Dallas before getting traded to the Washington Wizards earlier this season to provide a fresh start for the franchise.

Harrison was fired by the Mavericks on November 2025.

Nevertheless, the Mavericks still have this season’s top rookie Cooper Flagg, who has emerged as a star after a slow start in his NBA career. 

Mavericks Set To Keep Their Focus On Building Around Cooper Flagg

GettyDallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg

Cooper Flagg has been the ace of the Mavericks over the past season. However, the bitter taste from the Doncic trade in 2025 continues to linger in the organization. 

Now with the new leadership in Ujiri and new GM Schmitz, the Mavericks are looking to focus on building around Flagg. 

“In Africa, we say when kings go, kings come. And a king went and we have a little prince here. Now we’re going to turn him into a king,” Ujiri said in his introductory press conference, via ESPN. 

“I think we have to start thinking that way. Understand what we’ve gone through. But I hope we can figure out how we reset as an organization with the fans. There’s no other way to do this than winning.”

Aside from Flagg, the Mavericks still have assets they can work with such as Dereck Lively, Daniel Gafford, PJ Washington, and Ryan Nembhard. They also have veterans like Klay Thompson, Kyrie Irving, and Khris Middleton. 

Mavericks Hope To Return To The Playoffs For The First Time in 2 Years

GettyDallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg

After two seasons of missing the playoffs, the Mavericks are now looking to return to the NBA playoffs in the post-Doncic era. 

The Mavericks are expected to be aggressive in the offseason to build around their young assets. They also have a 6.7% odds of getting the top pick again in this year’s NBA draft. 

The last time the Mavericks were in the playoffs was in 2024, when Doncic and Kyrie Irving led the team to the NBA Finals, losing to the Boston Celtics. 

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