Even if you’re not an NBA fan, more than likely you heard about the recent blockbuster trade between the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks. The Mavs sent 25-year-old superstar Luka Doncic to LA for 32-year-old Anthony Davis.
But this is not a story about basketball. Instead, this is a story about the Mavericks brand and the team’s ham-fisted response to fans as they revolted against the trade of Dallas’ transcendent superstar. The entire episode has been an exercise in how not to react to, nor treat, your primary customers—to the point where it may take years for Dallas to recover.
Since the trade was announced, fans in Dallas have been understandably upset and continue to protest the trade. First, of course, came the social media reaction:
The Mavericks really could have won the title. They were good enough, fully healthy. That’s No. 18,533 that’s wild about this.
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) February 2, 2025
I’m no longer a fan of the Dallas Mavericks
— Isaiah (@TotheFuture22) February 2, 2025
Losing the NBA Finals in 2006 and 2024 really sucked, but losing Luka Doncic is legitimate pain.
I really can’t get over this one. He gave Dallas Mavericks fans a reason to watch basketball after Dirk retired.
The fans loved him. The city loved him. pic.twitter.com/Yst4weXBCq
— MFFL NATION (@NationMffl) February 2, 2025
In professional sports, if you trade a popular, highly productive player, your fans will typically go nuts. This was to be expected.
After the initial social media response, Mavs GM Nico Harrison had this to say about why he traded his star.
“…we’ve had a vision and the culture that we want to create since we’ve been here,” Harrison said. “The players that we’re bringing in, we believe, exemplify that. We think defense wins championships, and we’re bringing in one of the best two-way players in the league.”
Harrison was referring to Luka’s rumored lack of conditioning being a drain on culture. In the aftermath, some 1,000 people demonstrated outside the team’s arena before a game a few days later carrying a coffin, calling for Harrison’s ouster.
Yes, the GM could have gone without saying Luka was a culture killer, but largely, no harm, no foul. These things happen. Going forward, let’s just keep quiet and let it ride. Winning tends to cure all, and if you believe your trade made your team better, that should ultimately play out
Next came fan protests inside the team’s arena during games. That’s when the wheels came off for the Mavs: Fans carried signs and wore t-shirts that read “FIRE NICO.” And for this vile act of insolence, those fans were ejected from the arena with the team citing a violation of the league’s code of conduct.
Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont, whose family purchased a majority stake in the team last year from previous owner Mark Cuban, then piled on in an interview.
“If you look at the greats in the league, the people you and I grew up with—Jordan, Bird, Kobe, Shaq—they worked really hard, everyday with a singular focus to win. And if you don’t have that, it doesn’t work… You shouldn’t be a part of the Dallas Mavericks.”
This didn’t sit well with fans or former team officials.
“You inherited a pretty good roster, generational superstars,” said Bob Voulgaris, the team’s former director of quantitative research said after Dumont’s statement. “Have a little bit more humility in knowing what it takes to win … the owner, this guy is like the definition of… He married into money. This guy does not look like he’s ever denied himself the luxury of an extra meal. So for him to talk about what it takes to win and to reference Shaq as the ultimate example is just so tone-deaf.”
Let’s recap: The team traded arguably its second-most popular player in team history (behind Hall-of-Famer Dirk Nowitzki), defended the move by saying Luka was a culture killer (despite no public complaints from his teammates), and then the owner said the guy who delivered a championship run to Dallas just a short time ago was a lazy bum. Afterwards, the team went full-on Death Star and ejected fans for carrying disgruntled signage at a game because, you know, paper signs and silly t-shirts hurt.
And here’s the icing on the cake: A few weeks after the debacle, just when things were quieting down but with fans still stewing in anger, the team announced it will be upping season-ticket prices by at least 8.5 percent for next season, citing, “ongoing investments in the team and fan engagement.” Oof.
All of it has created one of the most unnecessary PR disasters in recent memory, one that is now entering its third week with no end in sight. Were I advising the Mavericks, here’s what I would have suggested:
- Take the high road: The GM needed to hold the presser explaining the trade. However, he should have simply focused on expressing excitement about the new players, thanked Luka and passed on the inference that he was dead weight.
- Ignore the noise: Let the protests happen, and comment on the passion of Dallas fans—good and bad —which is what makes them so great. Deal with the signs as long as they do not obstruct the views of other fans in the arena.
- Sideline the owner: Let the basketball people speak and no one else. Dumont should have nothing to say outside of wishing Luka well and thanking him for his service. Focus on the team in the now.
- Win: Winning creates incredibly short memories amongst sports fans. If you are confident in your player-personnel strategy, there is no need to react. Think of angry fans as you would little children—let’em run around and eventually they will tire themselves out.
Looking back at all of this, now, instead of a trade that is questionable in some eyes being analyzed in NBA circles, the Mavericks have created a crisis communications case study that will be analyzed for years to come, ahem, during which time their fans will be watching their former superstar shine for another team.
