Few sports executives can go from laughingstock to getting the last laugh in only a few months.
But that’s the space Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison resides in these days.
It began with the Luka Doncic trade to the Lakers in February that had the Mavs’ fan base demanding that their No. 1 exec be fired, then Harrison hit lottery gold in May, landing the top pick that became Cooper Flagg.
Is Flagg in Doncic’s area code? Not right now, but give it time.
So does that make Harrison lucky or just good? Both, actually. Aggressive swings can lead to big misses but also home runs. Flagg is a home run. In a league such as the NBA, where big swings need to be made, it’s better than the alternative of having a front office that just sits on its hands and swims in the murky pool of mediocrity.
Sound familiar?
But as much criticism as the Bulls’ front office of executive vice president of operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley has rightfully received, there are worse out there. Not many, but definitely worse.
With NBA training camps just over a month away from opening up, here are the three worst front offices and the three best:
Three worst:
1. Pelicans — Joe Dumars seldom made the wrong decisions on the floor as the quiet superstar of the “Bad Boy” Pistons. Even as an executive with Detroit in the early 2000s, Dumars was stellar in understanding how to build a roster. He obviously has lost his fastball.
Trading up for Derik Queen on draft night and handing over an unprotected 2026 first-round draft pick to the Hawks was not only horrible but bizarre. That wasn’t even the biggest gaffe of the offseason: Dumars also took on $40 million in payroll to add a coach killer — Jordan Poole — and Saddiq Bey.
Hard times in the “Big Easy” these days.
2. Knicks — Oh, Leon Rose, you’re about to be hit by the “Curse of Thibs.” Ask the Bulls what it’s like since they fired Tom Thibodeau. Look at the rock bottom the Timberwolves had to go through when they fired him. Now the Knicks and Rose are next.
It’s not a real surprise, however. Rose is a sports agent-turned-team executive. It has worked at times, but in this case, it’s the equivalent of taking a carny weight-guesser and putting him in charge of Disney World. And while Rose had a lot of hits early on, he has fallen into the usual trap — his ego.
3. Suns — Brian Gregory was just hired as general manager, and James Jones was brought on as a senior adviser, but this is a Mat Ishbia production. The Suns owner did try some big swings with Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, and now Phoenix is in NBA hell.
It will be the job of the new front office to make sure Ishbia can stay under control as well as fix this current mess.
Three best:
1. Thunder — For years, it felt like Sam Presti was the smartest executive in the room . . . you just had to ask him. Now there’s a trophy to back that up. The roster-building for the Thunder the last four years has been a master class that others should try to learn from.
Presti not only has young, deep talent, but the draft picks to continue adding to the core.
2. Rockets — Rafael Stone is not only aggressive and an accounting genius, but he could be right on the heels of Presti this season.
Stone got Alperen Sengun and Fred Van-Vleet to give hometown discounts on their contracts, won the Durant sweepstakes and now has a legit late-game-finishing superstar.
3. Cavaliers — President of basketball operations Koby Altman continued showing his aggressiveness as well as a high IQ in recognizing talent. Evan Mobley and Darius Garland have been All-Star draft picks, and Altman also identified a few diamonds in the rough in Ty Jerome and Sam Merrill.
The Cavs have one of the more well-balanced rosters in the East. Now if Altman could just recognize that he might have the wrong coach for a deep championship run.