FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

The Dallas Mavericks have fired Nico Harrison, the general manager who drove the decision to trade Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers in February, league sources said Tuesday.

Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont signed off on firing the 52-year-old former Nike executive with two seasons remaining on his contract amid the Mavericks’ disappointing start to the season. The Mavericks are 3-8 and in 14th place in the Western Conference. Dallas ranks 29th in the NBA in scoring, unfamiliar territory for a franchise that finished in the top 10 in offense four times in six years under Dončic.

Anthony Davis was the centerpiece of the package the Mavericks got back in the deal from the Lakers on Feb. 1. Even though Davis was six years older than Dončic at the time of the trade and had a more extensive injury history, Harrison defended his decision amid overwhelming backlash and puzzlement from Mavs fans as the deal rippled throughout the sport.

“If you pair him with Kyrie and the rest of the guys, he fits with our time frame to win now and in the future,” Harrison said in February. “The future to me is three, four years from now. Ten years from now, I don’t know. They’ll probably bury me and J(ason Kidd) by then. Or we bury ourselves.”

The decision to trade Dončić remains viewed as irrational and impulsive. But those who know the Mavs’ GM best paint a far different picture.

The morning after the trade, Mavericks fans protested the decision outside the American Airlines Center, with a small group of fans holding a mock funeral. Fans inside the building called for Harrison’s firing. “Fire Nico” chants at the American Airlines Center began in February, and they kept up even after the Mavericks miraculously won the NBA draft lottery, which allowed them to take Cooper Flagg at No. 1. There were more “Fire Nico” chants at the team draft party in June.

The Mavericks’ loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday was a tipping point. Fans continued their “Fire Nico” chants during the fourth quarter, even as P.J. Washington was at the free-throw line with 1.2 seconds left with a chance to tie the game. Washington missed his second free throw, and Dallas lost. By Tuesday morning, word began to circulate that Harrison would be terminated.

Dallas fans have chanted “Fire Nico” since the Luka Dončić trade in February. They may soon get their wish, according to league sources.

Back in February, at the time of the Dončić trade, Davis was recovering from an abdominal strain. In his first game with the team on Feb. 8, he suffered a left adductor strain, which kept him out for six weeks. Roughly three weeks later, Kyrie Irving tore the ACL in his left knee, which left the Mavericks without a reliable shot-creating guard.

In July, the Mavericks signed D’Angelo Russell as a stopgap solution in the backcourt. Harrison seemed happy with the signing, telling Russell, “I like you with a chip on your shoulder” in a video Russell released on his YouTube channel. However, Harrison and coach Jason Kidd had different opinions about how much Russell could impact games. Kidd brought Russell off the bench in Dallas’ first eight games of the season. The Mavericks only turned to Russell to be a starter after suffering a home loss to the lowly New Orleans Pelicans on Nov. 5 that dropped them to 2-6.

Making matters worse for Dallas, Davis has been sidelined since Oct. 29, when he suffered a left calf strain in a game against the Indiana Pacers. Davis’ injury occurred after he reported to Mavericks training camp at 268 pounds, according to Dallas’ training camp roster, 15 pounds heavier than his listed weight last season. That was an ironic twist, considering the Mavericks traded Dončic while he was recovering from a left calf strain he suffered on Dec. 25, the last time he ever wore a Dallas uniform.

Harrison leaves Dallas in a tricky place. The Mavericks have a tentpole player in Flagg but don’t control any of their own first-round picks from 2027 to 2030, the result of trades Harrison made to strengthen the roster around Dončic.

Those moves worked. The Mavericks had all the makings of a contender after reaching the NBA Finals in 2024. However, Harrison upended everything by trading the person who was most essential to the team’s championship pursuit.

Surprise Factor: Zero. The fans were never going to forgive him, not unless they started on a 10 game winning streak. Cooper is going to be a major talent but this season is all about growing pains out of a, for them, painful transition.

The Lakers should do a video tribute to Nico when the Mav’s come to town 🙂

Rui is not even in your rotation Tom? Bench one of the best shooters in the NBA? What a basketball mind you have.

Just for lineup purposes snd size it might have to be Rui. I think they’ll start off by having Smart come off the bench but that might change. Could be matchup driven, to some degree, as well.

LUKA DONCIC TONIGHT: – 38 PTS – 6 REB – 7 AST – 5 3PM pic.twitter.com/bHyOVSVhXO— LakersMuse (@LALMuse) November 11, 2025

AUSTIN REAVES TONIGHT:- 24 PTS- 5 REB- 7 AST- 2 STL pic.twitter.com/51bFUsgMHG— LakersMuse (@LALMuse) November 11, 2025

RUI HACHIMURA TONIGHT 35 minutes 21 points 3 rebounds 9/12 FG 3/3 3PTBEST SHOOTING IN THE NBA pic.twitter.com/cJ73XrSg8P— Lakers Lead (@LakersLead) November 11, 2025

Marcus Smart tonight:13 Points7 Steals6 Assists 4 Rebounds +15 +/-37 Minutes pic.twitter.com/e7bnmn2yln— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) November 11, 2025

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

Today’s highlights:

Quick look at the Western Conference race

Lakers point differential and Four Factors check

Unusual shot profile and how sustainable is the hot shooting?

Can this be a top 5 offense?

Is average, passable defense the ceiling for this group?

Offense is defense: the turnover problem

Need for speed and transition deficit

Look at the future: the fifth starter and the problematic Ayton–Hachimura pairing

…

8-Look at the future: the fifth starter and the problematic Ayton–Hachimura pairing

Chart context: Before getting into lineup combinations and numbers, it’s important to note that the possession totals are still very small and should be viewed with a great deal of skepticism. A few negative stints can heavily skew the current lineup data, so this and other context need to be kept in mind when analyzing it.

Now, what the lineup data does not erase is the doubt about whether the Lakers have truly found their answer to the question of who the fifth starter should be once James returns. I’m not even sure that dilemma exists for Redick and the coaching staff, given Hachimura’s history and preference as a starter, along with his undeniably crucial contributions at the start of the season. Also, the starting five featuring Dončić, Reaves, James, Hachimura, and Ayton is a unit with five good-to-great offensive players, three playmakers, and two elite finishers, making it potentially the most potent attack in the league.

But the ultimate lineup should strike a balance between offense and defense, and so far, the data for the Ayton–Hachimura pairing on the defensive end has been underwhelming. Ayton and Hachimura share the same positive defensive trait — strength — but neither is an exceptional athlete, and neither excels in positioning, motor, or defensive decision-making. Lineups featuring both players allow an unsustainably high number of corner threes and don’t protect the rim well, making them the main culprits behind the structural problems I highlighted earlier.

Starting both, along with James, also squeezes out any room for a true point-of-attack defender in the starting unit, which is another problem. James’s injury has delayed the decision on how to address these challenges, but once he returns, they will become a major talking point and certainly an area for future analysis.

IZTOK IS ONE OF THE BEST LAKERS REPORTERS!I don't subscribe to many analysts but reading what Iztok has to say is too valuable not to have.Great analysis of the Lakers first 10 games. Been interesting to see who the top teams are change dramatically after 10 games vs. 5… https://t.co/550vwLHpHR pic.twitter.com/DDtTjoEnsF— LakerTom (@LakerTom) November 10, 2025

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

NBA referees are used to hearing Luka Doncic light them up with his thoughts about their officiating on a nightly basis. That usually results in the Los Angeles Lakers superstar racking up his fair share of technical fouls. Through 10 games, JJ Redick has managed to help contain that issue.

Granted, Doncic has only appeared in six of those 10 games. It’s not like Luka is avoiding his usual conversations with the referees. The superstar point guard has his opinions, and is unafraid of sharing them.

Doncic just has not needed to cross the line yet, and his head coach is a big reason for that. Not only is Redick willing to be the guy who goes to war against the officials, but the Lakers coach sets the standard by being persistent and vocal throughout the majority of the ball game.

JJ Redick is a DEMON!!! He pressed tf outta that ref #LakeShow #COTY pic.twitter.com/36mUtETBWA

— swervo (@playboyswervo) November 6, 2025

Take a look at Doncic in the background of the video above in the Lakers’ matchup against the San Antonio Spurs. The facial expression on Luka’s face more than suggests that he is loving every bit of what is happening in front of him with Redick and the referee.

JJ Redick’s intensity matches that of Luka Doncic to a tee for the Lakers

Will Doncic avoid the whistle of a technical foul for the entire 2025-26 season? Probably not. However, fixating on that specific aspect of the situation here also misses the bigger picture scope of the situation.

Doncic should certainly be more than thankful about having a head coach who is just as passionate about every call being right. However, the Redick’s energy matching that of his superstar player is the important takeaway here.

The Lakers head coach has jokingly, and lovingly, been described as obsessed with basketball. Redick cares about every result, every detail, and is unafraid of communicating that to everyone around him.

JJ Redick was NOT feeling Jaxson Hayes’ defense on this possession ‘WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!’ level frustrationpic.twitter.com/oFWe1YRgpb https://t.co/U2vw0Zhpbs

— Basketball News (@HardwoodReportX) November 10, 2025

The second-year coach bluntly admitted how badly his team needed ball-handling after the early loss against the Portland Trail Blazers this season. Redick also did not shy away from his frustrations following an embarrassing 122-102 loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday.

JJ Redick’s presser was very short

He’s clearly pissed pic.twitter.com/nYpsxgodNB

— Oh No He Didn’t (@ohnohedidnt24) November 9, 2025

With the Hawks missing so many vital members of their rotation, the Lakers should have enjoyed a giftwrapped victory. Instead, Atlanta crushed Los Angeles in terms of the effort. That was never going to sit well with Redick.

The culture being built by the former NBA sharpshooter in Los Angeles will simply not let that slide. That should be music to the ears of Doncic.

Luka is an openly fiery competitor. Doncic is just as hungry to win as Redick is. That is a formula for long-term success between a superstar and his bench boss.

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

“Nothing.”

That’s how JJ Redick summed up what his team came up with last night. The other thing the visibly upset Redick revealed in a very brief postgame session was that he knew it would be a long night after the first two minutes.

The Lakers certainly looked like they’d had a long night before, coming out completely flat after two days of rest against a team on the second night of a back-to-back and missing four of its five best players. Yes, trap games like this, when you take it easy against an undermanned team, happen in an 82-game NBA season. The Lakers themselves just won one five days ago in Portland, in what we called a culture-setting win.

Still, this was a very disappointing showing. In my preview, I wrote that this and the next game in Charlotte were chances for the Lakers to prove their contender worth by taking care of business. They failed miserably at the first hurdle.

Programming note: With this game, we’ve reached the 10-game mark. So tomorrow, instead of the Hornets preview, I’ll publish an early trends piece looking at the first signals.

digginbasketball is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Today’s notes:

Not good enough for complacency

When Luka isn’t feeling the stage

Big-picture lesson I: too much finesse

Big-picture lesson II: Lakers struggles against speed and movement

The other side of Deandre Ayton

1-Not good enough for complacency

The most disappointing part about this game is that the Lakers aren’t good enough to afford that level of complacency. They were a surprising 7–2 heading into this one, but their net rating, defensive rank, and the way they’d won most games showed they’re not a top-five team yet. This is an undermanned group that’s been winning thanks to an outlier hot shooting start, hustle, and a few breaks going their way in close games.

Last night was a good reminder that their 7–3 record doesn’t fully reflect where they actually are as a team right now. It was their worst defensive performance of the season, dropping them to 22nd in defensive rating. That result, even with key absences, is another sign this team is still very much a work in progress.

2-When Luka isn’t feeling the stage

What makes Luka Dončić such a special player to watch is that, typically, the bigger the stage and the tougher the challenge, the better he performs. He lives for big-stage games — and you’ll take that every time from your superstar.

The downside of that equation is that in games where there’s no one to light that fire on the other end, you sometimes get a “meh” performance or even a stinker against bottom dwellers or depleted teams like the Hawks were. It’s not that Dončić, who had a 22/6/4 stat line at halftime, played terribly or was the main culprit in this defeat. This was a collective no-show, a low-energy, low-focus, no-urgency game, and Dončić was part of it. Without other leaders like James or Reaves to steady the ship, there was no one to prevent the wreck.

3-Big-picture lesson I: too much finesse

When everyone is locked in, the Lakers’ starting unit with Dončić, Rui Hachimura, Deandre Ayton, Austin Reaves, and eventually LeBron James will be one of the most offensively skilled groups in basketball. In past game observations, I’ve spent plenty of time praising Hachimura and Ayton for how their skill level exceeds that of a typical role player or fourth or fifth starter. Their ability to step up and score was instrumental in filling the gaps during the early absences of James, Dončić, and Reaves.

But like Dončić and Reaves, both Hachimura and Ayton are more finesse players than high-motor energizers who dominate through physicality and effort. Up to this point, Redick has done a good job of both pushing them to play harder and complementing them with high-motor players like Marcus Smart, Jake LaRavia, and Jarred Vanderbilt. But last night, the Lakers started out far too lackadaisical and unfocused, and the much hungrier Hawks simply ran away with it.

4-Big-picture lesson II: Lakers struggles against speed and movement

Speaking of running away, going into this game, as in almost every other one, I stressed in my preview that the Lakers are a precise, finesse, half-court team. They usually hold a clear edge in playmaking, but they don’t have the athleticism or speed to keep up in an open-floor game. The key to keeping the game in the half court is to avoid low-focus, unforced early turnovers, which have been a concerning pattern this season and allowed the young, fast Hawks to dominate the Lakers in transition.

The other issue exposed last night was the Lakers’ defense against teams that play fast, both with and without the ball. We’ve seen it against the Warriors, even in the win over Miami, and again last night. In my preview, I noted how Quin Snyder has his team driving and cutting, and the Hawks put on a cutting clinic against a stagnant and inattentive Lakers shell defense.

5-The other side of Deandre Ayton

Overall, Deandre Ayton was a positive surprise over the first ten games, and his contributions were crucial in several wins. Ayton’s effort and focus watch was a theme in most of my game observations. Games like last night are why that will remain the case for the remainder of the season.

Ayton turned the ball over on the first play of the game, a set designed specifically for him to get a seal at the rim against the smaller Onyeka Okongwu, but he failed to catch the pass. He wasn’t nearly assertive or composed enough the rest of the night, and the Lakers committed two more turnovers trying to feed him on similar seals. Early in the third quarter, with the Lakers trying to mount a comeback, Ayton had another rough stretch. He first got in Dončić’s way, causing a turnover in transition, then sank too deep in the paint, allowing Mouhamed Gueye to hit an open three. On the following set play, instead of finding Dončić for an easy layup off a cut, Ayton threw a soft pass that led to a turnover and two free throws on the other end. It was a devastating sequence that killed the momentum and prompted Redick to bench Ayton just three minutes into the second half. The move didn’t change much for the Lakers, as they continued their lackadaisical play, and Redick raised the white flag by benching the remaining starters midway through the third quarter.

Despite the loss, the Lakers are still 7–3, and given all the early-season absences, there isn’t a Lakers fan out there who wouldn’t have gladly taken that start. Losses like this happen in the NBA, but this one was bad enough that Redick should use it as another reference point. A reminder that the floor for this team, when it’s not fully focused, is lower than they might think.

Q: Was there a moment in that 3Q you realized that this was not going to be one of those nights where your first unit was not going to get back…?JJ Redick: "I realized that in the first two minutes of the game."Q: What did you see in those first two minutes?JJ: "Nothing." https://t.co/IB16Pfc4C4 pic.twitter.com/RWWDoB7PA1— Khobi Price (@khobi_price) November 9, 2025

JJ Redick was PISSED after the Lakers lost to the very shorthanded Hawks (h/t @ohnohedidnt24)pic.twitter.com/1a33d2NUaR— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) November 9, 2025

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

Austin Reaves has been positively electric for the Los Angeles Lakers this season. His notable uptick in productivity has made it obvious that he is becoming the exact kind of star that this team wants to have playing alongside Luka Doncic.

Through the first eight games of the Lakers’ season, Reaves is averaging a stunning 31.1 points per game. This prolonged stretch of high level play is indicative of the fact that Austin is not simply riding a hot streak. Rather, he’s evolving and becoming an even greater player than he was before.

Lakers fans have been ecstatic to see this leap unfolding in real time. Reaves’ confidence, shot creation, and ability to control the pace of the game are all pointing toward a legitimate breakout. And at the end of the day, his productivity as well as style of play look to fit alongside LA’s best player like a glove.

Austin has been demonstrating his expertise in attacking closeouts, playing off the catch, and handling secondary creation responsibilities in the absence of LeBron James to begin this season. He’s been getting it done so consistently and at such a high level that he looks like exactly the kind of guard who can thrive alongside a heliocentric superstar.

Reaves is reaching a new level this season

As LeBron’s career winds down, it was obvious that when thinking about the big picture, the Lakers were going to need a younger and composed a guy who could handle a lot of responsibility and big moments. Number 77 was already this franchise’s new centerpiece from the moment he arrived in town, but it was also evident that he was going to need a co-star at some point.

When you watch Reaves play, he really brings a blend of poise and fearlessness that, frankly, few players possess. It’s not likely that he’ll ever be able to replicate the type of impact LeBron brought during his best years, but Austin’s rise ensures the Lakers will be more than okay in a crowded Western Conference going forward.

The individual performances have been simply jaw-dropping to this point. Reaves has already dropped 51 and 41 points in back-to-back games against Sacramento and Portland last week. He’s still yet to score under 20 points in any game this season.

That shows the kind of peaks he can reach as well as the consistency he has been playing with every night out. Should he sustain anything close to this level of performance for the rest of the season, he’s going to be squarely at the center of the Lakers’ future plans for many years to come. With he and Luka Doncic as the organization’s two stars, LA will be on a path to contention for another decade or more.