“Pure cinema” - Nico Harrison’s viral side eye catches NBA fans attention right after Anthony Davis clutches at his injured knee

Dallas Mavericks' general manager Nico Harrison has received his fair share of criticism following his decision to trade Luka Doncic to the LA Lakers. Sadly, the Mavericks paid the grand price as their season ultimately came to an end at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies, 120-106 on Friday night.

Against the Grizzlies, Anthony Davis had one of his best games in a Mavericks jersey, leading the Mavericks with a game-high 40 points. With 8:12 left in the game, Davis had a scary moment when he awkwardly landed on his right leg after he air-balled a 3-point shot.

A clip of Davis limping to the sideline saw the ESPN cameras switch to general manager Nico Harrison. The short clip saw Nico watching Davis with his side eye while seated at the stands.

The nature of the look has caught a frenzy on social media. Fans on X shared their thoughts on the viral clip:

"That cut to Nico Harrison was pure cinema."

"I love when they cut to Nico after every bad thing that happens," a fan added.

"Nico Harrison side eye killing me," a fan commented.

"Nolan couldn’t direct that zoom any better," a fan added.

Other users blamed him for the Mavericks' poor end to their season:

"This is the look of someone who just realized they traded a generational talent for a bag of chips," a fan tweeted.

"The guilt on his face lmaoooooo," a fan tweeted.

Anthony Davis was brought in as part of the blockbuster trade that sent Doncic to the Lakers. He ended his debut season with the Mavericks with 20 points, 10.1 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.2 blocks in nine regular-season games. He also recorded 33.5 points, nine rebounds and two blocks in the two Play-In Tournament games.

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Nico Harrison told to hold a press conference by Patrick Dumont, NBA insider says

On Wednesday's episode of "Brian Windhorst and the Hoop Collective", ESPN's Tim MacMahon explained the reason why Nico Harrison held a press conference with select reporters.

“Because Patrick Dumont made [Harrison], because he was supposed to do it two weeks ago and for some reason he was able to push it back, he was supposed to do it before Luka came back to town,” said MacMahon (16:42).

Nico Harrison and CEO Rick Welts spoke to selected members of the media behind closed doors on Tuesday. In the transcripts provided by the Mavericks, Nico asserted that he had no regrets following the Doncic trade and agreed to the trade because he believed that defense wins championships.

With the Mavericks' season coming to a sad end, fans of the organization are left to wonder if he made the right decision or not.