"Scapegoat for Luka trade" - LeBron James' friend fires subtle jab at Mavericks owner Patrick Dumont amid reported rift with Nico Harrison

The Dallas Mavericks have been in the spotlight after general manager Nico Harrison traded their franchise star in February. Ahead of the trade deadline, he made a deal with the LA Lakers to ship Luka Doncic in exchange for All-Star forward Anthony Davis. Since then, fans have reacted negatively toward the management, going as far as to demand that Harrison be fired.

On Monday, the Mavs had their end-of-season presser. During Harrison's talk with the media, there were many questions about his decision to trade Doncic. Following that, a report regarding the majority owner, Patrick Dumont, being frustrated with the general manager, emerged.

According to Tim Cato, Dumont was frustrated with the executive for not warning him about the fanbase's reaction regarding the Doncic trade. Fans have consistently called out the front office and ownership for trading the fan favorite.

"Most notably, team and league sources say, Dumont has had frustration with Harrison not warning him — or, perhaps even more damningly, being unaware — of the fandom’s outrage following the trade," Cato wrote.

After the report was released, LeBron James' friend posted his thoughts on X (formerly Twitter). Cuffs the Legend believes Harrison is becoming more of a scapegoat for what happened in Dallas.

"The more details that come out.. the more Nico Harrison is looking like the Scapegoat for the Luka trade! #JigIsHovering" Cuffs the Legend posted.

The Dallas ownership has not shown signs that it is willing to part ways with the executive.

Since trading their franchise star, the Mavs have suffered multiple injuries to key players, including a season-ending ACL tear on Kyrie Irving. Also, they missed the postseason after the team lost to the Memphis Grizzlies in the play-in tournament.

Harrison explains why the Mavericks shouldn't fire him

After the moves he made that blew up the championship team they had in the 2023-24 season, fans demanded that Nico Harrison be fired. However, the Mavericks executive defended himself during the organization's end-of-season presser.

According to him, he believes that he's done a great job in Dallas. Harrison pointed out the injuries and said he shouldn't be judged on them. He also said he has a great professional relationship with the ownership.

After the difficult campaign, Harrison promised the media that Dallas would improve as a team. He expressed confidence in the team he assembled and predicted they would fight for the championship the next season.