A stunning series of events has plunged the Dallas Mavericks into crisis and turmoil. Perhaps most consequentially, Luka Doncic’s era with the organization has been cut short. Doncic’s camp was dismayed to learn late Monday night that General Manager Nico Harrison completed a trade with the Los Angeles Lakers. Harrison had been working on this deal behind the scenes for weeks. This was a huge development for an organization long known for their internal issues and medical tragedies.
The discord began when Harrison took the first step by hiring Keith Belton as the school’s athletic performance director. This decision angered Bilsborough, who was already running the player health and safety division. The two men often fought openly for control of their positions, making for an unpleasant tension. This tension only fueled the other challenges that the development team was already growing. Insiders told ESPN that this dysfunction led to a domino effect of injuries that engulfed the Mavericks all season.
Doncic and his then-advocate, Seager, anticipated an easy working relationship with Smith’s staff. Smith had developed a deep bond with Doncic, having endeared himself to Doncic with regular visits to Slovenia and support in international competitions. The hope was that this synergy would create an environment conducive to Doncic’s growth and well-being.
Health has been the Mavericks’ biggest hurdle. The biggest disaster came when Davis strained his left adductor in his debut on February 8. This injury was emblematic of the larger medical issues the Club has faced. I heard that Lively’s camp was pleased with Bilsborough’s communication and handling while going through recovery and rehab protocols. Lively’s condition had Bilsborough worried, leading him to recommend a CT scan.
None of this seemed to affect Doncic’s focus though, as he stuck to an aggressive training schedule, including two-a-day basketball workouts to get his game ready for the season. Challenges to secure court time while traveling made this routine more and more challenging. Seager and Doncic are both going after Doncic’s long-time, right-quadriceps injury. They recruited the specialized skills of Real Madrid physiotherapist Javier Barrio Calvo and Slovenian national team strength coach Anze Macek to provide their support.
That drama just got a whole lot worse with the recent departure of Casey Smith. He had previously served as the Mavericks’ vice president of sports medicine. Shortly after Smith’s departure, Harrison cut loose athletic performance director Jeremy Holsopple and manual therapist Casey Spangler in June. This alignment of changes caused many to wonder what direction the team was heading and what strategies for health they would pursue.
Harrison defended the Mavericks’ overall health and performance team. He further claimed that the majority of player injuries were “inevitable,” and came from contact-related injuries on the court. He insisted that the organization was dealing with many issues outside its own purview.
“You don’t perform like that… if you’re a fat, drunk pig,” – a friend of Doncic.
The organizational dysfunction extended beyond medical issues. An insider explained that pressure to justify previous decisions affected the way the team handled player health and performance. The strain from this balance created an impression of turmoil at the top of the organization.
Harrison expressed awareness of Doncic’s significance to the fan base, stating, “I did know that Luka was important to the fan base. I didn’t quite know it to what level.” This honest admission highlights the endemic pressure on management to achieve a winning team against the backdrop of fracture lines revealed on the inside.
As injuries kept piling up, those sources told me that Harrison became terrified of the Smith’s power over the organization. Tensions had apparently risen between teammates, reaching the point where some players were seen fighting each other on surveillance camera.
“Not punches, but they were going at it,” – a source who viewed the surveillance footage of the incident.
The Mavericks struggled as Jalen Brunson signed with the New York Knicks. Most notably, there, he brought on Smith to be the vice president of sports medicine and highlighted just how critical medical staff are to an athlete’s day-to-day in that role.
“Not a lot of people understand how much of a difference those people make in your everyday life,” – Jalen Brunson.
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