Mavericks' search for a GM: 5 names to watch ahead of the NBA Draft

Atlantic76ersCelticsKnicksNetsRaptorsCentralBucksBullsCavaliersPacersPistonsSoutheastHawksHeatHornetsMagicWizardsSouthwestGrizzliesMavericksPelicansRocketsSpursNorthwestJazzNuggetsThunderTimberwolvesTrail BlazersPacificClippersKingsLakersSunsWarriorsScores & ScheduleStandingsThe Bounce NewsletterNBA DraftPodcastsFantasyNBA OddsNBA PicksTracking Awards EligibilityPlayoff Matchups As Of TodayLatest Power RankingsInside NBA Sneaker CultureNBA Season Tim Connelly is considered a candidate for the Dallas Mavericks' lead basketball executive position after his work in Minnesota and Denver. Bruce Kluckhohn / Imagn Images Share full articleThe Dallas Mavericks, who hold two first-round picks in this year’s NBA Draft, know they need a lead basketball executive in place ahead of the draft in June. The Mavericks fired general manager Nico Harrison in November. Since then, they have relied on co-interim general managers Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley to make decisions. According to a source with knowledge of team governor Patrick Dumont’s thinking, the Mavericks have maintained that Riccardi and Finley are both candidates to fill the role permanently. However, the franchise is also interested in external candidates who have previously run front offices elsewhere. “There’s no specific set of characteristics,” Mavericks CEO Rick Welts said in March. “I can tell you there are a variety of candidates who present a variety of different personalities, different track records. It’s the most important decision that the organization is going to make for the coming seasons, so we are going to take our time and get it right.” Here are five names to watch in the Mavericks’ search for Harrison’s successor. It’s been nearly three years since Myers stepped down from his post as president of basketball operations for the Golden State Warriors. The former UCLA player, agent and two-time NBA Executive of the Year briefly worked in television for ESPN and is now president of sports for Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, which owns stakes in the Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Devils and Crystal Palace F.C. Welts worked closely with Myers in Golden State and is known in NBA circles to be one of his biggest advocates. Convincing Myers to come to Dallas would be a home run for a franchise that has dealt with a string of controversies since it made the Luka Dončić trade in February 2025. Myers would bring instant credibility to the Mavericks. Still, there is skepticism that he’d leave his native California to come to Texas and also resign from his post with Harris Blitzer Sports, league sources told The Athletic. The Mavericks, league sources said, have legitimate interest in Connelly, who has built winning teams in Denver and Minnesota. The always-optimistic Connelly developed strong working relationships with Nikola Jokić and Anthony Edwards — his stars on the Nuggets and Timberwolves, respectively — which is good, as someone in Dallas would need to sell Cooper Flagg on a vision for the future. Aside from his strong people skills, Connelly is known as an executive who’s unafraid to take risks. In 2022, Connelly traded a massive package of players and picks for Rudy Gobert. This move was criticized at the time, but it wound up helping the Timberwolves make consecutive Western Conference finals appearances. Like Myers, Connelly also has a prominent figure on the Mavericks’ business side who can personally vouch for him. Mavericks president Ethan Casson spent nine years in Minnesota before arriving in Dallas in July. Connelly has one year remaining on his contract with the Timberwolves. It’s unclear if Minnesota would even allow him to interview with Dallas. Ujiri’s 12-year run with the Toronto Raptors included eight playoff appearances. Ujiri famously traded for Kawhi Leonard in 2018, even though the taciturn forward had only one year remaining on his contract and gave no assurances he would sign an extension with Toronto. That move was instrumental in the Raptors beating the Warriors in the 2019 NBA Finals for their first championship in franchise history. In June, the Raptors and Ujiri parted ways. Ujiri owns a stake in the Toronto Tempo, the WNBA team that will begin its first season this spring. He still has an interest in returning to the NBA. Ujiri recently told ESPN, “One of my main goals is to win another championship. I want to win with the (WNBA’s) Tempo, and I want to win another NBA championship.” The brash and charismatic Ujiri would have no problem with the public-facing part of the job, an area where Harrison struggled. A native Texan who played collegiately at Baylor, Lindsey is a well-respected NBA executive who worked as an adviser for the Mavericks during the 2023-24 season, when they made a run to the NBA Finals. Lindsey cut his teeth with the Houston Rockets and the San Antonio Spurs before he joined the Utah Jazz as their general manager in 2012. In Lindsey’s nine seasons with the Jazz, they had a 391-327 record and made five trips to the playoffs. Upon Harrison’s firing in November, The Athletic reported that Mavericks minority owner Mark Cuban was a proponent of hiring Lindsey in Dallas. Multiple league sources have said that Cuban’s backing could hurt Lindsey’s case. Last month, Cuban told the “Intersections” podcast that he regretted selling his majority stake in the Mavericks to Miriam Adelson and Dumont, her son-in-law, and suggested that Mavericks coach Jason Kidd had more to do with the Dončić trade than he was letting on, a claim Kidd denied. Lindsey is currently the second-in-command under Trajan Langdon with the Detroit Pistons, who have secured the No. 1 playoff seed in the Eastern Conference. Riccardi, who’s from the Dallas suburb of Plano, Texas, spent 12 years with the Brooklyn Nets and has been with the Mavericks for the past four years. Riccardi worked his way up to assistant general manager in Dallas before Harrison’s firing. When the franchise decided to pivot this winter and prioritize Flagg’s future, Riccardi was the Mavericks’ point person as they canvassed the NBA for potential Anthony Davis trades. In February, the Mavericks sent Davis, D’Angelo Russell and Jaden Hardy to the Washington Wizards for two first-round picks and three second-round picks. Dumont, according to a source familiar with his thinking, believed the Mavericks did well in the Davis trade, considering how much money Davis made and how little he had played over the previous year. Is that enough for Dumont to consider putting Riccardi in charge of the Mavericks’ front office? After how poorly the Dončić trade went, it frankly seems like a long shot. However, the Mavericks have insisted over the past five months that they will consider in-house candidates. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Christian Clark is an NBA reporter for The Athletic who is based in Dallas. Previously, he covered the New Orleans Pelicans for NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune. Follow Christian on Twitter @christianpclark