Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont is in the process of vetting candidates for the team’s head of basketball operations role, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPN. The list of contenders for the job includes multiple veteran executives with “proven track records” of running a team’s front office, according to MacMahon — including some who currently hold that position in rival teams’ front offices.
League sources who have spoken to Christian Clark of The Athletic have “consistently” conveyed that the Mavericks don’t plan to make an out-of-left-field hire after the way things played out with longtime Nike executive Nico Harrison. High-level front office experience is a top priority for the Mavs this time around, Clark explains.
“After Nico, there’s not much room for creativity,” one source with knowledge of the situation told The Athletic.
Clark, who also hears that Dallas is expected to interview executives currently working for other teams, adds that a promotion to a top front office position for head coach Jason Kidd is unlikely. While Kidd has reportedly had a say in personnel decisions and wouldn’t be the first head coach to transition to a GM role, it doesn’t sound as if that’s a path the club is seriously considering.
- Spurs rookie forward Carter Bryant has been named an injury replacement for Friday’s Rising Stars event, per the NBA (Twitter link). Bryant will be taking the spot of Grizzlies rookie forward Cedric Coward, who has been ruled out due to right knee soreness.
- Victor Wembanyama scored 40 points in 26 minutes in the Spurs‘ victory over the Lakers on Tuesday, and despite the team’s sizeable lead in the fourth quarter, he wanted more, Tim MacMahon writes for ESPN. “I was also pushing to go back, but I mean, they did the right thing by keeping me on the bench,” Wembanyama said. “We got to think long term. But yeah, these kind of games, you got to have the greed.” McMahon adds that coming into the game, the Spurs’ star was committed to ensuring San Antonio did not let its guard down simply because they were facing the Lakers, whose squad was decimated by injuries. Wembanyama ended up playing over 33 minutes the next night in the Spurs’ 126-113 victory over the Warriors.
- The Rockets have the profile of a very good team, but they don’t feel like an inner-circle title contender, Varun Shankar writes for the Houston Chronicle. However, for a team missing its starting point guard, Fred VanVleet, for the season, as well as one of their identity setters, Steven Adams, since mid-January, it’s not unexpected that they’ve struggled to play to the level they were predicted to be at before the season. “It’s all about perspective,” Kevin Durant said. “… My presence is allowing people on the outside to put heavy expectations on us and put the microscope on us and not realize that we’re still growing individually as players. Continuity matters. We had injuries too. But when I’m around, the expectations go up. Nobody cares about context.” Shankar writes that even if a championship isn’t in the cards this season, the rest of the season still matters from a developmental perspective, especially with so many players contributing at a young age. A playoff series win or two would show the team is taking its next steps and positioning itself to be ready next year when it’s fully healthy again.