Patrick Dumont has experienced the extreme highs and lows of NBA ownership in his 27 months as governor of the Mavericks, from a trip to the NBA Finals to the drama surrounding former president Nico Harrison after his controversial decision to trade Luka Doncic.
As Brad Townsend writes for the Dallas Morning News in an exclusive sit-down with the team owner, Dumont recognizes that until he puts together a competitive, high-level team again, everything he does will be looked at through the lens of the Doncic trade.
“I believe in our accountability,” Dumont said. “We have to work hard to make things right.”
Lucking into budding star Cooper Flagg in last year’s draft lottery helps, but as Dallas wraps up its worst season since 2017/18, the real work is only just beginning. That process will start with the search for a new president of basketball operations.
“Monday morning, we’re going to get active, and we’re going to talk to a lot of people,” Dumont says. “And we’re going to do our best to make sure that we find the best possible candidate to lead our basketball organization… Our goal is to have someone on board by the middle of May.”
It has previously been rumored that Dumont wants to go big-game hunting in his search, with names like Brad Stevens and Sam Presti coming up, but as heads of successful teams, those two seem unlikely to be attainable.
“We’ll do the work,” he said. “We’ll figure out who’s a great leader. Who can build a great culture. Who has a track record. Who knows how to work with young players and develop them, which is crucial, because if you look at our team right now, we’re going to have a pool of great young talent, led by Cooper Flagg.”
Dumont also spoke about former majority owner Mark Cuban, who made news recently when he expressed regret for selling the team to the new owners, as well as when he addressed rumors of his involvement with an investor group trying to buy the team away from the Adelson-Dumont family.
“Mark is really passionate about the Mavericks, and I think that’s great,” Dumont said. “I think he’s really, really frustrated about the year that the team has had. And I understand that frustration. I consider Mark a friend. And look, I always appreciate his thoughts… But one thing I do want to say, in terms of ownership, I think we’ve been really clear: We’re not moving the team to another city. The team is not for sale. We’re going to continue to invest in this franchise. We’re going to build a new home for the team, and hopefully in the long term we’ll be able to celebrate that success for many years.”
Regarding that last point, one issue hanging over Dumont is the decision on where to locate the new arena. He and the team are weighing several locations, including the site that is currently Dallas’ City Hall. The Mavs governor says he envisions it as something beyond just a simple arena, as well as a place that can help give back to the city.
“I think it’s great for the city of Dallas to have a sports and entertainment center where there’s activations, not only when we have our home games, but all throughout the year,” Dumont says. “And I also think it creates a better experience for our fans to be able to have things to do before and after the game, where they can meet family and friends.”
He declined to specify whether most of the money to build such a complex would come from the team or the city, but he noted that some level of private funding would be involved in the project.

Sankara 2026 mock draft, reg season finale edition…
1DC- Cameron Boozer forward Duke
2Ind- Darryn Peterson guard KU
3BK- Caleb Wilson big UNC
4Uta- AJ Dybantsa wing BYU
5Sac- Darius Acuff Jr pg Arkansas
6Mem- Kingston Flemings pg Houston
7Dal- Keaton Wagler guard Illinois
8Atl- Mikel Brown Jr pg Louisville
9Chi- Hannes Steinbach big Washington
10Mil- Nate Ament forward Tennessee
11GSW- Labaron Philon guard Alabama
12OKC- Karim Lopez forward Mexico
13Mia- Alijah Arenas guard USC
14Cha- Koa Peat forward Arizona
15Chi- Isaiah Evans guard Duke
16Mem- Chris Cenac Jr big Houston
17OKC- Yaxel Lendeborg forward Michigan
18Tor- Ebuka Okorie pg Stanford
19Cha- Sergio de Larrea pg Valencia
20SAS- Braylon Mullins wing UConn
21Det- Morez Johnson Jr big Michigan
22Atl- Meleek Thomas wing Arkansas
23Phi- Cameron Carr wing Baylor
24LAL- Henri Veesaar big UNC
25NYK- Brayden Burries pg Arizona
26Den- Christian Anderson pg Texas Tech
27Bos- Luigi Suigo big Italy
28Min- Bennett Stirtz pg Iowa
29Cle- Thomas Haugh forward Florida
30Dal- Tounde Yessoufou wing Baylor
Great list. I Enjoy reading it whenever you put it out.
I’m not sold on Cam Boozer. I don’t think he’s athletic enough nor big enough to be an all-star power forward, which is what you hoped for when you pick a guy top three or four.
He’s almost like Lendeborg in that he’s not big enough for the 4, but too slow to play the 3? Am I that far off base? Go easy on me lol
Boozer just got thru dominating college basketball as thoroughly as we’ve ever seen a freshman dominate. All 3 of their Ls were fluky comebacks. Other than that he was unstoppable & much like Flagg he’s 1 of the youngest guys in his class. He’s clearly big enough to be a big time forward. The boy projects to have Karl Malone type body once he’s in his prime. His game is NBA made, there’s really no chance that he does anything but become a big time player & affect winning sooner than later. All he’s ever done is win. He has the perfect temperament. DC is the only team Id take him at 1 because Darryn Peterson is an even better prospect & I’d even favor Caleb Wilson in certain situations (Atl) but DC would be an absolute perfect fit for Cam Boozer & the Wizards.
Stevens and Presti, yeah ok. These guys have full control and trust at winning ball clubs who still have bright futures.
Has that Luka to Fakers trade stop giving yet, or do the mavs get “lucky” again?