The Dallas Mavericks hired Hall of Fame member Jason Kidd as their new head coach and tabbed Nike executive Nico Harrison as general manager, multiple outlets reported Friday.
Harrison is close to Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and the two worked together to identify Kidd as head coach, ESPN reported.
On June 17, Rick Carlisle resigned after 13 seasons as head coach, a day after longtime general manager Donnie Nelson was let go after 24 seasons with the franchise.
Harrison has relationships with players throughout the NBA because of his time with Nike. ESPN said he developed a tight relationship with all-NBA guard Luka Doncic as he helped him to navigate his role as a Nike endorser.
On Thursday, the day the Indiana Pacers hired Carlisle to coach their team, he endorsed Kidd for his old job.
“It’s hard to put an exact finger on it,” Carlisle told ESPN about a Kidd-Mavericks pairing. “It’s just a feeling that I had that it would be mutually beneficial. My hope is that Jason Kidd will be the next coach of the Mavs because he and Luka (Doncic) have so many things in common as players.”
Kidd, 48, most recently served an assistant coach under Frank Vogel with the Los Angeles Lakers. Kidd was a 10-time All-Star and spent part of his career playing for the Mavericks, who selected him No. 2 overall in the 1994 draft, then traded him in 1996. Kidd returned to play in Dallas from 2008-12 and helped the Mavericks to win the 2011 NBA title.
Kidd also had playing stints with the Phoenix Suns, then-New Jersey Nets and New York Knicks, and later coached the Nets (2013-14) and Milwaukee Bucks (2014-18). He has a record of 183-190 as a head coach.
A point guard, Kidd retired after the 2012-13 campaign and ranks No. 2 in NBA history in assists (12,091) and steals (2,684).
–Field Level Media