It looks like the Dallas Mavericks are going One Direction —and not in the cute boy-band sense. If the latest rumblings are true, Dallas isn’t just exploring a swap for Anthony Davis, hunting for defensive help, or trying to survive until Kyrie Irving returns. With Nico Harrison’s dismissal, the Mavericks are reportedly considering a full-scale overhaul barely 12 games into the season.

It’s bold. It’s risky. It’s arguably reckless. And to at least one former NBA player, it’s flat-out a mistake.

According to SI’s Chris Mannix, “radical roster changes have already been discussed by Dallas’s new brain trust. Big changes could be coming to Big D.”

Johnson responded to that news with a tweet of his own. “That’s a mistake to do it so soon. They are better than what people think.”

That’s the word from Eddie A. Johnson, the former Suns sharpshooter turned commentator, who didn’t hold back. Johnson understands a rebuild —after all, he’s watched Phoenix reboot itself repeatedly. He was optimistic when the Suns pivoted last season, firing Mike Budenholzer and reassessing the Durant–Beal–Booker experiment that lacked both balance and a true point guard. That reset made sense: the system wasn’t working, contracts were expiring, and the roster needed retooling.

Actually, not many believe that the combination of Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, Klay Thompson, and Cooper Flagg is anything but effective. It has just not been given a fair shot since the spate of very serious injuries. While Klay is back, the Mavs haven’t maximized Flagg’s potential, most especially by playing the teen forward in the point guard position.

Rebuilding around Flagg sounds okay on paper, but a few are sad that AD and Kyrie, along with other injured players, will not get a fair chance in Dallas or a worthy trade if they’re sent while injured.

The current roster not getting a fair shot is seemingly Johnson’s concern. He’s not protesting the other huge development in Dallas.

Mark Cuban could take Eddie A. Johnson’s advice instead

The other thing Chris Mannix reported was Mark Cuban’s potential return. While he is a minority stakeholder after selling the Mavericks to Patrick Dumont and the Adelson families, he reportedly still holds a significant quarter of the team and has a say. Nico Harrison apparently prevented that.

The former GM allegedly “exiled” Cuban out of basketball operations.

Insider reports indicate that Harrison prevented Cuban from having a say in basketball decisions, leading to Cuban’s frustration, especially after the controversial trade of Luka Doncic for Anthony Davis. Cuban felt that this trade and Harrison’s direction set the franchise back years.

Top Stories

LeBron James Stats on His Birthday: How NBA Icon Has Performed on December 30th

Did Michael Jordan Call LeBron James The GOAT on His 41st Birthday? Fact Checking Viral Social Media Post

Is Joel Embiid Playing Tonight? 76ers vs Grizzlies Latest Injury Report (Dec 30)

Is Christian Braun Dating Sydney Sweeney? Fact-Checking Viral Rumor About Nuggets Star

WNBA Free Agency 2026: The Most Likely Landing Spots for the League’s Top Movers

“It was Nico’s mismanagement of the salary cap that led to them being in the second apron or deadlocked in a hard cap… It was only a matter of time. Nico was on the clock.” Cuban said to CBS News.

Frustrated with the team’s losing record, injuries, and negativity since the trade, Cuban made a case to team governor Patrick Dumont over several months that Harrison was steering the franchise in the wrong direction. This reportedly contributed significantly to Harrison’s firing.

Cuban is reportedly back in the Mavs basketball operations and is going to undo Harrison’s decisions. But how he’d do that is a whole other math. The Mavs have injured players and very few draft options. They’re in the unenviable position of playing aging veterans now, either tanking or waiting for future opportunities to regain assets. Any short-term trade now would be very costly.

Maybe the solution is with Eddie A. Johnson, too. Johnson’s a lot about the player voice, especially when it came to Phoenix Suns. He advocated for players to be involved in coaching decisions. Maybe the Mavericks could similarly rely on the veterans they have now to change that 3-9 start before they go from zero to a thousand.