Mavericks fans led 'Fire Nico!' chants during the team's NBA Draft watch party
The Dallas Mavericks landed Duke superstar Cooper Flagg with the top pick in the 2025 NBA Draft in Brooklyn on Wednesday night, but general manager Nico Harrison still couldn't avoid fan angst.
Since Dallas fans are still incredibly ticked off about the team trading away Luka Dončić out of nowhere in February, "Fire Nico" chants broke out at American Airlines Center during the team's NBA Draft watch party.
NBA Draft 2025 live first-round grades for every pick
That is absolutely brutal, but Harrison probably expects that these chants won't go away until the Mavericks start really winning again. Even then, the sting of losing Dončić may never go away fully, especially if he wins a title with the Los Angeles Lakers in the near future.
Harrison can celebrate landing Flagg in this year's draft, but he might want to avoid any highlight clips from the Mavericks draft party.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
16 minutes ago
- Yahoo
NBA draft winners and losers: Mavs' shot at redemption and the strange tale of Ace Bailey
Cooper Flagg and Nico Harrison The biggest winners of the 2025 NBA draft are Cooper Flagg and Dallas general manager Nico Harrison. Beyond the prestige and financial rewards of being the top pick, Flagg won draft night because he avoided going to a rebuilding team, where it could have taken years to gain playoff experience. Advertisement By landing with the Mavericks, Flagg joins All-NBA veterans Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving, and Klay Thompson, whose mentorship should make his learning curve less treacherous. Instead of enduring the tribulations of leading a bottom-feeding team, Flagg will play a key role in helping the Mavs contend for a title in his rookie season – albeit in a packed Western Conference that includes the champion Oklahoma City Thunder, Nikola Jokić's Denver Nuggets and the Los Angeles Lakers, featuring the Mavericks' former crown jewel, Luka Dončić. Expect Flagg to fit right in as a wing who can play multiple positions and contribute defensively. In turn, Harrison's redemption story begins with the selection of Flagg. After months of enduring intense backlash for trading away a generational talent in Dončić, Harrison gets an unexpected opportunity to rewrite his legacy if Flagg reaches his full potential. San Antonio Spurs The selection of Dylan Harper at No 2 adds to the Spurs' explosive backcourt that already features De'Aaron Fox and rookie of the year Stephon Castle. Harper's ability to put pressure on defenses with his speed and aggression will lead to more open looks and one-on-one opportunities for Victor Wembanyama, already a superstar at the age of 21. They also selected Carter Bryant at No 14, a defensive-minded guard/small forward with a consistent three-point stroke. Advertisement But if the Spurs are contemplating more ambitious moves, they are in prime position to trade a few of their young assets for an All-NBA player like Giannis Antetokounmpo – that's if trade talks ramp up over the next few months. Whatever direction they choose, the Spurs took a step forward on draft night and are closer to making a playoff leap in the Western Conference. Atlanta Hawks The Hawks made several savvy moves this week by acquiring Kristaps Porzingis in a three-team trade. On draft night, the Hawks remained active by sending the No 13 pick to New Orleans for pick No 23. In the exchange with the Pelicans, the Hawks also obtained an unprotected 2026 first-round draft pick that will be delivered via the most favorable position between the Pelicans or Milwaukee Bucks. Advertisement With the loaded Western Conference expected to be even more rigorous next season, the Pelicans will find it difficult to secure a top-eight spot. The impressive coup gives the Hawks an elite asset considering next year's highly-anticipated draft class. With the No 23 pick, the Hawks snagged Asa Newell, a late-lottery prospect who unexpectedly fell to his hometown squad. In an conference that lacks a dominant team due to the achilles injuries of Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton, the Hawks used draft week to retool as every Eastern Conference franchise seeks to take advantage of the window of opportunity. Losers Ace Bailey In the weeks leading to this year's draft, Bailey put on a masterclass on how to land in the 'loser' category. Whether his choices came due to bad advice from his reps or the misguided boldness of youth, Bailey's immense talent was overshadowed because of poor decisions which led to negative press. Advertisement The third-best prospect in the draft decided against working out for teams and snubbed the Philadelphia 76ers who owned the No 3 pick. Falling outside of the top three cost Bailey $10m and the opportunity to learn from Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George. Drafted by the Utah Jazz even after declining a workout and interview, Bailey lands on a team that finished with the league's worst record and will be in rebuild mode for the foreseeable future. Bailey has enough talent to bounce back from his draft blunders, but unfortunately, he's already found ways to make rookie mistakes. Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets entered this year's draft with a record five first-round draft picks and proceeded to end the night in infamy. Their first mishap came with the selection of Egor Demin with the No 8 pick. Demin was projected to fall in the mid-first round, so the Nets appear to have overreached by selecting Demin and passing on players with higher ceilings such as Khaman Maluach and Collin Murray-Boyles. Advertisement But the Nets' most glaring faux pas was the act of keeping all their picks. Brooklyn fumbled an opportunity to trade up for a more talented prospect or use the picks to acquire a rising star to build around. It's possible that each draft pick will be serviceable and Demin could make an All-Rookie team. But overall, the Nets made history by selecting five players in the first round while at the same time failing to change the trajectory of their franchise. New York Knicks For Knicks fans, the draft should be known as 'five first-round picks for Mikal Bridges awareness day.' Without a head coach or a first-round draft pick, the Knicks remained dormant on day one. Advertisement After a lively run to the Eastern Conference finals, the Knicks have an opportunity to take control of the East by adding a few key players who could put them over the hump. But in a week when multiple teams traded for picks or other assets, the Knicks' decision to stay on the sideline is not a promising sign as the offseason unfolds. The Knicks, who forfeited their own second-round pick for tampering in the Jalen Brunson signing, will have to wait until the 50th pick (via Memphis) to make a selection. Knicks fans can only hope for more aggressive moves on day two of the draft.
Yahoo
31 minutes ago
- Yahoo
This Week in Sports Trivia: June 26, 2025
In perhaps the least surprising development from a wild NBA season, Duke star Cooper Flagg was chosen No. 1 in the NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night. It's been expected that Flagg would be the top choice since he entered college, and his season with the Blue Devils only enhanced that. Will Flagg live up to the hype and become a star at the next level? Can he handle the unenviable task of following Luka Dončić's brief but impressive stay in Dallas? Advertisement We'll find out eventually. But for now, let's allow him to enjoy the moment, while also reflecting on the NBA pipeline that has come out of Duke over the years — Flagg is the sixth Blue Devil to go No. 1 in the draft, after all. We'll have more on Flagg, Duke and the draft in this week's quiz, but that's not all. We'll also touch on a record-setting MLB slugger, an NHL comeback, some news around the Pac-12 and more. Good luck, and if you have a moment, you should play our daily Connections: Sports Edition, too! Top stories mentioned in this week's quiz Oklahoma City completes magical run with win in Game 7 of NBA Finals Advertisement NBA Draft: Duke's Cooper Flagg goes No. 1 to Dallas Mavericks Pac-12 continues effort to rebuild, announcing new primary TV partner What did Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris spend $500k on?? A record-setting season for switch-hitting MLB slugger Former Stanley Cup champion is attempting an NHL comeback Crusty old coach? Maybe not! Who said he loves current 'crazy' college environment? Three-time Grand Slam winner is getting a statue at Wimbledon This country's national basketball team cancels camp in U.S. after visas denied New York Sirens select Czech star No. 1 in PWHL Draft This article originally appeared in The Athletic. NHL, NFL, NBA, MLB, College Football, Men's College Basketball, Sports Business, Olympics, Women's Hockey 2025 The Athletic Media Company
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
2025 NBA Draft first round winners and losers: Ace Bailey, Spurs and more
The first round of the 2025 NBA Draft is over, and now that we have a two-night affair, that means we have a moment to take a look at what happened Wednesday night before Round 2 on Thursday. Of course, we've done some of that already by handing out grades for every pick, and our Bryan Kalbrosky put together the 39 best available players who teams can select. Before we get there, let's pause. It's a good time to take a look at who won and lost in that 2025 first round. There wasn't a ton of drama, but we've got some winners and losers to address. Let's do it: Winner: Winner: Dallas Mavericks Sigh. We were reminded that the team that traded Luka Doncic got so lucky and won the first overall pick and a potential superstar in Cooper Flagg. At least we got to hear someone scream "DALLAS WAS RIGGED" on Wednesday. Loser: Ace Bailey The Rutgers star was the king of red flags during the pre-draft process with refusal to work out for some teams and preference for his landing spot. Well, the Utah Jazz weren't afraid and took him, with Bailey looking and sounding stunned. Not great for him! Winner: Duke basketball Cooper Flagg, Kon Knueppel and Khaman Maluach were all taken in the top 10. As if the Blue Devils needed another recruiting pitch! Loser: Phoenix Suns Man, this franchise continues to confound. They needed help at center and got it in Maluach ... but they also traded a first-rounder AND a 2029 first for Mark Williams. That's two big men in a span of minutes, and their cupboard is mostly bare when it comes to tradeable first-rounders. Given their roster issues, this is huge mess. Winner: San Antonio Spurs Adding Dylan Harper and Carter Bryant to an already-solid young base is pretty fantastic. If they don't make any massive moves this offseason, they're poised to have one of the better growing cores in the league. Loser: WYD New Orleans Pelicans?! I like Derik Queen. I really do. Trading up to get him at No. 13 is intriguing even with Zion Williamson still on the roster. But, uh, why did they trade an unprotected 2026 first in the deal with the Atlanta Hawks? This seems risky given the state of the Pels. Welp. Winner: Atlanta Hawks They got the Pelicans' pick AND they drafted Asa Newell. Brilliant. Loser: Brooklyn Nets When armed with FIVE FIRST-ROUND PICKS, you want to do something with those, like trade up for a guy you like. The Nets kept them all and the results are ... not the best? Maybe this was throwing darts and hoping one or two of those picks pan out. But that's not the best strategy. Winner: Yang Hansen Was he a reach? Or did the Portland Trail Blazers get a diamond in the rough? Whatever. He won by being picked on Wednesday.
