One of the proposed candidates for the Dallas Mavericks' basketball operations opening will still be in his current position into mid-May.
We are now less than two weeks away from the NBA Draft Lottery - a pivotal moment that gives losing teams, such as the Dallas Mavericks, insight into how they should scout the next wave of prospects based on their position in the upcoming draft.
Amid this crucial point in the offseason, the Mavs remain without a general manager of basketball operations. The former boss, Nico Harrison, was fired in November, and executives Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley have been filling the role in interim.
Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont spoke near the end of the regular season about hoping to have the next permanent person in place by mid-May, but his intention to talk to a list of potential candidates that currently hold other positions across the league is not coinciding with team's success in the playoffs.
Most notably, the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Denver Nuggets in six games, on Thursday winning 110-98 to clinch the series despite not having injured starters Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo. The Wolves are now preparing to face the San Antonio Spurs in the second round of the West bracket.
Minnesota's president of basketball operations, Tim Connelly, is rumored to be one of the external candidates that is on Dumont's radar for the Mavs' opening.
Insider Marc Stein believes the Timberwolves' berth into the second round of the playoffs has created a sense of "growing resignation in Dallas that permission to speak with the Wolves' Tim Connelly in search of a new head of basketball operations is unlikely to be granted."
While other candidates may be available, the interims included, Connelly's track record suggests he would have been a worthy interview.
Connelly, coincidentally enough, was the main architect of Denver's rise into a championship contender in the early 2020s after his work as the executive vice president for basketball operations, acquiring major roster talent such as three-time (and potential four-time) MVP Nikola Jokic the decade prior.
The organization won a championship in 2023 with the core Connelly built.
However, he had moved to Minnesota in 2022 on a five-year, $40 million contract, meaning he is still under contract with the Timberwolves and must be approved to converse with the Mavericks after the season...
A season that just extended into the window where Dumont hoped to have hired someone.
The Timberwolves have reached back-to-back Western Conference Finals under Connelly's leadership, and while pieces such as recently-acquired defensive anchor Rudy Gobert and young star Edwards are intriguing, league sources believe the Mavs still hold a reputation as an inticing destination.
That outlook is largely because of the potential of new Rookie of the Year Cooper Flagg, who at just 19 years old, has shown a capability to shoulder top leadership duties in the NBA and become one of the game's best players.
Dallas will ultimately find its next corporate leader, but as the search process unfolds, there's a new worry that it could drag on beyond the team's initial expectation.
