Mavericks President Masai Ujiri addressed the departure of head coach Jason Kidd during a news conference, expressing the difficult decision and shedding light on the team's new priorities. He mentioned a fresh start for the franchise, transparency, accountability, and rebuilding the team.
Mavericks President Masai Ujiri speaks to reporters during a news conference addressing the departure of the NBA basketball team’s head coach Jason Kidd , Wednesday, May 20, 2026, in Dallas.
made several references to a fresh start for the franchise while explaining what he said was a difficult decision to Ujiri also said he wasn’t referring to the trade of Luka Doncic, or anyone connected to the February 2025 deal that ended up being a huge setback for the franchise.
“Honestly, that trade has played no part in how I have thought about anything,” Ujiri said at a news conference Wednesday. “I’m in no position to criticize or blame or even really investigate some of the things that happened then. We have to figure out a way to slowly move on from this, and I have to hold myself accountable for doing this.
” Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd yells to his players during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the San Antonio Spurs, Friday, April 10, 2026, in San Antonio. Ujiri said he spent plenty of time talking to Kidd since he was hired two weeks ago. He declined to share details of those conversations.
“Being transparent with everybody, I think a new slate was a good way to look at this,” Ujiri said. “I feel sometimes in this organization we needed clarity in where we’re going. We need to really work in one direction and how we build this team and how we create winning.
” Dallas made two deep playoff runs with Kidd and Doncic, reaching the NBA Finals in 2024, two years after a loss to Golden State in the Western Conference finals. The Mavericks traded Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2024-25 season, getting Anthony Davis as their centerpiece in return. Dallas missed the playoffs that season and again in 2025-26, during which the oft-injured Davis was traded while sidelined with an injury.
Kidd, the Hall of Fame point guard who led the franchise to its only championship as a player in 2011, finished with a .500 regular-season coaching record with the Mavs. In two of the three years Dallas missed the playoffs under Kidd, it was clear the club was focused on draft positioning as the seasons ended.
“What he’s done for this organization we truly respect, so this was a very, very tough decision,” Ujiri said. “I have to be accountable with a decision like this. I also have to be very active in how I look at the organization from top to bottom.
”Flagg still hasn’t had a chance to play with fellow Duke alum Kyrie Irving, who thrived under Kidd before tearing the ACL in his left knee in March 2025 and missing all of the 2025-26 season. When Irving arrived in Dallas, he was coming off tumultuous tenures in Boston and Brooklyn. He enjoyed a career renaissance while teaming with Doncic on the run that ended with a five-game loss to Boston in the 2024 NBA Finals.
“Kevin Durant once told me that there’s only one Kyrie walking around in the world,” Ujiri said. “I think we have to figure out a way, how Kyrie fits with our program. And I’ve had those conversations with Kyrie. And I think Kyrie will fit.
As I said it before, there’s a huge curiosity in our minds to see how Kyrie fits playing with Cooper Flagg. ” Ujiri hired Mike Schmitz as general manager three days after he was introduced, and confirmed Wednesday that former co-interim general manager Matt Riccardi is leaving the organization.
Ujiri said discussions continue on a potential role for Michael Finley, the former Dallas player who was promoted alongside Riccardi in November when Nico Harrison, the engineer of the Doncic trade, was fired as general manager. Moving on from Kidd was expensive for the Mavericks, who had signed him to multiyear extensions during the playoffs in 2024 and again last year after denying the New York Knicks permission to talk to him about their head coach opening.
“I am going to sit here and take responsibility for any of the decisions that we are going to make,” Ujiri said. “It’s not about being defensive. We’re just going to have a vision here that we are going to follow. ”
NBA Mavericks Jason Kidd Luka Doncic Anthony Davis Trade Of Luka Doncic Fresh Start New Priorities Transparent Accountable Rebuilding The Team
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