It has been a turbulent year, to say the least, for Dallas sports fans. It is virtually unprecedented in sports for teams to trade away elite players at premier positions smack in the middle of their primes.
And yet, the Cowboys and Mavericks both bucked that trend within months of each other, with the former sending Micah Parsons to Green Bay and the latter sending superstar point guard Luke Dončić to the Lakers. Neither team got a desirable haul, and the Mavericks finally succumbed to mounting pressure from fans and fired general manager Nico Harrison on Tuesday.
It's been a long time coming for Harrison, who lucked out that the Mavericks landed the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft lottery. Even with the selection of Duke phenom Cooper Flagg, the Mavs have struggled out of the gate to the tune of a 3-8 record, the second-worst mark in the Western Conference.
Mavericks firing GM Nico Harrison is sobering reminder for Cowboys fans
This is a situation Cowboys fans can only dream of finding themselves in, all the while knowing that it will never happen. As the team's owner, Jerry Jones can't be fired as general manager. He would have to sell the team, and we all know that isn't happening.
While Jones has scouting and personnel departments doing most of the heavy lifting, piloted by vice president of player personnel Will McClay, Jones has the final say on all personnel decisions.
There is no doubt that Jones wants to win another Super Bowl, but only if it happens on his terms, which is the single biggest problem holding the Cowboys back. There are decades of evidence that prove the "Jones way" isn't conducive to winning at the highest level.
Jones' legacy is set because of what the Cowboys accomplished in the 1990s. He's married to that, which is why he refuses to get out of the way and hire an actual GM. His feelings getting hurt is the only reason Parsons is a Packer.
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There might actually be a light at the end of the Parsons trade tunnel for the Cowboys, but that means little in light of the Harrison news. If Jones were an ordinary general manager with zero ownership stakes in the franchise, he would've been fired years ago.
Speaking of firings, parting ways with Jimmy Johnson set off a chain of poor coaching and personnel decisions that have fueled Dallas’ Super Bowl drought, which has turned 30 years old, by the way. But let’s fast forward to the last decade
Trading Parsons stands alone atop the list, but signing Greg Hardy, drafting Taco Charlton over T.J. Watt, the contract extensions for Jaylon Smith and Ezekiel Elliott, hiring Mike Nolan as defensive coordinator, and sticking with Jason Garrett for (checks notes) 10 years all set the franchise back years. To say nothing of trading Amari Cooper and refusing to improve the team in free agency year after year. There are several more boneheaded moves that we left on the chopping block.
Firing Harrison won't take away the pain from trading Dončić. But at least Mavericks fans can feel liberated that the man who snatched their soul got what was coming to him.
For Cowboys fans, it's just another sobering reminder that Jones is untouchable.