Dallas is at the center of a surprising coaching rumor: Christian Clark of The Athletic says the Dallas Mavericks could interview South Carolina coach Dawn Staley for their vacant head coach job. The report landed after the Mavericks moved on from Jason Kidd and comes as Masai Ujiri takes a central role in shaping Dallas’ next leader. Local voices like Jeff Kolb and Ethan Herrera on FOX 4 have already started parsing what a Staley pursuit would mean for the franchise and the NBA.
The Athletic relayed that an NBA executive told Christian Clark it “wouldn’t be shocking” if the Mavericks wanted to interview Dawn Staley for the vacancy. Staley has been the architect of South Carolina’s program since 2008, building sustained excellence and three national titles. Her record at South Carolina sits at 511 wins and 113 losses, numbers that make her résumé impossible to ignore.
Staley has never coached at the professional level, which is the sticking point for many NBA personnel evaluations. If Dallas were to hire her, Staley would become the first female head coach in NBA history, a landmark shift in the league’s coaching landscape. That potential is why this rumor resonates beyond just the Mavericks’ locker room; it taps into a broader conversation about opportunity and precedent in pro hoops.
Shortly after her Knicks interview, Staley said on a podcast that she believes “no NBA team is ready for a female coach right now.” That quote has followed her through speculative headlines and gives texture to how she views the current NBA climate. It also raises questions about timing, readiness, and what a franchise would need to commit to make such a transition work.
Masai Ujiri’s recent history factors into the chatter. When he was with the Toronto Raptors, Ujiri interviewed Becky Hammon for the head coaching position, showing he’s not averse to considering women for top coaching roles. Hammon’s candidacy in 2023 and Staley’s rumored interest in Dallas create a throughline about front-office willingness to break with tradition.
The Mavericks announced they moved on from Jason Kidd on May 19, creating the vacancy that sparked this wave of speculation. Kidd’s departure opened a high-profile job in a market that combines championship expectations with a demanding star in Luka Dončić. That high-stakes environment means the front office will weigh experience, fit, and how a coach handles elite talent.
Beyond Staley, Christian Clark’s write-up lists several other names the Mavericks could target, keeping the search broad and competitive. San Antonio Spurs assistant Sean Sweeney, Duke’s Jon Scheyer, Micah Nori from the Timberwolves, and Portland’s interim coach Thiago Splitter are all linked as potential interviews. Each candidate brings a different blend of NBA experience, college track record, or recent success in a head role.
Sean Sweeney carries Dallas connections, having spent seasons on Jason Kidd’s staff before moving to San Antonio. He was pictured alongside Victor Wembanyama in Spurs coverage, underscoring his recent NBA front-row experience. That proximity to elite young talent and familiarity with Kidd’s approach make Sweeney an intriguing, continuity-minded option.
Jon Scheyer comes out of the Duke pipeline and coached Cooper Flagg during Flagg’s single season there, which adds a college-to-pro development angle to the list. Scheyer’s name entered NBA circles after that year, and the Mavericks could see value in a coach who helped manage and develop top draft talent. Whether that translates to NBA roster management is part of the evaluation process teams face now.
Micah Nori has interviewed for other NBA head coaching jobs in recent years, so he knows the interview circuit and what executives want to hear. Thiago Splitter, meanwhile, has a different profile: he won as a player with the San Antonio Spurs and steadied the Trail Blazers after taking over following Chauncey Billups’ arrest. Splitter guided Portland into the playoffs after stepping into that interim role, which gives him recent head-coaching proof points the Mavericks might value.
Names like Becky Hammon, Cooper Flagg, Sean Sweeney, Jon Scheyer, Micah Nori, Thiago Splitter, and of course Dawn Staley populate the conversation as Dallas searches for its next leader. FOX 4 commentators Jeff Kolb and Ethan Herrera have already weighed in on how a choice could shift the franchise’s identity and on-court direction. For now, the story is rumor and possibility, but it has undeniably shifted the narrative around Dallas’ next move.
