Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd has been officially fired; he led the team to the NBA Finals in 2024.

The Dallas Mavericks announced on Tuesday that they are parting ways with 53-year-old head coach Jason Kidd, effective immediately.

Jason Kidd took over as head coach of the Dallas Mavericks from Rick Carlisle in June 2021, leading the team to a regular season record of 205 wins and 204 losses. He also led the team to the conference finals twice and won the NBA Finals in 2024.

However, Kidd failed to lead the Mavericks to another glorious season. With Luka Doncic traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Mavericks, with a completely reshuffled roster, ultimately finished the regular season with a 12th-place finish in the Western Conference.

Despite his poor coaching performance, Kidd's dismissal still sparked heated discussions. He had four years and over $40 million remaining on his contract with the Mavericks, but owner Patrick Dumont ultimately authorized team president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri to make the decision.

Regarding Kidd's departure, Ujiri stated in an official press release: "Jason has had a profound impact on the Dallas Mavericks. He is both a Hall of Famer and the head coach who led the team back to the NBA Finals. We appreciate Jason's leadership, professionalism, and dedication to the team. I deeply admired everything he built shortly after I joined the team. He will always be an important member of the Mavericks family."

Ujiri also revealed that the Mavericks will immediately begin the head coaching search: "We believe that now is the right time for the team to embark on a new journey. We have high hopes for this team and a responsibility to build a team that can contend for championships in the long run."

"We will conduct a comprehensive and rigorous selection process for our next head coach, while continuing to evaluate our entire basketball operations team to ensure that we can meet the level of competition that Mavericks fans expect and deserve."

The Orlando Magic, Chicago Bulls, and Portland Trail Blazers have all begun the process of changing coaches, and now the Dallas Mavericks have joined them. Reports indicate that the Mavericks' preferred candidates include San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Sean Sweeney, former Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan, Oklahoma City Thunder assistant coach Dave Bliss, and former Charlotte Hornets head coach James Borrego.

As for Kidd himself, he has decided to seek new coaching opportunities. Before joining the Mavericks, Kidd served as head coach of the Brooklyn Nets and Milwaukee Bucks, and won the 2020 NBA championship with the Los Angeles Lakers as an assistant coach.

Image source: Internet/NBA official website