The Dallas Mavericks coaching search has been one of the most quietly fascinating storylines of the offseason. The latest name to gain steam is Houston Rockets assistant Royal Ivey, and the reason why is sitting in the locker room already.
Ivey has a direct connection to Kyrie Irving. He was an assistant in Brooklyn from 2020 to 2023, when Irving was a Net. They worked together every day. They built a real relationship. Sources around the league say Irving is openly supportive of Ivey getting a head coaching shot.
That is not nothing. Irving has had famously rocky relationships with coaches throughout his career. The fact that he and Ivey clicked is exactly the kind of detail that ends up driving a hire when ownership is making a tough call.
The Mavericks are reportedly down to three finalists. Ivey is one. Former Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts is another. The third is Spurs assistant Mitch Johnson. All three have been interviewed multiple times. All three are credible candidates.
Ivey’s resume is more than just the Irving connection. He played in the NBA from 2004 to 2013 as a defensive-minded guard. He has been an assistant for a full decade. He led South Sudan to qualification for both the 2023 FIBA World Cup and the 2024 Paris Olympics. That kind of head coaching experience matters even if it was in international ball.
The South Sudan run was no small thing. Ivey took a federation with almost no infrastructure and built it into a real basketball nation. He recruited talent. He coached up players. He won games no one expected him to win.
Front office types around the league have noticed. Ivey was a finalist for the Pistons job two summers ago. He has been on multiple short lists. The fact that the Mavericks are circling makes sense.
This Dallas situation is delicate. The Mavericks just lost the Luka Doncic era. They traded him. They had to. The roster is now built around Anthony Davis, P.J. Washington, Klay Thompson, and Irving. Cooper Flagg is the future. The team needs a coach who can win now while developing the new pieces.
Ivey checks several of those boxes. He can connect with Irving. He has worked with high-usage stars. He has a defensive background, which the Mavericks badly need after years of carrying mediocre defenses.
The Stotts case is different. He is the veteran retread, the safe pick, the guy who could come in and get the team to 50 wins because he has been there before. The Johnson case is the long-term play, the young assistant with a clear basketball mind from a winning organization.
Ivey is the bet that the next great coach is one who knows how to manage a complicated star. Irving qualifies. Davis qualifies. Even Flagg, as a rookie, will need the right voice.
If the Mavericks want a clean run at this Irving-led group, Ivey is the cleanest choice. The hire is reportedly close. Dallas has its answer coming soon.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
