DALLAS — Masai Ujiri attended the eighth annual Dirk Nowitzki Foundation Tennis Classic on Saturday at Banner House at T Bar M. Three days earlier, Dirk Nowitzki said the two have been discussing what his role with the Dallas Mavericks could be.
Ujiri had a flight that afternoon. Nowitzki spotted him in the crowd during his availability before the matches.
The two first met through NBA Africa and Basketball Without Borders.
“So Masai is actually coming today, even though he has a flight in the afternoon,” Nowitzki said. “Hey, where is he at? There he is, the legend. He’s here. So Masai and I go actually way back. I met Masai with NBA Africa, Basketball Without Borders, and all the great programs that NBA does, for a long time. So we probably know each other for, what, 15 years, more probably.”
Ujiri was hired as president and alternate governor of the Mavericks on May 4. He oversees all of basketball operations.
Dirk Nowitzki And Masai Ujiri Discussing Mavericks Role
On Wednesday, Nowitzki told Shan & RJ on 105.3 The Fan that he and Ujiri had held discussions over the previous couple of weeks. His schedule is what stands in the way of anything formal. He had just returned from a week in Berlin at the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup, and Amazon Prime Video’s NBA coverage resumes next month.
“Then obviously with the whole Amazon picking back up next month, so there won’t be any time soon that I’m taking a full-time job,” Nowitzki said Wednesday, as reported by Dallas Sports Journal. “But we’re definitely discussing on what could be my role in the future, but obviously it’s way too soon to kind of speak on that. But I’ve met Masai a couple times, and excited for the Mavs’ future.”
On Aug. 31, Nowitzki told Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News that he and Ujiri had been in touch by text over the summer. He said then that a sit-down could come later.
Nowitzki has held a role with the franchise before. In June 2021, he rejoined the Mavericks as a special advisor to help then-owner Mark Cuban search for a new team president and coach. That search ended with the hires of Nico Harrison and Jason Kidd.
Nowitzki played all 21 of his NBA seasons in Dallas and won the 2011 championship. He retired in 2019 as the franchise leader in points, rebounds, and games.
Masai Ujiri’s First Months Running The Dallas Mavericks
Since May, Ujiri has made a lot of changes and brought in his own people.
“So excited to see him come in and obviously put his imprint on everything that we do and the Mavs do and on the organization. And [he’s made] a lot of changes, brought a lot of his own guys in, and it’ll be a fun little ride watching how this is going to go, new coach, new GM,” Nowitzki continued. “So obviously [he’s] done a lot, and we’ll see how all this is going to pan out.”
Dallas hired Mike Schmitz as general manager on May 8. On May 19, the Mavericks and Kidd agreed to part ways. Dusty May was hired as coach June 23, after winning the national championship at Michigan.
Ujiri built the Toronto Raptors team that won the 2019 NBA title. He was the NBA’s Executive of the Year for 2012-13 with Denver, and he founded the nonprofit Giants of Africa in 2003. Harrison was fired in November 2025. Michael Finley and Matt Riccardi ran the front office on an interim basis until Ujiri arrived.
Dallas reached the 2024 NBA Finals and lost to Boston in five games. The Mavericks have missed the playoffs in both seasons since, and they finished 26-56 last season.
“And we’re in [his] corner. Obviously, we all want the Mavs to go back to where they were just a few years ago, [when they] were a finals team,” Nowitzki added. “So there’s a lot of work to be done, and we’re excited. It’s exciting to see what’s the future and how this is gonna play out.”
The Mavericks open the preseason Oct. 9 against Houston at The Venetian Arena in Macao. The regular season opens Oct. 21 at Houston, with tip-off at 7:30 p.m. CT.
