The Dallas Mavericks’ offseason overhaul just took another hit, and this one lands in a place the team probably wanted to protect.
Phil Handy is finalizing a deal to join the Philadelphia 76ers as an assistant coach under Nick Nurse, according to ESPN’s Marc J. Spears. That means Dallas has now lost the last holdover from Jason Kidd’s staff after an offseason that already saw major changes across the coaching room and front office.
Handy had been one of the names expected to stay when Dusty May began assembling his new staff. Josh Broghamer was the first to go, following Sean Sweeney to the Orlando Magic, and Handy was left as the lone remaining link to the previous era. Now he’s headed to Philadelphia.
There’s real familiarity in that move. Handy worked with Nurse in Toronto, and his NBA résumé stretches across some of the league’s biggest stars. He was a player development coach with the Los Angeles Lakers when they won the 2020 championship, and he also spent time with LeBron James with the Cavaliers and Lakers.
For Dallas, losing Handy matters because of the relationships he built. He was especially close with Kyrie Irving from their time together with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and he also played a role in the development of Max Christie.
Handy’s coaching path has been a long one: he started as a development coach with the Lakers from 2011 to 2013, moved to the Cavs from 2013 to 2018, joined the Raptors for the 2018-19 season, returned to the Lakers from 2019 to 2024, and then spent last season with the Mavericks.
He also coached Rose BC in the women’s Unrivaled league and led the team to the league’s inaugural championship.
Over the years, Handy has worked alongside a long list of elite names: LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Kyrie Irving, Pau Gasol, Steve Nash, Dwight Howard, Anthony Davis, Kevin Love, Kawhi Leonard, and more. He’s been part of three championship staffs, winning titles with the Cavs in 2016, the Raptors in 2019, and the Lakers in 2020.
The 76ers are getting a coach with championship experience, while Dallas is left trying to settle into a new identity under May, Ujiri, and Mike Schmitz. Most of the coaching departures haven’t drawn the same reaction as Handy’s, but Mavericks fans wanted him to stay because of his connection with Irving.
That relationship still matters in Dallas. With Cooper Flagg now the main focus, the Mavericks also need to keep Irving comfortable, especially since he’s made it clear he’s happy there. Whether he stays beyond that remains to be seen, but moves like this won’t help the effort.
Having Masai Ujiri in place certainly helps, and Irving has reportedly embraced being a leader for the younger players, including Flagg. Still, losing Handy removes one more familiar voice from a team that is trying to start fresh.
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For a team trying to sort out its next look, the move matters because it changes the texture of the roster as much as the rotation. Thompsons next stop is already lining up elsewhere, but in Dallas the bigger story is the message being sent to the rest of the locker room: the opportunities ahead will have to be earned, and the front office is clearly willing to let that process play out. [Read more 🡒]