Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison has come to rely on an old basketball chestnut as a catch-all explainer for why he made the now-infamous Luka Dončić trade. “Defense wins championships,” Harrison said Monday. “And we’re going to hang our hat on defense.” It’s a often-used expression around basketball. But is it right anymore?

For only the third time since Feb. 1 but second time in a week, Nico Harrison took a few questions about what made him rip Luka Doncic from the fabric of the local sports community. He didn’t tell us much we didn’t already know Monday,