Nellie’s Mavs reunion not a total lovefest

? Don Nelson started the revival of the Dallas Mavericks that culminated in the franchise’s first trip to the NBA finals this past summer. So when the club revealed a banner Monday night honoring its Western Conference championship, it was only fitting that Nellie was there to watch – even if it was from the opposing team’s bench.

Nelson’s new club, the Golden State Warriors, just happened to be playing the Mavs in the game picked to celebrate last season’s success. They decided to hold the event before their second home game long before knowing their opponent and before Nelson had left his job as a Dallas consultant to return to coaching.

“The feeling is that I’m just so proud of what they’ve done,” Nelson said. “To see them go from the worst team in the league to the best, I’m very proud.”

Alas, Nelson’s return was not as warm and fuzzy as it might seem.

The already strained relationship between Nelson and Mavs owner Mark Cuban turned worse in recent months. Nelson’s attorneys are trying to collect $6 million he says the club owes him, while Cuban feels jilted by Nelson’s return to coaching after repeatedly telling the billionaire Dallas would be his last job.

Mavs fans still love the winningest coach in team history. He received a standing ovation from those who noticed him amble out during warmups, then got a loud ovation when he was introducing by the PA announcer. Cuban clapped, too.

The ceremony was quick, featuring a brief video that didn’t mention Dallas losing to the Miami Heat in the NBA finals. Then a black curtain was pulled away to reveal the banner already hanging in the rafters. As Nelson watched, he stood next to assistant Larry Riley, who was on the Dallas staff last year.

“I wish I could go out there and help raise the flag, that would be really nice,” Nelson said before the game. “Or have a ‘Welcome back’ from Mark. That would be wonderful. But none of those things are going to happen.”

The money Nelson is seeking stems from the days before Cuban owned the team, back when the Mav-wrecks were lottery regulars and Nelson was hired as the general manager to clean up the mess. He overhauled the roster, made himself the coach and discovered how well the combination of Michael Finley, Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki worked.

The team became playoff regulars after Cuban injected money and enthusiasm. Nelson was his mentor early on, and they made for an entertaining tandem.

Now?

“That relationship is over,” Nelson said. “I hope Mark will come to his senses and pay me the money he owes me. If not, we’ll go to arbitration. It looks like we’re headed down that road.”

Cuban said having Nelson at the ceremony was “irrelevant, I don’t care one way or another.” He added that it’s not a shame that things turned out the way they have.

“It’d be a shame if for some reason he wanted to be a Mav the rest of his days – like he told us he would want to be – and it just didn’t work out,” Cuban said. “But when you leave for another job, that’s not a shame. That’s a career decision.”