“It’s that little con artist you’ve got up there” – Adrian Dantley’s mother blamed Isiah for her son’s trade to the Mavs originally appeared on Basketball Network.
Adrian Dantley was so devastated by his trade from the Detroit Pistons to the Dallas Mavericks that he didn’t report immediately to his new team. After saying that the trade “wasn’t about basketball,” he had not been heard of. Dantley was traded on a Wednesday and was supposed to be in Dallas by Friday at noon. He missed the deadline.
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As usual, he was silent, if not reclusive. His wife, Dnitri, and mother, Virginia, spoke on his behalf.
“Sure he is,” said Dnitri when a reporter from the Dallas News asked her if her husband was hurt by the trade. “Wouldn’t you be?”
Adrian was very close to his mother
Meanwhile, Adrian’s mother sounded angry — and not at the Pistons. She was mad at their superstar guard, Isiah Thomas, whom she felt was the architect of the trade that brought his friend, Mark Aguirre, to Detroit.
“You shouldn’t blame Jack McCloskey,” said Dantley’s mom about the mess. “He’s not the one. It’s that little con artist you’ve got up there. When his royal highness wants something, he gets it.”
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Many were surprised that Virginia got involved. At the time of the trade, AD was already 33 years old and married. But those who knew Dantley from his childhood days understood why.
Adrian was only three years old when his parents got divorced. He grew up with his mom, Aunt Mariel, and a cousin. Without a father figure growing up, it was Virginia who guided him throughout his basketball career. And because Dantley was hurt by his trade to the Mavericks, it was natural for his mom to take up the cudgels for him. Even Isiah agreed.
“I know my mom would be blowing off some steam too,” said Thomas when told about what Dantley’s mom said. “I understand it.”
McCloskey warned Dantley that he would trade him
Thomas went on to deny that he had a hand in the Dantley trade, although there were rumors that they weren’t seeing eye-to-eye. Nobody confirmed if they had beef because Dantley refused to tell Pistons officials, including GM Jack McCloskey, if he had any issues with any of his teammates, including Isiah.
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“You have to talk to me about it,” said McCloskey.
Still, Dantley did not budge. Finally, Jack issued him a warning.
“Adrian, if you don’t want to talk about it, I’m going to trade you, and I’m not kidding you. I’m going to trade you. I’m not going to have you break up this team. I’m not saying you’re at fault, but you know something that I don’t know. I told him, flat out, ‘I’m going to trade you,’ and I think it was just two days later we flew down to Dallas and made the trade,” he said.
It wasn’t just McCloskey who had an issue with Dantley. Head coach Chuck Daly alsodid.
During a game at Boston Garden in 1989, Daly and Dantley threw F-bombs at each other after Daly attempted to substitute him with Dennis Rodman, and he did not want to leave the game.
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“We’ve got to get this mother fu—er the fu— out of here,” Daly was later overheard saying at the hotel lobby.
The trade had to happen for Detroit to win
Chuck’s main issue with Adrian was that he wanted more ball movement, but the latter was holding up the ball and slowing down the game with his one-on-one style. With Rodman starting to emerge, he also began eating some of Dantley’s playing time, which the veteran scorer also dissented from. With their sights set on returning to the NBA Finals, McCloskey decided it was in the best interest of the team to let go of Dantley.
“It was going to get worse,” he said. “It was not a risk. I went to Chuck and said, ‘He didn’t communicate with me; he’s not communicating with you. I’m going to trade him.’ We just had to move Adrian. And I really liked Adrian. But something happened there. And I still don’t know.”
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On February 15, the trade deadline, the Pistons made the big trade. Everyone on AD’s side did not like the move, and some fans disagreed, too. However, Detroit went 44-6 with Aguirre on board, and they went on to win the championship they didn’t get with Dantley the previous year. To solidify the trade, the Bad Boys won a second straight title in 1990.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 21, 2025, where it first appeared.