Dallas Mavs

[Justinkm83]

This, especially in the playoffs. Giving up 130 is an embarrassment. That is just lack of effort. Even the worst defensive team would allow less than that with intense effort on D. So many players have reached personal bests against the Mavs... Harden tonight with his playoff career high. They're such a far cry from the 2011 Mavs. I hate to say it, but even Tyson looks less effective on D. Aminu is the only hustle defender they have.

I've been saying it for almost the whole season. Tyson is not the defensive presence he used to be inside. He's been killed by many centers this year. Some had no business doing it either. It could be because he doesn't want to get into foul trouble knowing we don't have anybody backing him up. For some reason, the 2 FO dipshits didn't think we needed another C after adding Amar'e.

 

[WilltheThrill]

I've been saying it for almost the whole season. Tyson is not the defensive presence he used to be inside. He's been killed by many centers this year. Some had no business doing it either. It could be because he doesn't want to get into foul trouble knowing we don't have anybody backing him up. For some reason, the 2 FO dipshits didn't think we needed another C after adding Amar'e.

While I'm forever grateful that Mark Cuban bought the Mavs and helped make them a relevant NBA team again, I do agree with you about him and especially Donnie. They too often like to think of themselves as the smartest guys in the room, and far too often they're only fooling themselves. If you made a ledger of good vs. bad moves those 2 have made, the bad side would be a lot longer. Letting Steve Nash go far too soon. Taking way too long to invest in a legit center to put next to Dirk. Antoine Walker. Avery Johnson. Lamar Odom. Rajon Rondo. The draft from 2006 to present. Putting all of their chips into landing either DWill or Howard and then coming up empty (especially when Cuban filmed Shark Tank instead of meeting with DWill).

If you really stop and do an honest assessment of their ability to put together complete championship teams, they've failed pretty badly. The one saving grace for the past 15 years has been Dirk Nowitzki who helped hide all of the team's flaws by himself. No defense? No problem- Dirk. Weak bench? No problem- Dirk. Not a lot of elite talent? No problem- Dirk. He alone made them 6-8 seeds higher each season. And now that he's finally on the downside of his career and no longer dominant every night out, the team's flaws are much more magnified. Their go-to guy is now an erratic and sometimes out of control chucker instead of Dirk. Sometimes he's clutch, sometimes he throws up a brick. Dirk in his prime was almost always money. When the other Mavs of old played poorly, we were always like "no problem, Dirk's got this". And he usually did.

But now more frequently than ever, Dirk doesn't "got this". And based on Cuban and Donnie's track record of trades, drafting, free agent signing, and judging talent, I'm not all that confident that they can put together a true contender in the post-Dirk years.

 

[ESPN Refugee]

While I'm forever grateful that Mark Cuban bought the Mavs and helped make them a relevant NBA team again, I do agree with you about him and especially Donnie. They too often like to think of themselves as the smartest guys in the room, and far too often they're only fooling themselves. If you made a ledger of good vs. bad moves those 2 have made, the bad side would be a lot longer. Letting Steve Nash go far too soon. Taking way too long to invest in a legit center to put next to Dirk. Antoine Walker. Avery Johnson. Lamar Odom. Rajon Rondo. The draft from 2006 to present. Putting all of their chips into landing either DWill or Howard and then coming up empty (especially when Cuban filmed Shark Tank instead of meeting with DWill).

If you really stop and do an honest assessment of their ability to put together complete championship teams, they've failed pretty badly. The one saving grace for the past 15 years has been Dirk Nowitzki who helped hide all of the team's flaws by himself. No defense? No problem- Dirk. Weak bench? No problem- Dirk. Not a lot of elite talent? No problem- Dirk. He alone made them 6-8 seeds higher each season. And now that he's finally on the downside of his career and no longer dominant every night out, the team's flaws are much more magnified. Their go-to guy is now an erratic and sometimes out of control chucker instead of Dirk. Sometimes he's clutch, sometimes he throws up a brick. Dirk in his prime was almost always money. When the other Mavs of old played poorly, we were always like "no problem, Dirk's got this". And he usually did.

But now more frequently than ever, Dirk doesn't "got this". And based on Cuban and Donnie's track record of trades, drafting, free agent signing, and judging talent, I'm not all that confident that they can put together a true contender in the post-Dirk years.

Donnie deserves criticism like Cuban no doubt but in 2013 Donnie was begging to draft the Greak Freak and he was there for the taking but Cuban overruled him and said we need to stick to the plan just so they can save 400K. I think any GM especially in basketball and especially when you're accustomed to win 50 games for about a decade and a half will have his far more misses than hits but I just hate the fact that up until this point at least they've virtually dismissed the draft of anything. I mean the draft is there...it's like it's a free way to gain talent in your organization by just doing some serious scouting and HW. I'm afraid the day Cuban and clan decide to really take the draft seriously will just be the day they have no choice and that's with Dirk being so done and there's just absolutely nothing on this team the franchise can hang their hat on.

 

[WilltheThrill]

It's really hard to take the NBA seriously, it really is. The officiating in this series has been so-one-sided it's comical. Forget the huge advantage the Rockets have in both free throws taken and fouls called. It's the sheer amount of times the Mavs are getting mugged with no calls. Another example- Josh Smith already has one tech on him, then he gets into a jawing match with Jefferson. Instead of giving them both techs, the ref only t's up Jefferson because he knows giving Smith a matching t will result in his ejection.

148-101 in Free Throws taken through 4 games so far. 47 more free throws taken. It's no wonder why we're looking at a 3-1 series lead for Houston.

So corrupt.

 

[WilltheThrill]

Dirk just can't shoot anymore. There are glimpses here and there of his former stroke, but all in all he's become somewhat of a liability. 1 of 9 to start a must-win playoff game is just horrid. He's getting open looks too.

 

[RevSader]

Well the Warriors did it. Hambombs should be happy. I was wrong. Steve Kerr made all the difference in the world. He wouldn't let them lose.

 

[Nightcrawler]

Well the Warriors did it. Hambombs should be happy. I was wrong. Steve Kerr made all the difference in the world. He wouldn't let them lose.

I wasn't watching the series, but I was hoping for a game 7. I would've watched that probably.

 

[Hambombs]

Well the Warriors did it. Hambombs should be happy. I was wrong. Steve Kerr made all the difference in the world. He wouldn't let them lose.

Told you they had a great chance. And thanks man! it's surreal to me right now

 

[RevSader]

Told you they had a great chance. And thanks man! it's surreal to me right now

After game 3 they looked beat mentally. Then they flipped switch and just wore the Cavs out.

 

[Hambombs]

After game 3 they looked beat mentally. Then they flipped switch and just wore the Cavs out.

Yep our depth wore them out

 

[jta4437]

Well the Warriors did it. Hambombs should be happy. I was wrong. Steve Kerr made all the difference in the world. He wouldn't let them lose.

The Cavs missing 2 of their 3 best players probably played a pretty big factor, in fact that's probably the deciding factor here

 

[RevSader]

The Cavs missing 2 of their 3 best players probably played a pretty big factor, in fact that's probably the deciding factor here

Cavs were up 2-1 without them though. Kerr switching things up made a huge difference in wearing the Cavs down the past two games. They took a depleted team's best shot and wore them down.

I don't feel bad for Cleveland though. They had a joke of a road to the finals to start.

 

[jta4437]

Cavs were up 2-1 without them though. Kerr switching things up made a huge difference in wearing the Cavs down the past two games. They took a depleted team's best shot and wore them down.

I don't feel bad for Cleveland though. They had a joke of a road to the finals to start.

I don't feel bad for them either, but they were beat down b/c they had one player worth a damn and he was playing almost every minute

The Cavs ran out of gas b/c they started running out of players and over-relying on scrubs due to injuries

When JR Smith is arguably your 2nd best player in the Finals, you're in trouble

The fact that it even made it to 6 games is a miracle

 

[RevSader]

I don't feel bad for them either, but they were beat down b/c they had one player worth a damn and he was playing almost every minute

The Cavs ran out of gas b/c they started running out of players and over-relying on scrubs due to injuries

When JR Smith is arguably your 2nd best player in the Finals, you're in trouble

The fact that it even made it to 6 games is a miracle

Mozgov and Thompson at least showed up and gave their all though. They had 7 double doubles between them and a shit ton of rebounds. They were eating the warriors alive inside. Blatt should have used that against them...instead they just shot more 3s. This hero ball thing going on now in the NBA makes for some shitty series. I think the worst example of that was the Bulls and Cavs series...I've never seen more guys jack up awful shot after awful shot running nothing but iso plays.

 

[WastinSomeTime]

I don't feel bad for them either, but they were beat down b/c they had one player worth a damn and he was playing almost every minute

The Cavs ran out of gas b/c they started running out of players and over-relying on scrubs due to injuries

When JR Smith is arguably your 2nd best player in the Finals, you're in trouble

The fact that it even made it to 6 games is a miracle

You are right. I really thought with Cleveland missing their 2nd and 3rd best players that Golden State would run them off the court. I wanted GS to win but can't help but think that they may not have with a healthy Cavs team.

 

[WilltheThrill]

It appears as though the Monta Ellis era in Dallas is all but over. One night before his deadline to opt-in for one last season, "sources" (aka Mark Cuban) have let it be leaked that if Monta chooses to opt-in, the Mavs will trade him to whichever team will take him in exchange for a draft pick.

In other words: "Hey Monta, if you want to have any say where you play next year, you might want to decline your player option and give us the cap room".

I say good riddance. His scoring often came at the expense of others and his moodiness reportedly really hurt the team morale quite often. Plus he didn't play a lick of defense. Give me Danny Green starting at the 2 for a lot less money and spend the extra money on retaining Tyson and signing either Aldridge or Jordan.

 

[RevSader]

It appears as though the Monta Ellis era in Dallas is all but over. One night before his deadline to opt-in for one last season, "sources" (aka Mark Cuban) have let it be leaked that if Monta chooses to opt-in, the Mavs will trade him to whichever team will take him in exchange for a draft pick.

In other words: "Hey Monta, if you want to have any say where you play next year, you might want to decline your player option and give us the cap room".

I say good riddance. His scoring often came at the expense of others and his moodiness reportedly really hurt the team morale quite often. Plus he didn't play a lick of defense. Give me Danny Green starting at the 2 for a lot less money and spend the extra money on retaining Tyson and signing either Aldridge or Jordan.

Ellis earned my respect as a player in Dallas. He deserved the ASG over Dirk. Really if he didn't have a good night Dallas' chance of winning most games was pretty bad. He was streaky and went on a terrible shooting slump this year. Rick got the most out of him. He's not a front line NBA star, but he's pretty decent. He would work well as a depth guy on a more rounded out team.

I would love Lamarcus Aldridge on the Mavs. I just know their luck with FAs.

 

[Justinkm83]

Ellis earned my respect as a player in Dallas. He deserved the ASG over Dirk. Really if he didn't have a good night Dallas' chance of winning most games was pretty bad. He was streaky and went on a terrible shooting slump this year. Rick got the most out of him. He's not a front line NBA star, but he's pretty decent. He would work well as a depth guy on a more rounded out team.

I would love Lamarcus Aldridge on the Mavs. I just know their luck with FAs.

This year is the first year where I don't feel like they sign any of the big names. Jordan is going to take the money in LA. Our best shot is Aldridge. I read where we might try to sign Wesley Matthews (which I would love) to try to entice LaMarcus. They're close friends.

I just don't see any reason why anyone would want to come here.

 

[Bmurph]

This year is the first year where I don't feel like they sign any of the big names. Jordan is going to take the money in LA. Our best shot is Aldridge. I read where we might try to sign Wesley Matthews (which I would love) to try to entice LaMarcus. They're close friends.

I just don't see any reason why anyone would want to come here.

I bet the Lakers make a run at LA

This is the first time in a long time I've felt the Mavs are due for a total rebuild

 

[WilltheThrill]

Ellis earned my respect as a player in Dallas. He deserved the ASG over Dirk. Really if he didn't have a good night Dallas' chance of winning most games was pretty bad. He was streaky and went on a terrible shooting slump this year. Rick got the most out of him. He's not a front line NBA star, but he's pretty decent. He would work well as a depth guy on a more rounded out team.

I would love Lamarcus Aldridge on the Mavs. I just know their luck with FAs.

All very true. I actually liked Monta during the first part of his tenure in Dallas. And he did score in bunches for sure. There were many nights where if Monta was cold the Mavs had no chance. But I think I started to sour on him right around the time the Mavs reportedly did. His good nights were less frequent, or maybe consistent is a better word, and he was almost an all-out malcontent by season's end. Refusing to join team huddles during timeouts, fighting with teammates away from the court, etc. to me were signs of a guy who wasn't happy and wasn't all that interested in the success of his team.

He's always had the reputation of a petulant child who pouts and sulks, and it kind of found its way back to him this last season. If he had put up better numbers in the second half, I think more people wouldn't care as much about his often poor attitude.

It was nice while it lasted, but I think their honeymoon is over.