Dallas Mavericks are going with plan B in ’09-’10

 

Mark Cuban and the Mavs brain-trust had an off season plan to improve through free agency. They had thoughts on signing more than one player to solidify play from their frontcourt alongside Dirk Nowitzki, which along with their annual problem of possessing one of the worst defenses in the league, is arguably their weak spot on the roster.

The Mavs decided to look for help since their 5 year incumbent at center, Eric Dampier’s numbers have dipped(5.7 ppg, 7.1 rebs, 1.2 blk), while his age continues to climb(33). Also while Dirk is still one of the most potent offensive players in the league, his age(31) will soon start catching up to him. He could use some help to help shoulder the load of carrying the team as he gets older.. They targeted Dwight Howard’s backup in Orlando, Marcin Gortat and were set resign PF Brandon Bass, who at age 23, many consider is ready to have a breakout season. Then the Orlando Magic came in under the radar and signed both players. “The Polish Hammer” would have given the team great size and could help the team transition away from the older and slower Dampier.

Cuban had to go to his backup plan and bring Drew Gooden and Tim Thomas into the fold. While the two are a bit shorter and a tad older, they now have a more versatile frontcourt with interchangeable parts, and thinking of the bottom line, a whole lot cheaper. Add “The Matrix” Shawn Marion, Nowitzki, and SF Josh Howard, and the Mavericks have terrific depth in the frontcourt. Questions surround Thomas’ recent injury while at home on how long it will keep him out of action.

I’m sure that Dallas will try to play small at times since the West does not have an abundance of talented big men. The Lakers have the talented but oft injured Andrew Bynum and the Blazers have the enigmatic Greg Oden, who last year still came off of the bench. Only the Spurs with Tim Duncan have a truly great center. Dallas’ flexibility is amazing since Gooden can at times defend the paint when Nowitzki plays the 5 to stretch the defense. Marion has proven to be more than capable scorer and rebounder at either forward spot and even Howard can play some 2 guard along with getting instant offense from Jason Terry. They can use Jason Kidd at the point or slide him to shooting guard when Jose Barea enters the game. Kidd can go back to the point when they need a backcourt defensive presence from Quinton Ross, off the bench.

The only downfall is that most of their best players are past the 30 years old age barrier. Although their talent goes 8-10 players deep, the rest of the bench is mostly dead weight and they lack any players heading towards the future. And even though Mark Cuban has plenty of money, the team as presently constructed in almost $20 over the cap. I’m sure Cuban is hoping that Rick Carlisle gets the most that he possibly can out of this roster next season.

It looks good for the Mavericks to extend their streak of 9 straight seasons of making the postseason, but have only one Finals appearance in that time. They have also won 50 or more games in those 9 years as well. Although on paper it doesn’t look like the Mavericks are true title contenders, remember that NBA Championships aren’t won in September. With a little luck, they might slide into the top 4 seeds out West, getting a home court advantage, win a few rounds, and challenge the Spurs, Lakers, or Trailblazers for another Western Conference crown, just like 2006.

Here is a link to a video of the Dallas Mavericks top plays last season:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WNnftFerrM

NBA Players Bring the “Basketball Show” to Brazil

As every basketball fan now knows, The National Basketball Association is a multi-cultural showcase of hoop skills with players coming from all over the globe to compete on the highest competitive level. Foreign born players have risen to great heights to become All-Stars and even MVP’s like Dirk Nowitzki.

Every once in a while players go back to their native countries for the sake of charity. We all know of Dikembe Mutombo’s giving millions of dollars and other humanitarian work in his homeland of the Congo in Africa.

During these down times for NBA players, two native Brazilians organized a basketball exhibition against two teams made up of NBA players and the best players from the Brazilian professional leagues. Anderson Varejao of the Cavaliers and Leandro Barbosa of the Suns put together the “Basketball Show” in hopes of raising money for helping the many homeless and impoverished children of Rio de Janeiro.

NBA players participating besides Varejao and Barbosa included “The Matrix” Shawn Marion, Drew Gooden (Dallas), Devin Brown (New Orleans), Keith Bogans (Milwaukee), Danny Granger (Indiana), Amir Johnson, Ryan Hollins, and Coby Karl (Lakers). NBA players were divided equally with the two Brazilian stars as captains.

The Dallas Maverick’s Shawn Marion came out the leading scorer with 31 points, followed by Anderson Varejao, the crowd favorite, scoring 30 points as the team “Friends of Leandro” beat the “Friends of Varejao” 116-110.

It’s good to hear about some NBA players giving back to the community instead of news of another player tarnishing the NBA’s image by entering rehab or in the police blotter.

College Freshmen to NBA Rookies-Who Will Make the Best Pros?

 

 

The former high school basketball recruiting class of 2008 has become one of the best groups of talented players in recent history. Many of these highly touted recruits have more than lived up to the hype and gone on to become superstars in the NCAA ranks. While a few stayed to enjoy the college atmosphere for another season, most have used their freshman seasons as a springboard to NBA stardom. If you are like me, when you watched the NBA draft almost a month ago, you noticed that many NBA teams go young by drafting players with only one or two seasons of college experience. As results from the Las Vegas Summer League filter in show, this move is apparently a good one. Although we won’t truly know for a number of years, here is a look at some of the higher draft picks Summer league progress from the Class of 2008:

 

Tyreke Evans – The highly touted guard from Chester, Pa was on the cover of several basketball magazines from age 14. He was guided by his support squad of mainly family friends touted “Team Tyreke”, to steer clear of the gang violence and criminal activity of his notorious hometown. He followed another former native of Chester and current member of the Magic, Jameer Nelson, to the college ranks at the University of Memphis. Tyreke was spectacular averaging 17.1ppg, 5.4 rebounds, and 4 assists which earned him the #4 pick of the Sacramento Kings. Las Vegas Summer League results have been impressive with Evans averaging 24 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists.

 

Brandon Jennings – When the #1 prospect from the 08′ class made a daring move to forego a college basketball career and play in Europe for one season, many where quick to criticize. After averaging less than 10 points in limited action in Italy, the Bucks made him the #10 pick in this year’s draft. He hasn’t disappointed averaging 15 points, 8 assists, and shooting 50% from the 3pt line.

 

Demar Derozan – The 6’7 swingman from Compton HS in California has loads of NBA potential. The #3 prospect from the 08′ class was thrust into Youtube fame with his dazzling above the rim skills as a freshman in HS by averaging more than 26 ppg. After mixed results in college at USC during his lone regular season, Demar showed flashes of his potential leading his team deep into the NCAA Tournament earning him the #9 pick of the Raptors. He could be the eventual replacement if Chris Bosh leaves via free agency in 2010. Results this Summer have been good averaging 15 points and 5 rebounds.

 

B J Mullens – Many NBA executives passed on drafting the skilled 7 footer and #9 prospect in the 08′ class from Canal Winchester, Ohio in the first round. After a tremendous HS career that included many dominating performances scoring more than 50 points being posted all over the Internet, he was destined to be the next great center at Ohio State. Although deemed a bit of a disappointment and amid recruiting violations, he was drafted #24 by Dallas and immediately traded to OKC Thunder to be part of an ever improving nucleus of young players. Summer results show he will need more time to develop averaging only 7 points and 3 rebounds.