Mavericks Season Preview

Check out the team breakdown at Mavs Money Ball.  Here’s the overview…

So, what are we looking at in the NBA this year?

-Shaq's in Cleveland, making his fourth alliance with "the next big thing" (Hardaway, Bryant, wade, James).
-Boston picked up Sheed
-Orlando brought home Vinsanity
-LAL brought in a pit bull with Artest
-San Antonio got really scary with McDyess and Jefferson
-Oh, and that Blazers team that everyone said a better point guard because Steve Blake wasn't it?  Yeah, they're a year older and got Andre Miller.

Needless to say, the NBA's rich just got richer.  There are a host of other story lines: refs, impending CBA lockout, Von Wafer's hair, Blake Griffin's ACL which I am now referring to as "the Clipper's ticking time bomb", but that's not why you're reading this...you wanna know about your Dallas Mavericks.

Click here to read Brown's preview over at MavsMoneyBall.com

Predictions:

EAST
1) Cleveland (LeBron, Shaq...yeah)
2) Orlando (Lost the Turkish MJ, got Vince Carter...wash)
3) Boston (They're old, but they're the good old)
4) Toronto (Bosh and Hedo, I smell buddy flick!)
5) Atlanta (Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford is gonna be lethal)
6) Chicago (Baby Bulls and Vinny of the Black!)
7) Detroit (New look Pistons with Gordon and Villanueva)
8) Philadelphia (Elton Brand is healthy. Eddie Jordon brings the Princeton offense.)

West
1) Los Angeles (if I need to specify, you're retarded)
2) Portland (I'm telling you, these kids are going to be good)
3) San Antonio (Healthy Manu and Jefferson on the wings? McDyess at the five and Duncan at the four? Yikes.)
4) Utah (Same old)
5) Denver (Melo's hungier than ever)
6) Dallas (I just broke them down)
7) New Orleans (The Paul and Chandler pick and roll was special to watch…how well can it run with Okafor?)
8) Golden State (I really really like Stephen Curry in Nellie-ball)

Finals: San Antonio & Cleveland

Champion: San Antonio

So…the Mavs sure have changed

Not that long ago, I was lamenting Donnie Nelson’s horrendous draft choice of the frog legged wunderkind, Roddy Beauxbois.   In fact, I believe I claimed that he had to do something to show me that the Mavs were making an effort to change.

So, let’s review what he’s pulled off since…

-Re-signed Jason Kidd.  Got him at a bit of a high price, but let’s be honest, it had to be done.  There was no other option unless they went for a stop-gap solution in a Jarrett Jack or Jomario Moon.

-Traded for Shawn Marion.  Now, if we were playing fantasy basketball, I think this a great idea.  You’re getting a guy that a few years ago was averaging a double-double and was known for playing lock down defense.  He even had a great nickname, “The Matrix”.  I like the move though.  Gives a slasher and allows an interesting rotation across the 2-3-4 among Howard, Marion, Terry, Dirk, Singleton, etc.  The problem here was that it all depended on the Mavericks landing or securing a 5 that was more reliable/athletic than Erick Dampier.

-The Marcin Gortat experiment.  So, let’s review what happened.  Gortat wants to come to Dallas.  He got the full MLE and guaranteed minutes.  Dallas was SO SURE that he’d sign, they let Orlando sign Brandon Bass.  (There’s a whole science behind why Bass was never going to play in Dallas, but for all intents and purposes, they didn’t re-sign him because they thought they pocketed Gortat.)  Turns out Orlando fucked Dallas in both holes by matching Gortat.

So now what?  The Mavs would have been a VERY VERY impressive squad with Gortat.  Not because he was great, but he allowed the flexibility and athletic ability to run that rotation across the 2-3-4.  Now, they’re bare on the 5.  Dallas has to get an athletic center because we all know that Damp ain’t it.   Watch the trade block after 30 games.

Rick Carlisle is a good coach and Cuban is willing to pay the luxury tax.  I still think Donnie Nelson is a terrible GM, but let’s see what he does mid-stream.

Big's Mav's Wishlist

Tomorrow is the beginning of the NBA free agent period, and after the abortion that was the mav's draft (prince abu-abu?), the only hope for retooling the Mav's roster now lies in the hands of Donnie Nelson and Mark Cuban to open up the pay check and find some guys that will help get this team back to the elite level.

Nobody knows, and I haven't even heard many rumors about the Mav's off season plan. They may be playing it close to the vest, as they hope not spoil their big plans, or they may still think Dirk + Guys = Championship, but lord I hope not.

The Free Agent crop this year is good, but not great, and the Mav's have a (mostly) full mid level, and with Kidd's money coming off the books, a sign and trade could most deff happen. I don't expect them to get a top tier guy, but there are lot of helpful players out there. Here is what I would do.

Top Priority:

Secure the Point Guard. Either resign Jason Kidd, or get ready to roll with JJ and Terry running the point with a few min to the kidd from France they just drafted. If Kidd leaves, which he might, there are a few guys out there that could be had as stop gaps and play a decent roll, but none are on Kidds level. Guys like Jarrett Jack or the ageing Andre Miller. Either one of those guys, plus JJ would get you by, but it doesn't make you better even in the slightest.

Top Priority #2:

Find a Slasher who can score.

This has been the bane of the Mavericks as long as I have been watching them. They haven't had anybody (outside of one or two good years from Stack) that has no problem going to the rim, taking a foul, and the dreaded "create their own shot" ability. There aren't many guys in the league that can do this, so to say the pickings are slim would be an understatement, but there is most def room to improve here.

Lamar Odom or Trevor Ariza from LA could help, as they probably won't keep them both. Odom has the ability to be a top 15 guy, but lacks the discipline, and while Ariza's ceiling is lower, he works harder and plays good defence.

Ron Artest is another guy who can bring inconsistent play, but would add an air of toughness to this team that it lacks. The thought of him being apart of this class was almost unthinkable, but with the recent news of Yao Ming's foot possibly keeping the big man on the bench for another year, Artest may not want to stay in Houston if they have no chance at winning a title.

After these three, there is a slew of good role players, that would be about the same level as a healthy focused Josh Howard, but probably cost too much. Guys like Hedo Turkoglu(ball handling and jump shot,) Shawn Marion (defense and shooting), Hakim Warrick (rebounding and defence), and Marvin Williams (athleticism and rebounding). While all those guys are nice, they arn't worth the money they would command, except for maybe Williams, he might could be had on the cheep.

Pressing Needs #1

Back Court back up's.

Dirk is Dirk, and will be for the next several years, and we all know what we are going to get out of Damp, and with that in mind, the mav's need to have people behind these two guys to spell them some minutes and when Damp fouls way to much. Project one would be resigning Brandon Bass, but he might think he could start somewhere. If he leaves, guys like Charlie Villanueva, Antonio McDyess, and everybodys favorite Chris Andersen. I would take any of these four guys, as long as the price is right, and they don't' get locked into a bad contract.

Now that you know what I'm thinking, let me tell you what I would do.

PG - Resign Jason Kidd. 2 or 3 year deal, keep the Kidd - Dirk tandem as your core to make another push over the next 3 years.

SG - Marquis Daniels. Off him part of the mid level, share his min with the streaky Terry.

SF - Ron Artest. Trade Josh Howard away to Houston in a sign and trade, where they would use Howard to pair with T-Mac and get rid of the disgruntled star.

PF - Dirk

C - Damp

Bench - Just for the sake of it being easy, i would slightly overpay Bass to stay a mav.

Thought Number Two. If the Mav's can't resign Kidd, I go after Jarrod Jack or Andre Miller with my mid level, then go after Lamar Odom as had as I can. If that worked out, then the starting line up would be Jack, Howard, Odom, Dirk, Damp. that would at least be a step forward.

But we all know this wont happen. With Donnie running the ship, I'm pretty sure Memo Okur will end up on this team. Watch .

The NBA Draft

Yes, it’s true, I haven’t posted to this little corner of the www in a while.  It isn’t because of lack of desire, it’s been more a lack of time and a lack of formulating words into sentences.

I’m really not sure where I’m supposed to start…so…

Let’s start with the thing that has infuriated me to the point of random outbursts and almost getting thrown out of a restaurant that I was at with Big and some other friends…the NBA Draft

We knew walking into this draft that after pick number one, things just kind of fell down off the board.  Sure, there were possible studs like Rubio, Curry and long shots like Ellington and Evans, but all in all, it’s a lesser of a few evils. 

(By the way, when Jrue Holliday was selected did anyone kind of want to hear a JRUUUUUE! followed by the Souljaboy Tellem steel drums?  Just me?  Okay, then.)

Anyway, let me share my reaction when I see that your Dallas Mavericks selected B.J. Mullen from Ohio State. “ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!?!?!?!?!  THAT’S THE WORST GOD DAMN THING I’VE EVER SEEN!!!”  Proceeded by me slamming tables, chairs and trying to jab my fork into Big’s neck.

When my anger had somewhat subsided, we proceeded to go to a bar and hang out.  It was there that I found out that they had traded within their division for the French Leandro Barbosa, Antoine Rigadeau Olive St. Pierre/Tariq Abdul-Wahad Rodrique Beaubois.

Well, I don’t know what happened after that.  I saw nothing but red, and next thing I know, I found myself sitting in my garage with a corded rope and a busted light fixture fallen from the ceiling.

I don’t want to hear the argument “but they turned a single pick into 3 assets and draft picks next year”.  That’s bull shit.  Donnie Nelson and the Dallas Mavericks did one thing in this year’s draft, and that was bend the fans over a table and fuck them in the ass with a French tickler.

You could hear the absolute disdain in Rick Carlisle’s voice during the press conference the day after.  Even the media was in disbelief and couldn’t think of any questions besides “so, Roddy, do you know Tony Parker?”

I’ll ask the question no one had the balls to ask.  ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR FUCKING MIND, DONNIE NELSON?!?!!?!?

You’ve hit on ONE. JUST ONE European player.  Landing Dirk does not give you the freedom to pick people from shitty leagues overseas and claim you can coach them up. 

This team is sliding further back in the West, and sooner or later they’ll be the next to last team in their division.  Sam Presti is building OKC into quite the powerhouse.  The Spurs know what they’re doing. Houston is making smart trade.  New Orleans can’t manage money, but they can manage their team.  The Mavs might have finally done it.  They’ve done nothing but spit in my face as a fan for years, and I’m considering breaking up for good.

Fuck you, Donnie Nelson.  If you love Europe so god damned much, go coach in Greece and let’s get someone in here who doesn’t depend on Fran Fraschilla to tell them who to draft!

Your New (foreign) Mav

he's french. He's a guard who's quick but likes to shoot three's. He was taken 25 by OKC, then traded to us for the 24th pick BJ Mullens. He was slated to go mid to late 2nd round, possibly not even drafted. We took him at the end of one. Kill me with death.

Highlight Video.



(thriller was a nice touch, but not on purpose.)

ladies and gentlemen......

Rodrigue Beaubois

NBA Draft, where dallas will takes somebody who won't ever play

I know, first post in a long time. Basketball is over, I'm not that big a baseball guy, suck it.

However, the NBA draft is this Thursday. Every year, I get so damn excited as to who the Mav's will take, how they can help us win a title next year, so on and so forth. And ever year I get bent over sideways and fucked in the ass. Its what they do.

Even back in the day, the greatest day of drafting the mavericks ever had, I felt like the mav's fucked it all up. Let me explain.

SI.com has a list of "Best Players Drafted at their picks" bit that is a staple when draft time comes along. Well, I'll let you read what they said.

"9. Dirk Nowitzki, Bucks, 1998: In a prearranged draft-night trade that turned into one of the most lopsided deals in history, the Mavericks sent No. 6 pick Robert Traylor to the Bucks for Nowitzki and No. 19 pick Pat Garrity, whom Dallas dealt to Phoenix for Steve Nash. Nowitzki's three-point shooting as a 7-footer transformed the NBA's view of the power forward position. He led the Mavericks to the 2006 NBA Finals and was named league MVP a year later."

Sounds great right? And looking back on it, It really was great. Franchise changing if you will.

Did I think so at the time? Hell, no. my young high school self was watching the draft, and got really really excited when my team, took one of my favorite college players at number 6, Robert "Tractor" Traylor. Then they go and trade for this foren guy that i have never heard of.

Needless to say, I'm glad they did. But at the time, just another kick in the pants form the Mav's drafting team. I guess that's why I'm not an NBA GM. (though I really think I should be).

The Sports Guy, as usual, explains so much

Fuck That Guy!

I love Bill Simmons, and if that makes me a douche, so be it.

He most recent article, which is a three part email exchange with best selling author Malcolm Gladwell, is like walking into a debate on your favorite subject, between two people who are smarter, more thoughtful, and think more outside the box than you do.

Most of the article is about the NBA and whats wrong and how you can change it. I highly suggest you read it, but beware, its long.

There was one excerpt that I wanted to share with you in case the 9,000 words scare you away. This is Bill Simmons talking about the NBA Ref's, and how stupid the NBA is in using them.

"Back to your point about arrogance and sports leagues: Please tell me you're following the current officiating debacle. The two most-watched regular-season games (both Celtics-Lakers games) were ruined by officials. Game 7 of a classic Boston-Chicago series was ruined by officials. The Mavs' season was ruined by officials. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to flagrant fouls and how they are called, just that the ongoing indecision has compromised the quality of the games. Bill Kennedy had such a heated incident with Doc Rivers in March that both were fined; somehow, Kennedy worked two Boston playoff games (both must-wins on the road). Dallas went 1-14 in its past 15 playoffs games that Danny Crawford officiated; somehow he worked one of their 2009 playoff games (inevitably, a loss for Dallas). Joey Crawford got suspended two years ago for baiting Tim Duncan, then blew last season's season-ending Spurs call … and somehow, he worked a must-win San Antonio playoff game in 2009. And the number of competent refs is so bad that Violet Palmer worked a Round 2 game last week. For a league that vowed to clean things up post-Donaghy, why haven't we seen any real results yet?

I'm not the kind of guy to scream "the refs screwed us!" because honestly the refs screw everybody at some point. Just some food for thought.

Try and be Happy Day Continues

I need these today, stupid mavericks.

Is there a cure for what this team lacks?

All of season and up to the trade deadline, Maverick fans such as my self were waiting for the Mav's to trade for a player to help this team "get back on track," or "change the culture of quiting."

All we really got was Matt Carrol and John Hollins. Sweet.

The non-move really made me shake my head and prep for an average season, probably losing in the first round of the playoffs, but no real hope for the future.

Then a very odd thing happened. Jason Kidd and JJ Berea started to run this team away from the idea they were losers. The last month of the regular season and the first round of the playoffs saw the Mav's play with something that I haven't seen in them since the Phoenix series of 06, Heart and a desire to prove that they were the better team.

This new found drive started getting my hopes up about this team again. I started thinking to myself, "you know what, maybe this team doesn't need Dirk to be the leader, maybe it can be Kidd, or JET, or some games even JJ."

Then the Spurs happened. I knew going into that series that the Mav's were going to beat them. Even if the Spurs had Manu, I think the Mav's just match up well with them, and could take that series.

For the same reasons that I thought the Mav's could beat the Spurs(and ultimately did), is the same reason I don't like the probability that they take this series vs the Nuggets.

The simple idea is mental toughness. And I don't know if the Mav's have enough of it. The Mav's knew they could take the Spurs, they believed it. So even when Parker was scoring any way he wanted to, they just knew they could come back.

That's not there in this series. When Denver literally punches them in the mouth, the Mav's won't take it, look back, wipe the blood from their face, and hit them back even harder. Na, that's not the way the Mav's work. They will look around with their hands up, waiting for a whistle to bail them out. Sometimes it will, but the whistle won't bail you out four out of seven games.

So the problem that I thought was gone has come back. We need heart. Heart that says "we aint takin' this shit no more," or even "hit me one more time mother fucker, see what happens." And unless something changes over the next few days, I don't know where its going to come from.

Miles and Miles of heart.

So, how does this play into the CP3 rumor?

That’s an honest-to-God crowd shot from last night

The biggest ass whipping NBA Playoff history happened last night, as the Denver Nuggets destroyed the New Orleans Hornets 121 – 63.  Wait, sources are telling me that the largest margin in the ENTIRE NBA history, not just playoffs.  (Think they’re celebrating the Billups for Iverson trade?  I think so.)

Wow.

So, how does that affect the Mavericks?  Well, if you haven’t heard, New Orleans is hemorrhaging money right now.   They need to get rid of the big contract players and assume expiring or low cost players.   If the Hornets don’t get out of the first round, there’s serious talk of blowing up what was, not that long ago, one of the NBA’s darling young teams because of financial reasons.

A part of that salary dump involves a rumored trade to Dallas. Josh Howard, Erick Dampier, Jerry Stackhouse for Chris Paul and a large contract (think Peja Stojakovic or Tyson Chandler). 

Pray the Hornets have given up and conceded their franchise.  That means HUGE things for the Mavericks. 

Okay, Go Mavericks

A lot has been made that television ratings have dropped for the Mavericks this season.  You could point to the 2-7 start, the fans perceived “tiredhead” regarding the same starters, the total dominance of Kobe and LeBron as issues.  However, people thought that a playoff series against the hated rival Spurs was going to be what the fan base needed to re-energize.

But…television ratings haven’t really gone up or come close to what they were three years ago. Why?

It can’t be a sense of entitlement. We haven’t won anything.

It can’t be a sense of doom and gloom because Dallas is up 3-1 and playing some of the best basketball they’ve played in years.

It can’t be a sense of “luck’s about to run out” because, again, this team is playing the best basketball it’s played in years.

It’s not lack of starpower, Dirk, Josh, Kidd and JET are a great nucleus of stars.

So, what’s the deal?  Why are fans not gunned up for the Mavericks this year?

It’s fear.  Plain and simple.

The Dallas sports fan is a fairweather fan.  Those of us who have weathered the 11 win Mavs seasons and constant Ranger failures are the few and the proud (?).   Dallas fans are married to the Cowboys, and the heartbreak that has been caused by the team since 1996 is well etched on Dallas’s fanbase.  We’re afraid that if we truly follow and believe in a team, we’re going to get let down again.

No one believes that the Mavs can win the finals. Why?  Because they can’t.  No one is beating the Lakers in the West, that’s a given.  Because of this, fans have resigned that the season is over already, and all the playoff pushes in the world won’t matter.

All I can say is what I’ve told everyone who’s shown a slight disinterest in the Mavs:

Don’t Lose Faith.

As George Dunham said, “you know how your favorite movie ends, but you still stay till they roll the credits, don’t you?”

Shh…Dallas fans, just watch and pray

That’s right, I imagine Dallas’s sports gods are the Von Erichs

I think that somehow, somewhere, the Sports Gods have decided to temporarily hold their hands over Dallas.  I’m not sure if they’ve heard our bitches and moans and prayers.  It might be forgiveness for time served after Laura Miller doomed us all with the “parade incident” in 2006.  Either way, something is changing on the Dallas sports scene.

You might remember that since 2006, Dallas sports teams have broken hearts across the city.  It was a bit staggered, Rangers winning 80 games then returning to suck.  Mavs winning 63 games then flaming out against Golden State. Cowboys winning 13 games and returning to suck.  Stars making an improbable run to the conference finals only to be ravaged by injuries and losing this year.

However, I went to the Mavs game last night and noticed something I haven’t noticed in a very long time.  First, the Mavs were playing some of the best basketball they’ve played since 2006.  Second, not a single fan in the house was “bandwagoning” (or so it appeared) .

Then, I get into the car to go home and flick on the Ranger postgame, and it dawns on me that the Rangers have started the season 2-0 and it has been a very convincing 2-0.  I know, there’s 160 more games to play, but if you’ve ever been a Rangers fan, a 2-0 start with the way they’ve played these 2 games and the possibility to rock Pavano and then sweep a weak Detroit team and possible open 6-0?  That’s nuts.

Compound that with all the stress reduction, fat cutting and new house moving that the Cowboys are doing and the fact that a disappointed Stars team is going to be healthy and hungry next sesaon, and you can almost feel a change brewing in the city again.

I’m not saying we’re going to be sweeping all the major titles in a single year.  I’m not even saying we’re going to in a single title.  What I’m saying is, perhaps the fans and teams have reached a sense of happy equilibrium…it’s something to think about.

Former Mav running for mayor of…Seattle

Magic thinks James Donaldson needs deodorant

H/T: Ball Don't Lie

If you were a fan of the Mavericks in the late 80’s and beginning of the 90’s, you might remember a big ‘ol center named James Donaldson.  (I’ve met the guy and got his autograph…be jealous.)  He was an All-Star in 1988 and had a generally meh career on a Maverick team that featured Aguirre, Blackman, Harper, Perkins, Tarpley, Schrempf, Davis and Uwe Blab.  (Why they didn’t win a title is beyond me)

Anyway, seems Jimmy is looking to run the city of Seatte.  His platform?  Bring back the Sonics.

Look, I get athletes wanting to become politicians.  Kevin “K.J.” Johnson even became the mayor of Sacramento this year.  But wanting to bring back Sonic to Seattle?  I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love the Coney and Tots special as much as the next guy, and a Route 44 cherry limeade can hit the spot, but I don’t know if you can base an entire campaign on it.

What’s that?  Oh, the basketball team?  Well, I guess that makes much more sense.  I agree, James Donaldson, fuck Okahoma City.

Looking at the Mavs going into the postseason

So, if you watched the Mavs last night against Portland, you saw the team you half-way hope to see going into the playoffs. Now, I am making the foregone conclusion that this team has virtually locked the 8th and final playoff spot down by beating Phoenix two nights ago, so work with me.

Question is, how does this team look?

Are they going to come in with the fire of a 2007 Golden State and steal a series or are they going to be the 2007 Atlanta team that's just happy to be there?

More importantly, how do we as fans perceive that?

See, the Dallas Mavericks are an old team with Eeyore as a coach.

They still have no inside presence, to the point Simmons has gotten to calling Erick Dampier the next "great expiring contract". (However, the cat they got from Charlotte, Hollins, showed some REAL fire in Phoenix...no pun intended)

Everyone outside of Dirk, Kidd, JET are just good enough to produce, but not consistent enough to produce on a night in, night out basis. Those three are consistent enough, but not "good" enough to carry the team beyond the Associations powerhouses.

I love this team as much as anyone, but I'm starting to question if we, as Maverick fans, have been spoiled by the past decade. This team has done nothing except go to the Finals once, yet we give them the Cowboy treatment of saying "it's a championship or nothing!" Why is that? Shouldn't we be happy that we have a team that's good enough to legitimately contend every year rather than a team that's really good and then really bad and then really good and then really bad?

And Tom Hicks takes the lead.

Am I Really About to Say This?

I can't believe I'm about to say this, it hurts every bone in my body, every being of my soul wants to smack me in the face and say "what you talkin' about white boy," (i know its strange that I feel my soul is an old black guy), but I have come to the conclusion that..........

Tom Hicks is the best owner in Dallas right now.

I can barley type that with out my hands shaking worse than Michael J. Fox popping some no doze while coming off a two week crack binge.

Still, I think it's true. Let me try and explain it.

For the longest time, people have thought half of the ownership group of our fare mextroplex's sports teams, The Cowboys and Mavericks, have "do anything to win" owners who will......well, do anything to win.

While the Rangers and Stars have an old "money first" blue blooded shill as an owner. And Its been long thought of that this is the way it will always be. I can't count the times that I myself have said, "If only Tom Hicks(owner of the Rangers and Stars) would open his pocketbook and bring in players, this team could be something." It would take more than my and and feet to count, I will say.

But over the past two years, something has changed. Something has gone terribly wrong.

When you think of Jerry Jones, you think of the meddling owner with a desire to do anything in his power to win superbowls, yet this team hasn't won a playoff game in over a 10 years.

When you think of Mark Cuban, you think of a in your face owner who sits court side, loves his team, and will do anything he can to make the Mav's the best team in the NBA, yet they have gone in a span of 3 years from choking away(with a little help from the refs) a world title to losing in the first round of the playoffs the last two years, to now being not even guaranteed a playoff spot come may.

So what's the problem here? If these two coaches want so badly to win, and will do anything to win, why arn't they winning?

In the case of Jerry Jones, in his heart of hearts, it isn't about just winning, its about proving to everybody that he can win without anybody else getting the credit. If you were to ask Jerry Jones what he wants more, to be the GM of the Cowboys or win a Superbowl, he has proven though his actions its the former. If you look at his record, trades, drafts and over all running of the team over the past 15 years(since Jimmy left), the cowboys themselves haven't been any better than a team like the lowly Lions. They have been more often at the bottom of the standings than at the top, and have 2 good runs (bills first year, and last year), but have still failed to win a playoff game.

The only constant here is Jerry. If a restaurant has bad cook, It doesn't matter how good the ingredients are, or where the restaurant is, or how hot the staff is, if your cook is bad, the restaurant will fail. So Jerry can bring in more TO's, more Packman's and more first round draft picks, but until he realises the cook is why the food sucks, the Cowboys might be doomed for more years like this, than like last.

With Mark Cuban, the same problems are there, but for different reasons. Where Jerry it is pride and desire to prove that he can do it all by himself, Cuban's problem steams from how close he is to the team he owns. Its no secret that Cuban loves his team, and by loving the team he has developed personal relationships with his players, and thus, will over pay and over value them.

His latest statement, and I'm pretty sure I'm not messing this one up, is "I'm not trading Josh." Its not "I'm not trading Howard" or even "Josh Howard," but simply Josh. Josh has been here almost as long as Cuban, and was a big part of the Mav's return to glory, so its easy to see why Cuban would have an emotional attachment to him, but that isn't always the best thing when it come to running a team. Its that whole bit of you don't want to have your friends work underneath you, because it makes it hard to fire your friends, even when they deserve it, or in this case, is better for the company.

And This brings us to the other owner of sports teams in the Metroplex, the oft hatted Tome Hicks, the guy would if a poll was taken today, would be the least liked owner of a sports team in Dallas by a large margin.

But why?

Tom Hicks has made no secret that owning a sports team hardly anything more than a money making venture to him. He's not a big fan of the sports, or at least he doesn't seem to be. He won't knee jerk and make a big splash like signing TO, or get in front of a camera and bash the referees of last nights game.

What he will do is find a person who know the sport of the team he owns, put them in charge of player/personal, and let this person, or in the stars case persons, make the decisions that they feel are right and best for his teams. Now granted, he does this with a very strict budget in mind, and the end results that he wants isn't trophy's, but large bank accounts. Still, he finds smart baseball people like John Daniels and Nolan Ryan, and then steps away to let them work. If the team doesn't make any money, he gets rid of them and trys something else.

He has allowed John Daniels to make moves with the roster of the Rangers. At first they didn't look so good, (Young, Gonzalez) but now he has built one of the best farm system's in all of baseball.

He has allowed Brett Hull of the Stars come to him and say "we need to get nastier on the ice, so let go get Sean Avery," and they did. AND THEN when it became obvious that Avery wasn't the answer, but a GIGANTIC locker room cancer, Hull told Hicks they had to cut him, and Hicks said yes.

Now, if any of these moves lead to the Ranger or Stars not making any money, believe it that Hicks will find replacements for everybody.

So Which owner is the truly the best?

The "I'll do anything to win as long as its my way, and I'm in charge" Jerry Jones.

The "I put so much into this team, i can't let go of the friends that I have made on it" Mark Cuban.

Or the "I'm going to find smart people, put them in charge, yet give them a tight budget to work with" Tom Hicks.

I'm giving (gulp!) the nod to Hicks.

Now I need to go take a shower to wash off all this shame.

Do athletes really pay attention to crappy fan blogs?

No relevance, just our buddy, Bear, on the highway earlier this week.

The GREAT Bethlehem Shoals over at The Sporting News Blog had an interesting post today about how Toronto is alienating their best player, Chris Bosh.

He makes some really solid points and mentions a Kevin McHale article on how blogs are runing the league now. Basically, he's saying that fans DO have in impact on players and their desire to stay in a city and on a team...after all, ask Braylon Edwards how he feels about Cleveland the city versus Cleveland the team.

This got me thinking, is there any chance in hell that a Maverick player (looking at you, Barea) has been browsing the internets and stumbled across our little corner of the world? (On a separate note, to the anonymous person who called me a racist for wanting less Barea, I'd say check out when that was written and you can see the apology. Besides, I've uttered waaay worse things against Puerto Ricans.)

Anyway, I'd like to think that we're educated fans on the things we run posts about. You don't see me posting anything relevant or critical of the Stars because, you know what, I don't watch the Stars. I'm not defending a fan's or blog's right to be an ass hole towards players, but there is a line between healthy criticism and general ass-holery (a line I straddle well, thank you).

The point of this post is this: to think that a blog has any affect on players is a bit discomforting...

So, Bobby Carpenter, if you're reading this, I hope you get a training session with Chris Benoit's personal trainer. That is all.

Okay, now here's a first

How in the hell?

For the first time ever...I apologize

I'm not one for apologies. My ego is too big and I'm too much of an ass hole to offer them up when I should. However, it's come to a point now where I think I might need to offer an apology to one Juan Jose Barea.

JJ Barea has been a whipping post for The Big and The Brown. He's been right up there with Dolph Ziggler and 7-11 commercials. I've never liked him because he was too small, too shitty and just killed any momentum the Mavs ever had on the floor. Big hates him because JJ's Puerto Rican and younger than both of us.

However, the little bastard has broken out to have an AMAZING streak since Thanksgiving against the Lakers.

In fact, I remember marveling about the fact that he came one assist away from notching a double double that game, thinking it was a flash in the pan game for him...

HOWEVA! (in my best Screamin' A. Smith voice)

Let's look at his last 5 games.

Opponent	Minutes	Points	Steals	Assists	Rebounds
Kings	25	5	1	5	2
Clippers	25	15	0	6	1
Suns	31	18	1	4	3
Hawks	32	22	0	4	2
Spurs	40	21	0	5	2

You know what his career averages are?

Games	Minutes	Points	Steals	Assists	Rebounds
94	10	4.2	.2	1.4	1

Now, I'm not saying that Barea is Chris Paul, or that he should be in the starting line up, but we used to think that Barea was a waste of bench space and shouldn't even be here. Remember our reaction when we heard they re-signed him? Yeah, pretty sarcastic.

If Barea keeps this up, then I'd say the Mavericks have a legitimate back up point guard to play behind a starter not named Jason Kidd. Barea's probably getting more minutes than he should, but if he can provide production while on the floor, then I say this is a good thing.

So, officially, I'm sorry J.J. Barea.

Scootch says sorry

Note: I have the right to retract this apology at a moment's notice and tie Barea back to the whipping post.

So, anyone seen what Devin Harris is doing?

This is just a funny picture of Carlisle.

So, let's get this straight. Avery didn't like Devin Harris because he wasn't the kind of point guard that Avery was. Avery liked Jason Kidd because Jason Kidd is the kind of point guard that Avery was. Avery makes a damn near franchise-ruining trade by sending Devin to New Jersey and bringing Jason Kidd back to Dallas.

Now...let's look at some numbers.

Jason Kidd

PPG	APG	SPG
9.6	8.5	2.5

Devin Harris

PPG	APG	SPG
24.8	6.1	1.2

Oh. No.

To be fair, Kidd does pull more rebounds, and he's kind of on his own with no solid backup (though if Barea keeps playing the way he is, I might have to write an apology post soon). However, if you've watched these guys play, and you're a Maverick fan, you've slapped yourself on the forehead several times and probably punched your groin as well.

(Hangs head in shame)

The New Basketball Season is Almost Here!!!!

Told you it was Puppy Friday

So, we're just under a week away from tipping off the new Mavericks season. I'll be honest, I'm not holding onto the greatest amount of hope that the Mavericks can do a lot of damage. The West is still more powerful than the East, and the Mavs's division is RIDICULOUS.

Shit, New Orleans, San Antonio, Houston in the same god damned division. Then you look at the rest of the West and you've got the LA teams, New Orleans, Denver, Golden State, Phoenix, and my "team to fear this year", Portland. You can only pick 8 of those to go playoffs and contend? Yeesh.

The Roster (projected starters)

Guards

Jason Kidd
Well, here we go again. He's another year older, and he's coming off an Olympic summer where he couldn't spend the entire time resting his styrofoam knees. He's also sponsored by a Chinese shoe company. He showed that he is a great mentor, and a great teacher...but look who he's teaching

J.J. Barea
Oh. Dear. God. No. If you haven't been reading us, then I'm going to let you know this fact. Juan Jose Barea is the personal whipping boy of The Big and The Brown.

Jason Terry
Personally, I don't see JET finishing the season a Dallas Maverick. I like Terry, I do, but I think that he's not going to fit in the Carlisle mentality and system. That being said, he's the only legitimate number 2 scorer on this team if Howard doesn't find himself, so here's to hoping Terry has "that" season.

Gerald Green
Darling number 2 of the preseason, and offseason move de jour. Green has openly said that he still has a lot to learn and he can't depend on his insane hops to be a formidable player in this league. He's been fantastic in the preseason, but that's the preseason. Show us you can do it for real, because with Barea and Kidd at point, you're going to see a lot of Terry slipping to the 1 and Green playing for the 2 if a combo isn't available.

Combos

Josh Howard
All hail, Captain Controversy! After a terrible season last year, the end of last season's pot admissions and this summer's anti-Star Spangled Banner stance, Josh Howard is going to be the most scrutinized player on the entire roster. Period. At his best, Howard is the most tenacious defender on the team and the legit second scorer behind Dirk in the front court. At his worst, he's Antoine Carter. This is our only hope to match the crazy of Ron Artest a few hours south on 45.

Devean George
I hate this guy. Avery brought him in because he was supposed to be a "defensive specialist". I call him, waste of court and bench. The Mavs were able to unload Eddie Jones, now let's focus on pushing George out the door like I was ousted from our softball team.

Jerry Stackhouse
Just like Jason Kidd, here's another guy who's got A LOT of miles on his tires. I don't know many people who don't like Stack. He's a gamer and he's the only guy on this team, at times, who shows any energy and drive to slash in the paint. That being said, he's old and frail and can't do it anymore.

Antoine Wright
Darling number 1 of the preseason, and an Aggie to boot. Acquired in the Jersey trade, Wright raised a few eyebrows last year and has been THE guy this preseason. I find Wright to be a very curious case, and I think this could be another one of those Donnie Nelson diamonds in the rough kind of players.

Forwards

Dirk Nowitzki
Not much else to say, but to quote Simmons: This is going to be the "EFF YOU AVERY" season. As long as Dirk is healthy, this team has a chance to win any game.

Brandon Bass
Bass is one of those guys that we're not sure of. I mean that. He reminds me of Joaquin Benoit and the Rangers. He's too good to sit or let go, and he shows flashes of greatness, but he hasn't consistently been the guy you need him to be. Beacuse of that, teams want Bass and the Mavs are always toying with the idea of packaging him. I say, don't move this guy. Let him learn under Dirk. Bass can be a solid off the bench guy and eventual starter when Dirk reaches Jason Kidd's age.

James Singleton
Signed with the Mavs this summer for the veteran minimum. The way the Mavs like to flush out the roster every offseason. Make no mistake, Singleton is going to be the black Austin Croshere.

Shawne Williams
This was who the Mavs got back from Indiana for Eddie Jones. Williams is a young guy from Memphis who was suspended for the first few games of last year for not adhering to standards of behavior for the Pacers. That's the Marquis Daniels Pacers. Shit. Williams isn't a dazzling scorer, but he's got range and has gone on hot streaks. He's not a crash the boards forward and he's a shoot first, drive later kind of guy. He fits the Mavericks, but I dont know if that's saying much.

Centers

Erick Dampier
Ahh yes, the more things change, the more they stay the same. I could probably cut and paste the phrase "it depends on which Dampier we get tonight" from any number of posts and text messages over the past couple of years. I stand by that. When Dampier is on, then he is one of the best fives in the league...oh yeah, he has to put up with Shaq ribbing him again, so let's see what that does.

DeSagana Diop
What did you learn in New Jersey, my large African friend? Probably nothing, but at the least, we know the center tandem of Diop and Dampier was enough to win the West a few years ago. Diop needs more size to really bang down under with the big guys, but he does have a better defensive skill set than Dampier. I'd expect Diop to develop a rapport with Kidd and advance his offensive skills as well. I wouldn't be surprised to see Diop starting over Damp in mid-season.

Coach

Rick Carlisle
Well, well, well. I wasn't a big fan of this, and I believe I had a post about it. I was never a big believer in the "Avery is the reason we failed" theory, but maybe Rick Carlisle is the breathe of fresh air this team needs. I don't really know. Maybe Carlisle is the Maverick's version of Wade Phillips, and we're really just dancing with disaster...I can't get a bead on him, that's for damn sure.

The Team

The Mavericks aren't in an enviable position this year. Come to think of it, the "traditional" Western Conference powers are in danger of getting pushed out by the younger teams like New Orleans, Utah and Portland. Everyone on this team is going to have to bring it all 82 games because this is a division and a conference where no one can recover from too bad or long of a slump. Everyone else made moves to get stronger, and the Mavs seems to go lateral. Here's to homerism trumping pragmatism!

The big german Speaks, and it dosn't involve gary trents dad.

Germans, yup we got a 5 headed penis.

So our favorite German Dallas Maverick spoke to Jeff Caplin at the Star Telegram. Here are some excerpts. Including him talking of retiring from the NBA in 3 years.

About retiring in Dallas.

" I always was kind of the young talent and now I’ve crossed that line. We’ll just have to see how these next couple of years go. I would love to finish my career, obviously, in Dallas. I’ve always said that. Hopefully we can win the championship here in these three years and everything will be great. If not, I think we all have to keep our eyes and ears open to what’s going on."

When to hang it up.

"I think the worst thing that athletes can do is play too long and at the end look slow and don’t look right and they lose some of their reputation. "

"Obviously, as you get older you start thinking about
other things, too ... stuff like family comes up over the years and we’ll see what happens there."

Playing in German when he's done here.

"There’s one big club in Germany, in Berlin, called ALBA Berlin, and they’ve been asking me every year. Actually, the owner’s dream is to have me in their uniform once before I retire, and I’m sure he’s going to do everything he can to make that happen before my career is over. And really, on that subject, too, I leave everything open. ... "

Josh Howard

" But knowing him for that long, he’s a good guy. People are trying to make him a bad guy now. I can for sure say that he’s fun to be around, he’s a good kid, he cares; just sometimes he needs to learn to control himself and just keep some stuff to himself and he’ll be all right. "

Pretty standard stuff. Its not a stretch to think that Dirk would want to go play his last few years of good basketball in his home country. If he did that, I think it would make me like the guy more.

Ohh and on the Josh Howard quote, am i the only guy who immediately thought "that's cuz he brings the weed?" Might just be me.