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ouleaf
12/21/2011, 12:59 PM
Preseason is over and the Mavs finally get to raise their championship banner on Christmas Day against none other than the Miami Heat. What a great day for the franchise, the players, and the fans.

Defending the title will be tough with the abbreviated season and one of the oldest teams in the league. The Mavs will have to get a repeat performance from Dirk, and get the rest of the team to continue to buy into the team basketball concept by guys stepping up when called upon and knowing their roles.

While I respect Mark and Donnie's belief of the new CBA being all about teams needing to be flexible, I'm still upset about them letting Chandler walk. That being said, they have done a good job bringing in talent to compete again this year, while staying flexible in the long term. I'm just not sure they'll be able to land a Dwight Howard or Deron Williams at the trade deadline b/c I don't see anyway either of those teams let their superstars go to free agency and risk getting nothing in return.

ouleaf
1/12/2012, 01:52 PM
I wanted to get somewhat of a sample size before being to analytical on this year's team.

Overall they are still a good team, but they have been very inconsistent so far. Its tough though for any team that worked so hard to establish an identity and then have to change it on the fly without a full training camp. As great as it would have been for them to bring everyone back, the name of the game with this new CBA is financial flexibility, Cuban has put what seems to be a lot of eggs in the clearing cap space for this summer with hopefully Dwight Howard and Deron Williams become free agents.

In there attempt to clear cap space, they have also done a good job of bringing in guys to remain contenders for their title this year. The best acquistion so far has been Delonte West. The guy is just a gamer. Make good decisions for the most part. Versatile on both ends. He's kept the offense running with Kidd on the shelf the past few games.

Vince Carter has been inconsistent, but is a nice addition IMO. He seems to be buying into the team concept, and shows flashes of explosiveness, and can be a matchup problem for teams with smaller guards.

Lamar Odom has been a huge disappointment. I just don't think he or Carlisle have found a definite role for him on this team yet. He is too good of a player to not figure it out, but it has to be sooner rather than later.

What's been the most surprising has been the nice combo at Center with Haywood and Mahinmi. Between the two of them they are getting quality production from the Center position. Sure you'd still rather have Chandler there, but these two seem to be getting by just fine without him.

With the win over Boston last night, they are now 6-5, which is the first time they have been over .500. There biggest problem is just consistency at this point and everyone figuring out their roles. The Mavs are an old team and I just don't think all the guys, including Dirk have their wind back or their legs under them just yet and the amount of back to backs this season isn't really helping that.

This team is still good enough to make the playoffs right now. They need a lot of work if they are going to defend the title though.

ouleaf
4/27/2012, 08:51 AM
Welp, this crazy season is finally in the books and the playoffs can't start soon enough. Mavs lost last night but had no interest in playing the Hawks at all. I was kind of hoping the Mavs called Odom back and made him play every stinkin' minute of that game. If he refused, the Mavs could have voided his contract right then and there. Odom was a huge disappointment and is an awful professional. The Lakers could have traded his sorry a$$ anywhere in league like New Orleans, Charlotte, Sacramento, and other places of basketball purgatory. Instead he has a great chance to come and play signficant minutes for the world champions, but it's clear that basketball isn't his job anymore, it's that stupid reality show.

Not the best season for the Mavs with getting off to a slow start, battling injuries, and the joke that is Lamar Odom, but all that matters is they are in the tournament with a chance to defend. Bring on the Thunder!!!

Phil
5/3/2012, 11:24 PM
Thunder = brought. Brought the brooms to Dallas, that is. Heh.

ouflak
5/4/2012, 12:31 PM
Sounds like some betting words are being exchanged here! (http://www.soonerfans.com/forums/showthread.php?167981-5-5-NBA-Playoffs-GAME-4-OKC-Thunder-versus-Dallas-Mavericks&p=3474699#post3474699)

IBleedCrimson
5/5/2012, 10:07 PM
Down 13 and rallied for a solid win. Harden with a spectacular 4th quarter. Good win against an overmatched Dallas team.

We should be fresh and fired up to get some revenge against the World Peace Assaulters/Lakers.

This team is really fun to watch, especially when all the pieces are in sync.

ouleaf
5/6/2012, 10:05 AM
Disappointing end to a very frustrating season for the defending champs. You could really tell the Mavs were missing their guys from last years team.

Had a few things gone the other way, this could have been a much more interesting series. No doubt that OKC was the better team.

Hoping that Cuban and Donnie made the right move by staying flexible by not resigning guys last offseason for the chance to sign some big FA(s) this summer. If they can't land Deron Williams or Dwight Howard, then they've really screwed themselves. Drafting better would help too.

Enjoy the success while it lasts Thunder fans. I'm not sure if they have what it takes yet to win it all, but they are on their way. Not sure how much longer they'll be able to keep the current gang together as I think both Harden and Ibaka are FAs after next season. Not sure they'll be able to keep both of them.

jk the sooner fan
5/6/2012, 02:15 PM
Good luck to the Thunder - just remember, the Lakers aren't a 7 seed that squeaked into the playoffs with 2 games left in the season and a barely better than .500 record

i felt after the second game that this was going to be a sweep - hopefully OKC can put the Lakers out!

ouleaf
7/5/2012, 12:12 AM
Welp, the Mavs are screwed. Cubes and Donnie went all in on their gamble to try and land the big fish in Deron Williams and it blew up in their faces. Looking back on things, it was still probably the right call to blow up the championship team, it just sucks that it didn't work out. Even if they had kept the team together, their chances of repeating weren't very good.

The Mavs are in a really bad way right now, and the fans are not going to be to happy about wasting a season. Cuban wants to field a competitive team year in a year out, so i don't see them purposely tanking next season. All they have left is Dirk now, plenty of cap space, and unfortunately nothing to really offer as trade bait(thanks again Odom for being a lazy-***). Not sure what the backup plans are, but it just doesn't look good.

Eielson
7/17/2012, 12:15 PM
In all honesty, I think the Mavs look better now than they did last year. I'm impressed that Cuban was able to bring in Brand, Kaman, Mayo, and Collison. They're not going to win it all, but they're going to be able to compete with everybody.

ouleaf
7/17/2012, 04:16 PM
In all honesty, I think the Mavs look better now than they did last year. I'm impressed that Cuban was able to bring in Brand, Kaman, Mayo, and Collison. They're not going to win it all, but they're going to be able to compete with everybody.

Waits to be seen. Fair amount of skepticism still surrounds the Mavs here in Big D. Cuban always wants to field a competitive team. His ego and pride won't let him tank a season to sink to the lottery while Dirk is still in a Mavs uniform. If they don't land a marquee free agent next summer that can be the face of the franchise going forward, then they are doing themselves no favors by by drafting in the 18-23 range every season.

That being said, pretty commendable job of bringing in some intriguing pieces to compete this year. Brand is not what he was 5-6 years ago when he was a consistent 20/10 guy. But he's got a crafty low post game and can defend the 4/5 positions pretty well, also has a good relationship with Kaman from their Clipper days. Kaman, while I think he should be an upgrade over Haywood, he clearly isn't a top 5 center in the league. If he can stay healthy and average about 10/8/2 that would be outstanding. Anything over is gravy. He's got a nice little mid-jumper, good hands, and will work hard for you. Plus only on a one year deal which is good.

Excited about the new wrinkles we could see in the offense when Collison is running the floor. One of the key things to the Mavs title run was the change of pace Barea brought and his ability to dribble-drive to the basket. This past year, the Mavs half-court offense would become stagnate and having that guy that can take it to the rim is so important. Also important is that he brings some youth and athleticism to the team.

I think they got Mayo at a pretty good price. He can score, just need to be more efficient about it. Maybe having a guy like Dirk on the floor will help get him some open looks. Should be a useful player for the Mavs and Carlisle.

Still need a reliable perimeter shooter IMO. Would like to see them bring back Delonte West as well. He seems to enjoy it here and he was a nice surprise last season. Shouldn't cost much either.

Big, big years for Roddy B and Dominique Jones. They have to be real contributors this year that can earn Carlisle's trust.

stoops the eternal pimp
7/17/2012, 04:34 PM
I love Darren Collison....

Eielson
7/18/2012, 01:02 AM
I love Darren Collison....

He was so good at UCLA. Better than Westbrook, and sometimes I even questioned if Love was as good as him. Went to three final fours in his four years there. I thought Howland was building a monster.

jk the sooner fan
7/18/2012, 07:25 AM
the Mavs will be looking at a 6 or 7 seed - again....they'll compete but this is another token season - while Cuban waits again to play the free agency russian roulette in 2013

ouleaf
7/23/2012, 10:39 AM
the Mavs will be looking at a 6 or 7 seed - again....they'll compete but this is another token season - while Cuban waits again to play the free agency russian roulette in 2013

I do think there is something to Cuban's rationale about needing to stay flexible under this new CBA. Tying your team up with bad contracts is really going to cripple what teams can do, and I just don't see how owners are going to continue to pay the 2.5x luxury tax year in and year out if putting together these super teams isn't winning them a championship. I really hope that after this season you start to see a redistribution of talent around the league to the smaller market teams.