MavsBoard

(11-21-2020, 06:16 PM)IamDougieFresh Wrote: [ -> ]Only one player left for me to hate on the roster. Sorry Dwight.

Just wait a little bit. Most will need someone to blame after a loss. Personally I think the backup PGs or secondary ballhandlers will take some heat. Something around the narrative that they take the ball out of Lukas hands.

No Seth Curry, Delon Wright and Justin Jackson appreciation threads.

Well I liked JJ, he was a good guy.  I wish him luck and hopes he finds a place in this league.

Seth will be missed.  Maybe he will come back again someday.

Bye Delon.

(11-21-2020, 06:39 PM)Hypermav Wrote: [ -> ]No Seth Curry, Delon Wright and Justin Jackson appreciation threads.

Well I liked JJ, he was a good guy.  I wish him luck and hopes he finds a place in this league.

Seth will be missed.  Maybe he will come back again someday.

Bye Delon.

Here is Delon's goodbye message to Mavs' ownership, the coaching staff, his teammates and MFFLs:

(11-21-2020, 06:22 PM)cow Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:14 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:04 PM)cow Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 05:55 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 05:41 PM)cow Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 05:40 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]Cow, I want to see WCS back for the express purpose of watching you cry. I don't believe in karma, but I believe in justice.

Seems like you also believe in bad basketball players. I will not cry though.

If WCS is a bad basketball player, when in a year often called his worst he was 8th among the 100 or so centers in this league in DRPM, then there must not be very many decent basketball players in the NBA.

You hang onto that one stat so much that you might as well print it out, frame it and hang it on your wall. If he was a good basketball player he would have been signed for 10M+ by Detroit.

Did I kick your dog or something? What karmic injustice did I do to deserve WCS on my team two years in a row?

You're guilty of the same calumnies RC is. All I can do is shake my head.

Well, when your doctor writes you are prescription for your little dandruff problem, maybe have him refer you to an optometrist.

To me, the whole WCS thing is ultimately a philosophical dispute about 1) RC's damnable history with athletic bigs (Noel, Javale, arguably even Sammy) who, "Oh, yeah, they're the problem," and then they go to another team and show that, no, they weren't the problem; and 2) Powell. There seems to be a hell-bent hatred there for athleticism and rim protection. If Powell is considered to be a five, then there's no excuse for giving him the money and minutes he gets - he has (had) the hops to be a great rim-roll finisher and the intelligence to switch well defensively on the perimeter, but his rim protection is below non-existent. I tell you, watching Powell trying to bother, much less block, an offensive player's shot, hurt my eyes and my basketball brain. He reminded me of Keith Van Suck - it literally seemed that his hapless efforts to bother the shot resulted in a higher percentage than the shooter would have had were he wide open. Traditional fours need to provide some rim protection as well, or at least to be able to defend the paint against bully-boys. LOL Powell.

How about the modern wing-four? Is that what Powell is, a rangy, athletic guy with wing skills who can shoot from outside? LULZ no. He thinks he can shoot, and gets the green light to shoot, and has been consistently awful. He's not a traditional Millsap-type four, and he's not a modern four. Which puts us back at his being a five. Two words - hell, no. We engage in such narratives as Powell being the beneficiary of Cuban "needing to have gotten something out of the Rondo deal" or being paid for his locker room presence and community citizenship - both of which probably have some truth to them - because the alternative is to say that our FO are such terrible evaluators of winning basketball talent that they are willing to make the same mistake over (big minutes) and over (big contract) and over (a starting job? WTFF?) and over (a huge extension - why, why, WHY????) again.

And here comes a guy like WCS - so he's not a gym rat, perhaps a little lazy, bad at defensive rotations - but he has the center body and natural (as opposed to, worked-into) athleticism that Powell can only dream about. He can protect the rim in his sleep. He can finish the PnR quite solidly, perhaps even as good as Powell, presumably without the work and intelligence. I saw both of these during his brief stint with the Mavs. They are empirical, inductively-reasonable, fact. I don't give a flying eff how lazy or uninterested in basketball he is when the results at the five-spot are already better than Powell. And it's some horrendous thing that the Mavs should bring him back on a Burke-sized contract - so the moralism of work ethic matters that much more than the fundamental results.

I suspect that you are not necessarily the Powell homer that Cuban, Donnie, RC, and a few tools on this board are, and that you just look at WCS and see a bad basketball player in terms of whatever criteria you're looking for. I'm sorry; I can't watch the man play without thinking of Powell. He may not be half the man Powell is, but he's a better basketball player for what might reasonably be asked of both. QED.

(11-21-2020, 06:39 PM)Hypermav Wrote: [ -> ]Seth will be missed

Seth deserves an appreciation thread. But 2 1 year stints makes it hard to really appreciate him, even if he was a lights out shooter in his time here.

Delon is a loser. 

Justin Jackson cannot play basketball. He is a nice guy, but I hardly appreciate anything he did. Maybe that 2 week stretch where he looked like he could actually start in this league. Other than that his missed wide open transition layups were inexcusable.

(11-21-2020, 06:47 PM)SleepingHero Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:39 PM)Hypermav Wrote: [ -> ]Seth will be missed

Seth deserves an appreciation thread. But 2 1 year stints makes it hard to really appreciate him, even if he was a lights out shooter in his time here.

Delon is a loser.

Justin Jackson cannot play basketball. He is a nice guy, but I hardly appreciate anything he did. Maybe that 2 week stretch where he looked like he could actually start in this league. Other than that his missed wide open transition layups were inexcusable.

I love Seth - loved him in both his stints here. But you have to use whatever means are available to you to get starters when you didn't do the work to achieve it when you had the chance, and he provided that opportunity. It's pretty unfortunate that the Mavs couldn't put themselves in a position to be able to keep him.

(11-21-2020, 06:46 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]I suspect that you are not necessarily the Powell homer that Cuban, Donnie, RC, and a few tools on this board are, and that you just look at WCS and see a bad basketball player in terms of whatever criteria you're looking for. I'm sorry; I can't watch the man play without thinking of Powell. He may not be half the man Powell is, but he's a better basketball player for what might reasonably be asked of both. QED.

Putting down Powell to prop up WCS is really puzzling. If anything they're both underwhelming. Very few people around here, if any, are justifying Powell's contract. We all agree it's an overpay, even before the injury. Does that mean Powell is a bad player? No. He's very elite at 2 specific skills: rim rolling, and hustling. Because of those 2 skills alone he excels in RC's system. He's also wicked smart, which is just a bonus under Carlisle.  Powell is a limited player. I think the Mavs should move on from him. But Powell has nothing to do with WCS. 

WCS might have all the athletic gifts in the world, it doesn't mean anything if he can't actually use them. It's not like WCS lacked any opportunity here. We desperately needed him after Powell went down and WCS never showed up. 

If WCS had any sort of value, he would have been signed already by a multitude of teams needing a bigman. Nobody is lining up to sign WCS, and there's a reason for that.

(11-21-2020, 06:54 PM)SleepingHero Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:46 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]I suspect that you are not necessarily the Powell homer that Cuban, Donnie, RC, and a few tools on this board are, and that you just look at WCS and see a bad basketball player in terms of whatever criteria you're looking for. I'm sorry; I can't watch the man play without thinking of Powell. He may not be half the man Powell is, but he's a better basketball player for what might reasonably be asked of both. QED.

Putting down Powell to prop up WCS is really puzzling. If anything they're both underwhelming. Very few people around here, if any, are justifying Powell's contract. We all agree it's an overpay, even before the injury. Does that mean Powell is a bad player? No. He's very elite at 2 specific skills: rim rolling, and hustling. Because of those 2 skills alone he excels in RC's system. He's also wicked smart, which is just a bonus under Carlisle. Powell is a limited player. I think the Mavs should move on from him. But Powell has nothing to do with WCS.

WCS might have all the athletic gifts in the world, it doesn't mean anything if he can't actually use them. It's not like WCS lacked any opportunity here. We desperately needed him after Powell went down and WCS never showed up.

If WCS had any sort of value, he would have been signed already by a multitude of teams needing a bigman. Nobody is lining up to sign WCS, and there's a reason for that.

Yeah, I remember your dismissal of WCS in the game threads, and could never figure it out. I kept asking myself, "Is SH watching the same game I am?" WCS looked just fine to me at those times you found him to be underwhelming or not showing up.

At some point, you're going to be willing to play and value an athletic rim-runner/rim-protector, or you aren't. We have a unicorn, but not every center in the league is a unicorn. Perimeter defense and switching is important. I see no evidence that there's no longer need in the NBA for rim protection.

(11-21-2020, 06:16 PM)IamDougieFresh Wrote: [ -> ]Only one player left for me to hate on the roster. Sorry Dwight.

Not gonna lie....some of that mouth full of whiskey I had ended up on the keyboard.

Guys what if the Bogdan stuff is all just a ploy by Sacramento to get him on a reasonable deal because nobody thinks they are matching... 

Can we truly rule out that Sacramento won't match? Wouldn't a surprise match be SOOOO Sacramento?

(11-21-2020, 06:46 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]To me, the whole WCS thing is ultimately a philosophical dispute about 1) RC's damnable history with athletic bigs (Noel, Javale, arguably even Sammy) who, "Oh, yeah, they're the problem," and then they go to another team and show that, no, they weren't the problem; and 2) Powell. There seems to be a hell-bent hatred there for athleticism and rim protection. If Powell is considered to be a five, then there's no excuse for giving him the money and minutes he gets - he has (had) the hops to be a great rim-roll finisher and the intelligence to switch well defensively on the perimeter, but his rim protection is below non-existent. I tell you, watching Powell trying to bother, much less block, an offensive player's shot, hurt my eyes and my basketball brain. He reminded me of Keith Van Suck - it literally seemed that his hapless efforts to bother the shot resulted in a higher percentage than the shooter would have had were he wide open. Traditional fours need to provide some rim protection as well, or at least to be able to defend the paint against bully-boys. LOL Powell.

How about the modern wing-four? Is that what Powell is, a rangy, athletic guy with wing skills who can shoot from outside? LULZ no. He thinks he can shoot, and gets the green light to shoot, and has been consistently awful. He's not a traditional Millsap-type four, and he's not a modern four. Which puts us back at his being a five. Two words - hell, no. We engage in such narratives as Powell being the beneficiary of Cuban "needing to have gotten something out of the Rondo deal" or being paid for his locker room presence and community citizenship - both of which probably have some truth to them - because the alternative is to say that our FO are such terrible evaluators of winning basketball talent that they are willing to make the same mistake over (big minutes) and over (big contract) and over (a starting job? WTFF?) and over (a huge extension - why, why, WHY????) again.

And here comes a guy like WCS - so he's not a gym rat, perhaps a little lazy, bad at defensive rotations - but he has the center body and natural (as opposed to, worked-into) athleticism that Powell can only dream about. He can protect the rim in his sleep. He can finish the PnR quite solidly, perhaps even as good as Powell, presumably without the work and intelligence. I saw both of these during his brief stint with the Mavs. They are empirical, inductively-reasonable, fact.  I don't give a flying eff how lazy or uninterested in basketball he is when the results at the five-spot are already better than Powell. And it's some horrendous thing that the Mavs should bring him back on a Burke-sized contract - so the moralism of work ethic matters that much more than the fundamental results.

I suspect that you are not necessarily the Powell homer that Cuban, Donnie, RC, and a few tools on this board are, and that you just look at WCS and see a bad basketball player in terms of whatever criteria you're looking for. I'm sorry; I can't watch the man play without thinking of Powell. He may not be half the man Powell is, but he's a better basketball player for what might reasonably be asked of both. QED.

Look, I could forgive WCS for flaming out with the Kings. He had the pressure of replacing one of the most talented players in franchise history and it's the Kings. But his next few stops? If there was something there, GSW would have held onto him. He has the physical tools to be good at basketball and he's super intelligent. Basketball just isn't important to him. We could use him again as a stop gap but I'd rather look at almost any other option, they'll probably be more committed and more reliable.

(11-21-2020, 07:01 PM)cjeter24 Wrote: [ -> ]Guys what if the Bogdan stuff is all just a ploy by Sacramento to get him on a reasonable deal because nobody thinks they are matching... 

Can we truly rule out that Sacramento won't match? Wouldn't a surprise match be SOOOO Sacramento?

That would be great, because it would mean Hield will be very likely traded and we could try to jump in.

(11-21-2020, 06:59 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]Yeah, I remember your dismissal of WCS in the game threads, and could never figure it out. I kept asking myself, "Is SH watching the same game I am?" WCS looked just fine to me at those times you found him to be underwhelming or not showing up.

At some point, you're going to be willing to play and value an athletic rim-runner/rim-protector, or you aren't. We have a unicorn, but not every center in the league is a unicorn. Perimeter defense and switching is important. I see no evidence that there's no longer need in the NBA for rim protection.

Fair enough. I guess we just gotta agree to disagree on WCS. From what I remember, WCS had maybe 1 above average game for the Mavs where his talents truly shone. 

I will gladly eat crow if WCS leaves and blossoms somewhere else. I just don't know if that'd ever happen.

(11-21-2020, 07:07 PM)SleepingHero Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:59 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]Yeah, I remember your dismissal of WCS in the game threads, and could never figure it out. I kept asking myself, "Is SH watching the same game I am?" WCS looked just fine to me at those times you found him to be underwhelming or not showing up.

At some point, you're going to be willing to play and value an athletic rim-runner/rim-protector, or you aren't. We have a unicorn, but not every center in the league is a unicorn. Perimeter defense and switching is important. I see no evidence that there's no longer need in the NBA for rim protection.

Fair enough. I guess we just gotta agree to disagree on WCS. From what I remember, WCS had maybe 1 above average game for the Mavs where his talents truly shone.

I will gladly eat crow if WCS leaves and blossoms somewhere else. I just don't know if that'd ever happen.

Yeah, you're likely right. I just hope that the Mavs can find a way to match the rim protection and finishing athleticism he brought if they choose to look elsewhere.

(11-21-2020, 07:01 PM)cjeter24 Wrote: [ -> ]Guys what if the Bogdan stuff is all just a ploy by Sacramento to get him on a reasonable deal because nobody thinks they are matching... 

Can we truly rule out that Sacramento won't match? Wouldn't a surprise match be SOOOO Sacramento?

They are going to run into cap issues with the Fox extension and Bagley around the corner.  It is odd that the deal isn't done yet.  I'd love a list of his suitors.

---

(11-21-2020, 07:06 PM)omahen Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 07:01 PM)cjeter24 Wrote: [ -> ]Guys what if the Bogdan stuff is all just a ploy by Sacramento to get him on a reasonable deal because nobody thinks they are matching... 

Can we truly rule out that Sacramento won't match? Wouldn't a surprise match be SOOOO Sacramento?

That would be great, because it would mean Hield will be very likely traded and we could try to jump in.

No matter what, Hield is getting trade by the TDL.  /Carnac the Magnificent

(11-21-2020, 06:46 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:22 PM)cow Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:14 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:04 PM)cow Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 05:55 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]If WCS is a bad basketball player, when in a year often called his worst he was 8th among the 100 or so centers in this league in DRPM, then there must not be very many decent basketball players in the NBA.

You hang onto that one stat so much that you might as well print it out, frame it and hang it on your wall.  If he was a good basketball player he would have been signed for 10M+ by Detroit. 

Did I kick your dog or something?  What karmic injustice did I do to deserve WCS on my team two years in a row?

You're guilty of the same calumnies RC is. All I can do is shake my head.

Well, when your doctor writes you are prescription for your little dandruff problem, maybe have him refer you to an optometrist.

To me, the whole WCS thing is ultimately a philosophical dispute about 1) RC's damnable history with athletic bigs (Noel, Javale, arguably even Sammy) who, "Oh, yeah, they're the problem," and then they go to another team and show that, no, they weren't the problem; and 2) Powell. There seems to be a hell-bent hatred there for athleticism and rim protection. If Powell is considered to be a five, then there's no excuse for giving him the money and minutes he gets - he has (had) the hops to be a great rim-roll finisher and the intelligence to switch well defensively on the perimeter, but his rim protection is below non-existent. I tell you, watching Powell trying to bother, much less block, an offensive player's shot, hurt my eyes and my basketball brain. He reminded me of Keith Van Suck - it literally seemed that his hapless efforts to bother the shot resulted in a higher percentage than the shooter would have had were he wide open. Traditional fours need to provide some rim protection as well, or at least to be able to defend the paint against bully-boys. LOL Powell.

How about the modern wing-four? Is that what Powell is, a rangy, athletic guy with wing skills who can shoot from outside? LULZ no. He thinks he can shoot, and gets the green light to shoot, and has been consistently awful. He's not a traditional Millsap-type four, and he's not a modern four. Which puts us back at his being a five. Two words - hell, no. We engage in such narratives as Powell being the beneficiary of Cuban "needing to have gotten something out of the Rondo deal" or being paid for his locker room presence and community citizenship - both of which probably have some truth to them - because the alternative is to say that our FO are such terrible evaluators of winning basketball talent that they are willing to make the same mistake over (big minutes) and over (big contract) and over (a starting job? WTFF?) and over (a huge extension - why, why, WHY????) again.

And here comes a guy like WCS - so he's not a gym rat, perhaps a little lazy, bad at defensive rotations - but he has the center body and natural (as opposed to, worked-into) athleticism that Powell can only dream about. He can protect the rim in his sleep. He can finish the PnR quite solidly, perhaps even as good as Powell, presumably without the work and intelligence. I saw both of these during his brief stint with the Mavs. They are empirical, inductively-reasonable, fact.  I don't give a flying eff how lazy or uninterested in basketball he is when the results at the five-spot are already better than Powell. And it's some horrendous thing that the Mavs should bring him back on a Burke-sized contract - so the moralism of work ethic matters that much more than the fundamental results.

I suspect that you are not necessarily the Powell homer that Cuban, Donnie, RC, and a few tools on this board are, and that you just look at WCS and see a bad basketball player in terms of whatever criteria you're looking for. I'm sorry; I can't watch the man play without thinking of Powell. He may not be half the man Powell is, but he's a better basketball player for what might reasonably be asked of both. QED.

What former Dallas C went on to have a stellar career after Dallas? Btw if you're having trouble with that, i'll ask you also throw in every other young player the forum thought had potential but didnt ultimately play...

(11-21-2020, 07:01 PM)cjeter24 Wrote: [ -> ]Guys what if the Bogdan stuff is all just a ploy by Sacramento to get him on a reasonable deal because nobody thinks they are matching... 

Can we truly rule out that Sacramento won't match? Wouldn't a surprise match be SOOOO Sacramento?

I just dont see SAC committing nearly 16-19 mil a year on Bogdon after they are already paying Buddy 24 mil this year, 22 the next. If Bogi takes the lower end deal, SAC would be paying nearly 40 mil in just a SG rotation alone. 

Add in Fox's brand new max extension that's going to pay him 30 mil, and Harry B's classic 23 mil, that's nearly 100 mil in 4 players for a team that hasn't won more than 40 games.

(11-21-2020, 07:01 PM)cow Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:46 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]To me, the whole WCS thing is ultimately a philosophical dispute about 1) RC's damnable history with athletic bigs (Noel, Javale, arguably even Sammy) who, "Oh, yeah, they're the problem," and then they go to another team and show that, no, they weren't the problem; and 2) Powell. There seems to be a hell-bent hatred there for athleticism and rim protection. If Powell is considered to be a five, then there's no excuse for giving him the money and minutes he gets - he has (had) the hops to be a great rim-roll finisher and the intelligence to switch well defensively on the perimeter, but his rim protection is below non-existent. I tell you, watching Powell trying to bother, much less block, an offensive player's shot, hurt my eyes and my basketball brain. He reminded me of Keith Van Suck - it literally seemed that his hapless efforts to bother the shot resulted in a higher percentage than the shooter would have had were he wide open. Traditional fours need to provide some rim protection as well, or at least to be able to defend the paint against bully-boys. LOL Powell.

How about the modern wing-four? Is that what Powell is, a rangy, athletic guy with wing skills who can shoot from outside? LULZ no. He thinks he can shoot, and gets the green light to shoot, and has been consistently awful. He's not a traditional Millsap-type four, and he's not a modern four. Which puts us back at his being a five. Two words - hell, no. We engage in such narratives as Powell being the beneficiary of Cuban "needing to have gotten something out of the Rondo deal" or being paid for his locker room presence and community citizenship - both of which probably have some truth to them - because the alternative is to say that our FO are such terrible evaluators of winning basketball talent that they are willing to make the same mistake over (big minutes) and over (big contract) and over (a starting job? WTFF?) and over (a huge extension - why, why, WHY????) again.

And here comes a guy like WCS - so he's not a gym rat, perhaps a little lazy, bad at defensive rotations - but he has the center body and natural (as opposed to, worked-into) athleticism that Powell can only dream about. He can protect the rim in his sleep. He can finish the PnR quite solidly, perhaps even as good as Powell, presumably without the work and intelligence. I saw both of these during his brief stint with the Mavs. They are empirical, inductively-reasonable, fact. I don't give a flying eff how lazy or uninterested in basketball he is when the results at the five-spot are already better than Powell. And it's some horrendous thing that the Mavs should bring him back on a Burke-sized contract - so the moralism of work ethic matters that much more than the fundamental results.

I suspect that you are not necessarily the Powell homer that Cuban, Donnie, RC, and a few tools on this board are, and that you just look at WCS and see a bad basketball player in terms of whatever criteria you're looking for. I'm sorry; I can't watch the man play without thinking of Powell. He may not be half the man Powell is, but he's a better basketball player for what might reasonably be asked of both. QED.

Look, I could forgive WCS for flaming out with the Kings. He had the pressure of replacing one of the most talented players in franchise history and it's the Kings. But his next few stops? If there was something there, GSW would have held onto him. He has the physical tools to be good at basketball and he's super intelligent. Basketball just isn't important to him. We could use him again as a stop gap but I'd rather look at almost any other option, they'll probably be more committed and more reliable.

When you put it that way, not much to argue with. We'll see. As I said to SH, I just hope that if they let him walk, they can find a way to replace what he brought in terms of rim protection and athletic finishing. I suspect not. I'm not expecting him to be one of our five best players - I just want him to provide a needed skillset when KP sits (like the first month of the season!!!). Whatever his commitment to basketball is, I doubt you're going to find those raw talents for equal or less money. Is there someone more committed to basketball out there who can provide those same two benefits that WCS provides consistently without basketball interest who would be available for $6 mil or less a year and within the Mavs' timeline???

---

(11-21-2020, 07:11 PM)luka_skywalker_77 Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:46 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:22 PM)cow Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:14 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 06:04 PM)cow Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-21-2020, 05:55 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: [ -> ]If WCS is a bad basketball player, when in a year often called his worst he was 8th among the 100 or so centers in this league in DRPM, then there must not be very many decent basketball players in the NBA.

You hang onto that one stat so much that you might as well print it out, frame it and hang it on your wall. If he was a good basketball player he would have been signed for 10M+ by Detroit.

Did I kick your dog or something? What karmic injustice did I do to deserve WCS on my team two years in a row?

You're guilty of the same calumnies RC is. All I can do is shake my head.

Well, when your doctor writes you are prescription for your little dandruff problem, maybe have him refer you to an optometrist.

To me, the whole WCS thing is ultimately a philosophical dispute about 1) RC's damnable history with athletic bigs (Noel, Javale, arguably even Sammy) who, "Oh, yeah, they're the problem," and then they go to another team and show that, no, they weren't the problem; and 2) Powell. There seems to be a hell-bent hatred there for athleticism and rim protection. If Powell is considered to be a five, then there's no excuse for giving him the money and minutes he gets - he has (had) the hops to be a great rim-roll finisher and the intelligence to switch well defensively on the perimeter, but his rim protection is below non-existent. I tell you, watching Powell trying to bother, much less block, an offensive player's shot, hurt my eyes and my basketball brain. He reminded me of Keith Van Suck - it literally seemed that his hapless efforts to bother the shot resulted in a higher percentage than the shooter would have had were he wide open. Traditional fours need to provide some rim protection as well, or at least to be able to defend the paint against bully-boys. LOL Powell.

How about the modern wing-four? Is that what Powell is, a rangy, athletic guy with wing skills who can shoot from outside? LULZ no. He thinks he can shoot, and gets the green light to shoot, and has been consistently awful. He's not a traditional Millsap-type four, and he's not a modern four. Which puts us back at his being a five. Two words - hell, no. We engage in such narratives as Powell being the beneficiary of Cuban "needing to have gotten something out of the Rondo deal" or being paid for his locker room presence and community citizenship - both of which probably have some truth to them - because the alternative is to say that our FO are such terrible evaluators of winning basketball talent that they are willing to make the same mistake over (big minutes) and over (big contract) and over (a starting job? WTFF?) and over (a huge extension - why, why, WHY????) again.

And here comes a guy like WCS - so he's not a gym rat, perhaps a little lazy, bad at defensive rotations - but he has the center body and natural (as opposed to, worked-into) athleticism that Powell can only dream about. He can protect the rim in his sleep. He can finish the PnR quite solidly, perhaps even as good as Powell, presumably without the work and intelligence. I saw both of these during his brief stint with the Mavs. They are empirical, inductively-reasonable, fact. I don't give a flying eff how lazy or uninterested in basketball he is when the results at the five-spot are already better than Powell. And it's some horrendous thing that the Mavs should bring him back on a Burke-sized contract - so the moralism of work ethic matters that much more than the fundamental results.

I suspect that you are not necessarily the Powell homer that Cuban, Donnie, RC, and a few tools on this board are, and that you just look at WCS and see a bad basketball player in terms of whatever criteria you're looking for. I'm sorry; I can't watch the man play without thinking of Powell. He may not be half the man Powell is, but he's a better basketball player for what might reasonably be asked of both. QED.

What former Dallas C went on to have a stellar career after Dallas? Btw if you're having trouble with that, i'll ask you also throw in every other young player the forum thought had potential but didnt ultimately play...

I already told you - Javale, and Noel. Javale started for two championship teams. Noel doesn't have those credentials, but he was better than advertised here.

(11-21-2020, 05:00 PM)JamesConway Wrote: [ -> ]#TeamSaric

Man, I have seen next to nothing on him this week. Under rated possibility, especially at this point in the process.