(12-02-2024, 07:21 PM)ThisIStheYear Wrote: Hopefully someone with some knowledge of the new cap rules can clarify. Do the hard capped Mavs really have a path to match salaries and bring back a good player without including Klay and his contract?  And  no, these ridiculous 5 for 1 type of trades aren’t going to cut it. Teams just don’t take back that many players.

(12-03-2024, 01:48 AM)F Gump Wrote: When everyone is healthy, Maxi is the backup PF. Their default rotation continues to be PJ and Maxi alternating at the position.

I don't see anything to indicate Kidd has other plans, but instead is patient with Maxi when he returns from any injury, with the idea that he is a valuable piece as long as he is healthy enough to play up to his 2-way ability.

(12-03-2024, 08:15 AM)Smitty Wrote: Unfortunately, Maxi is not an everyday player anymore. The idea of Maxi and what he once was is what I expect the Mavs will be looking for at the TDL.

(12-03-2024, 11:33 AM)mvossman Wrote: How crazy is it that our biggest concern is backup 4 because our current backup 4 gets injured a lot?  The difference in talent on this team from two short years ago is insane!

(12-03-2024, 11:33 AM)mvossman Wrote: How crazy is it that our biggest concern is backup 4 because our current backup 4 gets injured a lot?  The difference in talent on this team from two short years ago is insane!

(12-03-2024, 11:53 AM)SleepingHero Wrote: I know. It gives me goosebumps. Genuinely. The fact the Mavs looked so strong even without their MVP candidate made my mind blow.

Spencer Dinwiddie, our 3rd best player from our 2022 run, is currently our 9th man. It’s insane.

(12-03-2024, 01:12 PM)F Gump Wrote: Very reminiscent of the title team, that was so deep they lost an all-star starter (Caron Butler) and still had plenty of talent to be dominant by the playoffs.

I have noted before, that I think Kidd's vision has been to create a team generally modeled after that one.

(12-03-2024, 01:16 PM)Ghost of Podkolzin Wrote: Still blows my mind we won the title that year.  Compare that roster to this.  This roster is phenomenally better.  Was that the weakest championship roster over the last 30 years?  I think so.

(12-03-2024, 04:33 PM)F Gump Wrote: I thought (and still think) it was a GREAT collection of talent.

They had dominant defense with the best centers in the NBA (Chandler, Haywood, Mahinmi), wing defenders (Marion, Stevenson), a dominant guard defender (Kidd), and unstoppable offense in Dirk + JET plus others who could make buckets and chip in. Going forward, they added Vince Carter who wanted to jump on the bandwagon, and had young players to bring along (that they chose to give away instead). I think they would have won another title or two if Cuban hadn't undervalued what he had, and thought he could easily reinvent the NBA.

(12-03-2024, 01:12 PM)F Gump Wrote: Very reminiscent of the title team, that was so deep they lost an all-star starter (Caron Butler) and still had plenty of talent to be dominant by the playoffs.

I have noted before, that I think Kidd's vision has been to create a team generally modeled after that one.

(12-03-2024, 05:39 PM)StrandedOnBeauboisHill Wrote: You spelled Rodrigue Beaubois wrong.

(12-03-2024, 02:10 AM)F Gump Wrote: The Mavs trade situation is not complicated. It's easy math. They have to send out as much (or more) salary than they take back, and if they send away more players than they get back, they have to send an extra $2M for each extra body they send away (since they will then have to fill that empty slot with a $2M minimum salary).

As for whether that's really something they might chase, imo it feels very unlikely.
1 Their entire roster is reasonable-to-good value for the salary, and assuming Luka & Kyrie are not up or discussion, their top salaries are 15.8, 15.5, 13.3, and 11.0 with each attached to a player they probably don't want to trade (Klay, PJW, Gafford, Maxi respectively).
2 So assembling a deal that you like for a player making more than say $20M is not really doable. It takes away needed talent, creating a hole or two, and also is unlikely to offer them better value-for-the-cap-dollar than they already have.
3 MOST IMPORTANTLY, do they even have a need that merits a change? It looks to me like their solutions, if they need one, are probably already on the team (such as Klay) and baked into their existing cap limits. It's just a matter of getting players they already have to play up to their skill level. Improvement works best when it's internal development.

(12-04-2024, 12:41 AM)ThisIStheYear Wrote: Good stuff, but I’m pretty much out on Klay. The Mavs may want to keep him because they gave their word or to keep harmony with Kyrie, but he’s done as a consistent contributor. So, Klay plus Maxi equals 26.8 - 2= 24.8 coming back. You can work with that.

(12-04-2024, 12:45 AM)DallasMaverick Wrote: Dang. 

Was it Mark Twain that commented that reports of his demise were greatly exaggerated?

I seem to recall someone recently saying that Dinwiddie was cooked.

(12-04-2024, 12:41 AM)ThisIStheYear Wrote: Good stuff, but I’m pretty much out on Klay. The Mavs may want to keep him because they gave their word or to keep harmony with Kyrie, but he’s done as a consistent contributor. So, Klay plus Maxi equals 26.8 - 2= 24.8 coming back. You can work with that.

(12-04-2024, 01:16 AM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: It's not just a matter of stubborn internal ethics not to trade Klay. It's that we'll never, ever sign a significant FA with Nico as GM again if we trade Klay in-season. That matters, from where I'm sitting anyway.

(12-04-2024, 08:27 AM)Chicagojk Wrote: Has PJ taken the DJJ role of taking on top ball handling scorers late in game? He was on Morant late at times.