MAVS NEWS:

[Chicagojk]

I believe the Mavs will make a hard push to extend PJ and Gafford this offseason. My qeustion is what will PJ command? 25 per? 30 per? Gafford is also tricky. The market is filled with available centers, so his market may be a little cold. Add the Kyrie potential FA and there are a lot of things the Mavs need to take care of this offseason.

[SleepingHero]

@TheSteinLine
Anthony Davis has missed the past 18 games with a left adductor strain and was initially targeting Tuesday at Madison Square Garden for his return, but the comeback game could be moved up to tonight at Brooklyn with Dallas now moving Davis' status from doubtful to questionable.

[Chicagojk]

@TheSteinLine
Anthony Davis has missed the past 18 games with a left adductor strain and was initially targeting Tuesday at Madison Square Garden for his return, but the comeback game could be moved up to tonight at Brooklyn with Dallas now moving Davis' status from doubtful to questionable.

Ugh!  Can we wait until after this road trip?  Seems sort of rushed.  Seems like he just started practicing 5 on 5.   I don't think the team has practiced much and he was sent down twice, I believe, to the G-league team.   Seems like quite the jump from the old man shooting before games that he did a few weeks ago to playing in a game.    I would much rather see how he did after like 10 practices.    I don't think our training staff deserves any trust.

[SleepingHero]

Ugh!  Can we wait until after this road trip?  Seems sort of rushed.  Seems like he just started practicing 5 on 5.   I don't think the team has practiced much and he was sent down twice, I believe, to the G-league team.   Seems like quite the jump from the old man shooting before games that he did a few weeks ago to playing in a game.    I would much rather see how he did after like 10 practices.    I don't think our training staff deserves any trust.

It feels very very rushed. It feels like Nico wants to get AD on the court because he sees fan engagement dwindling.


It feels like Doomont has seen the reaction from the fans voting with their wallet given how empty the stadium has been and is demanding AD back.

And finally, it also feels like AD has a bone to pick with everyone doubting his own ability. I mean he also sees just how everyone is making fun of the Luka trade and calling him a throw in. I think he wants to prove everyone he is better than Luka.

Lots of different sides all pushing AD back on the court sooner than later. And history tells us this is a massive mistake.

[WildArkieBoy]

We never needed Klay.  We should have kept DJJ and let Grimes replace Timmy's role.  How good would Grimes have been as the 6th man bringing scoring punch off the bench?

While many on this board recognized Grimes' talent, JKidd did not.

wab

[cow]

And finally, it also feels like AD has a bone to pick with everyone doubting his own ability. I mean he also sees just how everyone is making fun of the Luka trade and calling him a throw in. I think he wants to prove everyone he is better than Luka.

I don't think anyone has ever doubted The Brow's ability, it's always been his availability.  I also don't think anyone has classified AD as a throw in, just that Nico should have gotten much, much, much more in return for trading away Luka.  The shade is towards Nico, not AD.

[FireNicoHarrison]

I don't think anyone has ever doubted The Brow's ability, it's always been his availability.  I also don't think anyone has classified AD as a throw in, just that Nico should have gotten much, much, much more in return for trading away Luka.  The shade is towards Nico, not AD.

...availability and not be a Batman...

[SleepingHero]

I don't think anyone has ever doubted The Brow's ability, it's always been his availability.  I also don't think anyone has classified AD as a throw in, just that Nico should have gotten much, much, much more in return for trading away Luka.  The shade is towards Nico, not AD.

I disagree. How many pundits have called this the most laughable lopsided trade of all time? That speaks to the talent disparity of the trade. The rancorous discourse over this trade has been constant for the last 2 months. If this wasn't such a lopsided trade, the talk of it would have been treated like any other big trade of the last decade. But the Luka trade was different. We all know it was different. And it spoke to the abilities of AD vs. Luka. I think that weighs on him. 

And it's why AD has made it a point repeatedly to say "Mavs fans I'm here now" and "Yeah they traded Luka, but they got me." Hell his first game he stormed to mid court to scream at fans "I'm here now!" in the midst of destroying the Rockets.

[Scott41theMavs]

I disagree. How many pundits have called this the most laughable lopsided trade of all time? That speaks to the talent disparity of the trade. The rancorous discourse over this trade has been constant for the last 2 months. If this wasn't such a lopsided trade, the talk of it would have been treated like any other big trade of the last decade. But the Luka trade was different. We all know it was different. And it spoke to the abilities of AD vs. Luka. I think that weighs on him. 

And it's why AD has made it a point repeatedly to say "Mavs fans I'm here now" and "Yeah they traded Luka, but they got me." Hell his first game he stormed to mid court to scream at fans "I'm here now!" in the midst of destroying the Rockets.

...and then sadly proving all of our points by getting injured again before the game was even done.

The disparity between AD and Luka is fairly significant, but he's definitely of multiyear All-Star quality. I still think the main sources of the disparity, aside from him not being a guy who can create his own shot, are age and availability.

[cow]

I disagree. How many pundits have called this the most laughable lopsided trade of all time? That speaks to the talent disparity of the trade. The rancorous discourse over this trade has been constant for the last 2 months. If this wasn't such a lopsided trade, the talk of it would have been treated like any other big trade of the last decade. But the Luka trade was different. We all know it was different. And it spoke to the abilities of AD vs. Luka. I think that weighs on him. 

And it's why AD has made it a point repeatedly to say "Mavs fans I'm here now" and "Yeah they traded Luka, but they got me." Hell his first game he stormed to mid court to scream at fans "I'm here now!" in the midst of destroying the Rockets.

In superstardom, Luka is just on another level from AD.  Then you have an age disparity.  You can say you have some injury concerns with Luka, but AD's track record is much worse.  It was a lopsided trade that only one GM in the league would have pulled the trigger on in Nico's shoes.  Everyone knows AD is a great, great player who had the potential to be a pantheon guy if it weren't for injuries. He's easily a hall of famer and has generational talent. I can understand him being in his feelings over the trade but he should take the advice that Spencer gave DFS when they got traded for Kyrie.

[FireNicoHarrison]

And it's why AD has made it a point repeatedly to say "Mavs fans I'm here now" and "Yeah they traded Luka, but they got me." Hell his first game he stormed to mid court to scream at fans "I'm here now!" in the midst of destroying the Rockets.

Classic american ego... Luka never said anything about his ability on the court after the trade, he has nothing to prove despite Harrison & Dumont's narrative that they dumped him.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

https://x.com/SbondyNBA/status/1904541376710136028

AD on if he's playing tonight in NY

[Chicagojk]

So Martin is out again. Did we ever hear if he reinjured something or we forced to play him with the low bodies available? Just really frustrating we traded him for a win now and got like 5 games out of him with limited minutes. Just awful negotiating.

[F Gump]

An informative note (h/t: M Stein) that could possibly be relevant to Mavs fans, in just the right scenario:

The Miami Heat were the East's No. 8 seed in 2022-23, after needing two Play-In games just to reach the playoffs. They ultimately advanced to the NBA Finals. FWIW.

[bubbler86]

An informative note (h/t: M Stein) that could possibly be relevant to Mavs fans, in just the right scenario:

The Miami Heat were the East's No. 8 seed in 2022-23, after needing two Play-In games just to reach the playoffs. They ultimately advanced to the NBA Finals. FWIW.

Nico's Creed!

[Chicagojk]

Kessler Edwards time has come to an end with the Mavs...for now. I just want to say how impressive the Mavs two way players have been. In each case they have played better than some of the guys with NBA contracts on the team. Looking forward all made a good case for themselves to be NBA players. Although they will continue to have uphill battles to earn NBA contracts. Some comments on all of them:

Kessler Edwards- Prototype size. Good/smart defender. Still only 24. With more playing time, he also hit some open threes. Not a high volume shooter but proved he was not a zero shooting. One negative is that he basically played emergency center when we did not have any bigs. It is too bad we didn't really see him play with a center much or on the wing. I think he will need to show he can be productive on the wing.

Kai Jones- Elite athleticism and good size. You don't see that combo much. Plays hard. Sort of a weird shot, but so far it has gone in more than it hasn't. I think the key for him is doing the small and boring things well. We will get more opportunity to see how he plays moving forward. One negative, is if we bring the roster back next year he will be the fourth center. Also, Powell has another year left on his contract. If we can't move Powell, do you keep a 5th center? I believe he has two way eligibility left, but he is clearly going to be looking for an nba contract.

Brandon Williams- Really impressive and is really crafty in the lane. He looks the part. I will be intersting how he looks with a more complete team. Instead of a guy looking to get his own points. Can he run an offense? Also, I have not been paying attention but is he a mess on defense? At his size, it is really hard. With the Mavs lack of ability to put pressure on the rim, he may have a decent chance to get a contract next year. Although, there are a lot of options out there, so he will need to continue to play hard.

Jazian Gortman- The forgotten guy. He stuck around with the G-league team and I think he has a decent shot to get a two way spot next year. Around 4 years younger than Brandon Williams and hasn't really played important games. His game is still really loose and will need to find a way to get reps. He looks the part though. He just needs a lot of work in serious basketball games.

[Nowitzki Way]

Kessler Edwards time has come to an end with the Mavs...for now.    I just want to say how impressive the Mavs two way players have been.  In each case they have played better than some of the guys with NBA contracts on the team.    Looking forward all made a good case for themselves to be NBA players.  Although they will continue to have uphill battles to earn NBA contracts.  Some comments on all of them:

Kessler Edwards- Prototype size.  Good/smart defender.  Still only 24.  With more playing time, he also hit some open threes.  Not a high volume shooter but proved he was not a zero shooting.  One negative is that he basically played emergency center when we did not have any bigs.  It is too bad we didn't really see him play with a center much or on the wing.  I think he will need to show he can be productive on the wing.

Kai Jones- Elite athleticism and good size.  You don't see that combo much.  Plays hard.  Sort of a weird shot, but so far it has gone in more than it hasn't.  I think the key for him is doing the small and boring things well.    We will get more opportunity to see how he plays moving forward.  One negative, is if we bring the roster back next year he will be the fourth center.  Also, Powell has another year left on his contract.  If we can't move Powell, do you keep a 5th center?  I believe he has two way eligibility left, but he is clearly going to be looking for an nba contract.

Brandon Williams- Really impressive and is really crafty in the lane.  He looks the part.  I will be intersting how he looks with a more complete team.  Instead of a guy looking to get his own points.  Can he run an offense?  Also, I have not been paying attention but is he a mess on defense?  At his size, it is really hard.  With the Mavs lack of ability to put pressure on the rim, he may have a decent chance to get a contract next year.  Although, there are a lot of options out there, so he will need to continue to play hard. 

Jazian Gortman-  The forgotten guy.  He stuck around with the G-league team and I think he has a decent shot to get a two way spot next year.  Around 4 years younger than Brandon Williams and hasn't really played important games.  His game is still really loose and will need to find a way to get reps.  He looks the part though.    He just needs a lot of work in serious basketball games.

Good analysis of these guys. Looking at our roster going into the offseason, we'll have 3 spots. We already have the one open spot and then Spencer and Exum are free agents.

I'm assuming one of the current 2-ways will get signed to multi year minimum for the last few days of the season, after the money opens up. 

I see no room for any of these guys next year if no trades are made. We need another 1 or possibly 2 ball handlers with Kyrie being hurt. Then hopefully our first round pick if its not traded. 

I really like Kai Jones. He has crazy athleticism. But with Gafford and Lively, he's almost not needed. But i'd take him in a heartbeat over Powell. 

Edwards and Williams are "just guys" to me. I think Williams is redundant with Hardy on the team. Edwards is redundant with O-Max on the team. If we could magically trade out Powell, Hardy, O-Max for our current 3 two ways, we'd be slightly better. 

Just shows how injuries have killed this new roster. Even with no major upgrades, this team would look solid next year with a healthy Kyrie.

I believe we'd start Kyrie, Klay, P.J., Davis, and Gafford.

With Naji, Lively, Christie, off the bench. Sprinkle in some Caleb Martin and Kai Jones.   But that team is still missing another ball handler.

[FireNicoHarrison]

Williams and Edwards are better basketball players than Hardy and Prosper right now.

AD,Lively and Gafford are redundant to me, sign Kai Jones as 3rd string C and trade one of Gafford and Lively for a good PG.

[KillerLeft]

 trade one of Gafford and Lively for a good PG.

A trade centered around Gafford (plus) for a top half of the league starting playmaker (or someone they think is about to become that) is probably the one and only way to move forward from here. 

That, or the same idea with PJ Washington outgoing, instead, although I'd like that much less.

[michaeltex]

Kessler Edwards time has come to an end with the Mavs...for now.    I just want to say how impressive the Mavs two way players have been.  In each case they have played better than some of the guys with NBA contracts on the team.    Looking forward all made a good case for themselves to be NBA players.  Although they will continue to have uphill battles to earn NBA contracts.  Some comments on all of them:

Kessler Edwards- Prototype size.  Good/smart defender.  Still only 24.  With more playing time, he also hit some open threes.  Not a high volume shooter but proved he was not a zero shooting.  One negative is that he basically played emergency center when we did not have any bigs.  It is too bad we didn't really see him play with a center much or on the wing.  I think he will need to show he can be productive on the wing.

Kai Jones- Elite athleticism and good size.  You don't see that combo much.  Plays hard.  Sort of a weird shot, but so far it has gone in more than it hasn't.  I think the key for him is doing the small and boring things well.    We will get more opportunity to see how he plays moving forward.  One negative, is if we bring the roster back next year he will be the fourth center.  Also, Powell has another year left on his contract.  If we can't move Powell, do you keep a 5th center?  I believe he has two way eligibility left, but he is clearly going to be looking for an nba contract.

Brandon Williams- Really impressive and is really crafty in the lane.  He looks the part.  I will be intersting how he looks with a more complete team.  Instead of a guy looking to get his own points.  Can he run an offense?  Also, I have not been paying attention but is he a mess on defense?  At his size, it is really hard.  With the Mavs lack of ability to put pressure on the rim, he may have a decent chance to get a contract next year.  Although, there are a lot of options out there, so he will need to continue to play hard. 

Jazian Gortman-  The forgotten guy.  He stuck around with the G-league team and I think he has a decent shot to get a two way spot next year.  Around 4 years younger than Brandon Williams and hasn't really played important games.  His game is still really loose and will need to find a way to get reps.  He looks the part though.    He just needs a lot of work in serious basketball games.

Great analysis. I'd vote for signing Jones and Williams on April 12th. If AD is ready to go, DAL still needs help in the front court. Jones has looked good so far. Kind of a Gafford clone, but with better hops. I think you keep him and try to find DP a spot to play out his contract.

I really like what Williams brings. Doesn't have the ideal height, but he brings a lot of energy to both ends. If DAL is transitioning to more of a movement offense, then I think he will fit fine. Fearless to take to the rim, so that will help. Especially as the bigs come back and can help create a lane. I don't yet have a good read on his creating-for-others skills though.

I know a lot of us feel like this is a lost season and DAL should just tank their way to the lottery, but I'd like to see everyone together for some games this season to get a feel about how everyone fits for next fall.