A few tidbits from the latest pod by Brian Dameris and Mark Followill.
Kidd. They discuss the adverse comments about Kidd in the new Giannis book. The comments are concerning. However, Dameris has the impression that the Mavs are not very worried about them. Mark says he has personally heard Nellie, Avery, and Rick come down very hard on players every now and then, in ways that would appear concerning if they were written down and published. Most coaches have that in their toolkit, but recognize that it can only be used sparingly, if it is to be effective.
Kidd may well have learned his lesson on that issue in LA. Frank Vogel is a mild-mannered coach, and may have shown Kidd that you don’t have to be a fire-and-brimstone coach all the time to succeed, and that such a manner may even be counterproductive. Kidd also learned about dealing with superstars, who have to be handled a little differently.
The podcasters note that none of the bad comments came from Giannis, and that the potential impact of some of the reports may be overblown. They are still hopeful that Kidd has learned his lessons and will be a good coach here.
Markkanen. Mavs are interested in Lauri, but at least for now, the Bulls’ asking price is way too high for what the market will bear. Markkanen is not interested in signing for the trade exception for three years. They don’t think anything will necessarily happen on that front any time soon, but you never know.
The podders think that it would be worth signing Markkanen as an asset, if nothing else, if the Mavs don’t have to give up a first-round pick or players who are pencilled in as part of the team's long-term future. If there are players who have already been slated to be phased out, it might be worth offering them to attain a young asset with some possible upside.
Maxi. In that regard, Dameris questioned whether Maxi is in the Mavs’ long-term plans. Kleber is almost 30, has only one fully guaranteed year left on his contract, has a history of injury problems, and has had two poor showings in the playoffs. Dameris questioned whether the team is really likely to re-sign him for multiple years, should he make it to free agency. He presented these comments as his own observations, rather than something anyone in the front office told him.
Roster-building. They note that the Mavs’ primary route to improving the team from now until 2024 will necessarily be through trades.
Brunson and DFS. No news on extension talks. The question here from the team’s point of view is whether they want to get these guys locked up at current prices and secure them as assets, or whether they want to wait until next summer and re-sign them with Bird rights if they still need them. They will not want to repeat the Powell mistake of overpaying them too early. Of course, the player has something to say about extensions, too.
From that standpoint, they have a gut feeling that Brunson will want to test the market and see if he can find a starting role somewhere else. Doe-Doe loves it here, but has ramped up his value since his last signing, and the money will probably be important to him, as his next contract may be his last chance at a sizable payday. So, it may not be realistic for the Mavs to expect a significant home-town discount for him.
Summer league. They suspect that the job of putting together a summer-league roster more or less got lost in the shuffle this season, with all the personnel changes at the Mavs, and the team wasn’t very good. The guy who got the two-way is still very raw, and likely a project headed for the Legends.
Other. The podcasters note a few remaining free agents available (along the lines of DSJ and Ntlikina). They also analyze the new schedule. They are looking forward to the season.
Kidd. They discuss the adverse comments about Kidd in the new Giannis book. The comments are concerning. However, Dameris has the impression that the Mavs are not very worried about them. Mark says he has personally heard Nellie, Avery, and Rick come down very hard on players every now and then, in ways that would appear concerning if they were written down and published. Most coaches have that in their toolkit, but recognize that it can only be used sparingly, if it is to be effective.
Kidd may well have learned his lesson on that issue in LA. Frank Vogel is a mild-mannered coach, and may have shown Kidd that you don’t have to be a fire-and-brimstone coach all the time to succeed, and that such a manner may even be counterproductive. Kidd also learned about dealing with superstars, who have to be handled a little differently.
The podcasters note that none of the bad comments came from Giannis, and that the potential impact of some of the reports may be overblown. They are still hopeful that Kidd has learned his lessons and will be a good coach here.
Markkanen. Mavs are interested in Lauri, but at least for now, the Bulls’ asking price is way too high for what the market will bear. Markkanen is not interested in signing for the trade exception for three years. They don’t think anything will necessarily happen on that front any time soon, but you never know.
The podders think that it would be worth signing Markkanen as an asset, if nothing else, if the Mavs don’t have to give up a first-round pick or players who are pencilled in as part of the team's long-term future. If there are players who have already been slated to be phased out, it might be worth offering them to attain a young asset with some possible upside.
Maxi. In that regard, Dameris questioned whether Maxi is in the Mavs’ long-term plans. Kleber is almost 30, has only one fully guaranteed year left on his contract, has a history of injury problems, and has had two poor showings in the playoffs. Dameris questioned whether the team is really likely to re-sign him for multiple years, should he make it to free agency. He presented these comments as his own observations, rather than something anyone in the front office told him.
Roster-building. They note that the Mavs’ primary route to improving the team from now until 2024 will necessarily be through trades.
Brunson and DFS. No news on extension talks. The question here from the team’s point of view is whether they want to get these guys locked up at current prices and secure them as assets, or whether they want to wait until next summer and re-sign them with Bird rights if they still need them. They will not want to repeat the Powell mistake of overpaying them too early. Of course, the player has something to say about extensions, too.
From that standpoint, they have a gut feeling that Brunson will want to test the market and see if he can find a starting role somewhere else. Doe-Doe loves it here, but has ramped up his value since his last signing, and the money will probably be important to him, as his next contract may be his last chance at a sizable payday. So, it may not be realistic for the Mavs to expect a significant home-town discount for him.
Summer league. They suspect that the job of putting together a summer-league roster more or less got lost in the shuffle this season, with all the personnel changes at the Mavs, and the team wasn’t very good. The guy who got the two-way is still very raw, and likely a project headed for the Legends.
Other. The podcasters note a few remaining free agents available (along the lines of DSJ and Ntlikina). They also analyze the new schedule. They are looking forward to the season.
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