TAKE DAT WIT YOU 8/20

[mavsluvr]

I think the result can only be compared against the goals. Mavs were announcing all the time how this is crucial offseason and how extremely active they will be to put a team around Luka. They chose to maximize cap space despite it was quite obvious for quite some time that free agent crop will be extremely poor (and was known even before that that Giannis would be the only really good one to begin with). As usual the cap space strategy failed completely and the end result is "run it back", dumping JRich for air and signing another role player with MLE to replace him. Asset base didn't increase and we have same bad position to make a significant trade as we had it before. We basically can't waste any assets for improvements around the edges (Dragic, Markkanen) as we would lose any hope for a significant trade. At least sell the TPE for draft assets and trade M.Brown for a second rounder, if you don't count on him... 

Based on this I don't understand how someone can give them a B- for this result at this point.

I think this is a good point. There was so much fanfare going into the offseason. So much trumpeting of Nico's popularity among free agents, and how players were going to be lined up around the block to play for Kidd and with Luka. Some put a lot of stock in Carlisle leaving as opening the floodgates for guys who wanted to play here, but not for Rick. So much waving of the cap-space flag, and how this was the make-it-or-break-it summer. Positions of need identified, but not filled. 

Seems like a lot of hat, and not much cattle.