Scott...I'll agree and disagree with you.
Yes. The roster is an issue. We all know it. Missing 2 important pieces of a weak roster to begin with certainly plays into the final outcome. Also, losses happen. Even the Nuggets and Clips (without PG) lost to bottom dwellers yesterday.
However, where I disagree with you is the philosophy. That is on RC. It is sad to watch a coach who has a ring and watched Dirk/JeT get a ton of close to the basket shots (along with long distance shots) now acting as if D'Antoni (who hasn't won a thing in his life) wrote the book on modern basketball. This team struggles to hold leads late because we are not a great defensive team to begin with and in the half court (which is what most close games and playoff games come down to) we seem to have no clue what to run. That is clearly on RC.
Luka...I can't begin to say how lucky we are we have him. However he has certain bad habits. The main thing is itching to look for his shot. Yes the roster is not great, but the team won in Philly without him and nearly beat Boston. The roster is not dog meat either. He takes too many bad shots for no reason at all. That is on RC to correct and has to be corrected now before it is too late. If he or the organization are scared of ruffling the feathers of modern day studs who are quick to demand trades, then that is not good either.
The biggest issue I have with both RC and Cuban blathering about how the game has changed (even though in reality in the playoffs defense and tough baskets via half court sets are still and will always be needed), is that it affects the type of players we try to get too. Smaller, finesse players are suited for an outside in game. More tough minded and stronger players are needed for a half court based offense. So you can't treat the roster and coaching in vaccuum. If you're trying to blame Cuban or Donnie for the roster, then RC is to blame too.
For an immediate fix, there is nothing. Iggy might be too expensive. The closest we have in terms of that size and length is Roby. I know he is a rook and struggled in the pre season. But we are still ahead in terms of our calender to return back to being a legit contender. I'd like the Mavs to throw him into the fire and see what we have there. More than a bruiser we need a strong, physical 6'8" guy who can be a running mate for Luka. It will bring down Luka's numbers but will help immensely in the long run.
Yes. The roster is an issue. We all know it. Missing 2 important pieces of a weak roster to begin with certainly plays into the final outcome. Also, losses happen. Even the Nuggets and Clips (without PG) lost to bottom dwellers yesterday.
However, where I disagree with you is the philosophy. That is on RC. It is sad to watch a coach who has a ring and watched Dirk/JeT get a ton of close to the basket shots (along with long distance shots) now acting as if D'Antoni (who hasn't won a thing in his life) wrote the book on modern basketball. This team struggles to hold leads late because we are not a great defensive team to begin with and in the half court (which is what most close games and playoff games come down to) we seem to have no clue what to run. That is clearly on RC.
Luka...I can't begin to say how lucky we are we have him. However he has certain bad habits. The main thing is itching to look for his shot. Yes the roster is not great, but the team won in Philly without him and nearly beat Boston. The roster is not dog meat either. He takes too many bad shots for no reason at all. That is on RC to correct and has to be corrected now before it is too late. If he or the organization are scared of ruffling the feathers of modern day studs who are quick to demand trades, then that is not good either.
The biggest issue I have with both RC and Cuban blathering about how the game has changed (even though in reality in the playoffs defense and tough baskets via half court sets are still and will always be needed), is that it affects the type of players we try to get too. Smaller, finesse players are suited for an outside in game. More tough minded and stronger players are needed for a half court based offense. So you can't treat the roster and coaching in vaccuum. If you're trying to blame Cuban or Donnie for the roster, then RC is to blame too.
For an immediate fix, there is nothing. Iggy might be too expensive. The closest we have in terms of that size and length is Roby. I know he is a rook and struggled in the pre season. But we are still ahead in terms of our calender to return back to being a legit contender. I'd like the Mavs to throw him into the fire and see what we have there. More than a bruiser we need a strong, physical 6'8" guy who can be a running mate for Luka. It will bring down Luka's numbers but will help immensely in the long run.