MAVS NEWS:

[KillerLeft]

The Mavs signed DJJ around this time last year. Did we all think he had the ability to guard the opponents best player?

We did not. 

It might be true that DJJ is far better than any defender Dallas added, but he had never really played the role in which he flourished here before last season, and honestly, it didn't really "work" until after the trades. I'd suggest that both Marshall and Grimes are coming into this season with more of a "guard the best player" track record than DJJ had going into last season. That doesn't mean either will be as effective at it, but it's possible. 

It also seems like Jones made a connection between that defenisve-minded role and getting paid in a contract year. Thank goodness for that, and good for him, but how do we know that same fire is about to be the norm for him? 

I wanted him back, too. Very badly, in fact, and I'm still a little down about it. However, a little thought into the top of the Mavs rotation from last year and it's a relatively simple thing to reach the conclusion that any significant attempt to improve the top 5-6 had to come at the sacrifice of either DJJ or PJW. For me, PJW is better, more two-way, and has more potential to improve over the next few years, expecially on offense. The other was DJJ, who was literally at a fork in the road as a free agent. I get why they did what they did.