MAVS NEWS:

[audiosway]

I'm not sure I would use Gaff as an example of how we beat them defensively.  He had by far the worst defensive rating on the team and he was a net -20 for that series.  They put him in space and completely abused him.

A big part of that defense was DJJ.  He played over 31 minutes a game in that series.  We don't really have anyone who can do what he did anymore.  

Hartenstein is more than just help from the bench.  He is a legit starter playing nearly 30 minutes a game.  He brings a completely different aspect to that team that did not exist last year.

I would be much more worried about Mavs scoring than the other way around.  They have guys that can handle AD and they are going to suffocate Kyrie.  They will probably hunt him on the other end as well.  They would make his life miserable in a playoff series.  

I agree playoffs are about matchups and schemes.  But the matchups would be very different this time around.  Hard to make predictions about how this defense will matchup since we have barely seen it yet.  It is really hard for me to see a path where the offense does not really struggle against that defense.

Lively was the real tone setter in that series. DJJ was only +3 for the entire series. If you are going by +/- it was Lively, then Kyrie, then PJ.

I don't trust OKC in the playoffs. Great regular season team that is every pundit's pick. I would pick the Mavs in that series every time.