My takeaways are not the same as the consensus here.
Yes, the Mavs put up a stinker. But ...
Jimmy Johnson used to say, "A team is not as good as their best game, and not as bad as their worst." That applies here. For context, they just finished camp, plus they were just off a long flight from West to East (the worst impact on energy).
And they played with a lack of energy, with lots of confusion. A step slow - but not because they lack athleticism. They also got outrebounded badly, but not because they are a bad team for rebounding. That won't happen often. Defense was awful - in large part because DAR was horrendous, wandering around and guarding no one. 4-on-5 doesn't work. He is new to the defense and its schemes - or does he just not have any clue? We'll see what he does next time. But the Mavs - short their starting guard (Kyrie) - are still missing both B Will and Exum (injured) as an option. And when DAR is sparing it up, they need another option (but didn't have one to go to). I think that mattered. And this will not be a bad team on defense when it counts. If someone does not defend, Kidd will play someone else imo.
In summary, I suspect this game actually told us nothing. And it's only 1 game 0 in the standings, so no biggie. Move on, imo.
Yes, the Mavs put up a stinker. But ...
Jimmy Johnson used to say, "A team is not as good as their best game, and not as bad as their worst." That applies here. For context, they just finished camp, plus they were just off a long flight from West to East (the worst impact on energy).
And they played with a lack of energy, with lots of confusion. A step slow - but not because they lack athleticism. They also got outrebounded badly, but not because they are a bad team for rebounding. That won't happen often. Defense was awful - in large part because DAR was horrendous, wandering around and guarding no one. 4-on-5 doesn't work. He is new to the defense and its schemes - or does he just not have any clue? We'll see what he does next time. But the Mavs - short their starting guard (Kyrie) - are still missing both B Will and Exum (injured) as an option. And when DAR is sparing it up, they need another option (but didn't have one to go to). I think that mattered. And this will not be a bad team on defense when it counts. If someone does not defend, Kidd will play someone else imo.
In summary, I suspect this game actually told us nothing. And it's only 1 game 0 in the standings, so no biggie. Move on, imo.
![[-]](https://www.mavsboard.com/images/collapse.png)