MAVS NEWS:

[mvossman]

Powell is pretty great as 3rd-string Center!

And really he is fourth. When Lively was out that big stretch towards end of the season Maxi played center ahead of Powell. He looked pretty good tonight for a fourth string center!

[Chicagojk]

matchups and injuries will determine some of this but I was wondering who you think eventually is considered your 8th man and then 9th man?

If Lively continues to come off bench and Marshall the 6 and 7 appear set in stone. I wonder where 8 and 9 finish up if we get into important games and run 9 man rotations for the most part.

[michaeltex]

In the FWIW department...

Signed up for MavsTV and it has been a godsend. Good quality broadcasts with our home guys behind the microphones instead of some national broadcast team who isn't even sure of anyone beyond Luka and Kyrie.

Not much in the way of commercials. A lot of timeouts are just shots of the arena or focused on whatever entertainment is in the spotlight, like the drum line or the Maaniacs, kind of like being at the game, but with cheaper beer and snacks and no one spills their drink on you.

[mvossman]

matchups and injuries will determine some of this but I was wondering who you think eventually is considered your 8th man and then 9th man?

If Lively continues to come off bench and Marshall the 6 and 7 appear set in stone.  I wonder where 8 and 9 finish up if we get into important games and run 9 man rotations for the most part.

I still think eventually its going to end up being Grimes.  He has gotten off to a slow start, but he is easily the best defender of the remaining options (at least until Exum comes back) and if Marshall keeps playing like this, offensive creation will be less of a priority coming off the bench.

[Chicagojk]

They should have kept Sharp on the team. Yeah he is not as much of a threat offensively speaking but they could use him more on defense. That decision could continue to bite us in the ass if these injuries to our bigs pile on because they get overplayed in the absence of their back ups. Unless they see another big target to add they need to look into getting Sharp back on the team or someone else who can man the middle. We desperately need someone that has some size and ability to defend the basket. Depending on a rookie is something we were used to last season and it did not seem to hurt us. Worst thing is we develop a trade asset that could bring back more assets. Using Powell is not that great of an option. So we are down 2 PF's and 1 of our centers. That truly sucks bigtime.

I think Sharpe is a long way away from being an NBA player....if ever.   He will have a good chance to see how he develops in the G-league and maybe if he improves he will be worthy of a two way spot.  He is an elite shot blocker, but there is so much more he will need to learn and improve.   

1) He needs to master rotations and being in the right spot.  The game moves so fast and being a tad off will eliminate any benefits his shot blocking brings
2) defend one on one and be a plus defender minus the shot blocking.  This includes guarding the post and also being not a train wreck on a wing on the perimeter
3) Rebound at an average to above average level

Luka makes rim runners jobs easy.  Although, you need to be able to do what he needs.   It looks like Sharpe got better doing screens from summer league, but there is still a lot to learn.

I hope he stays on our G-league team.   He is the exact type of guy I want the Mavs to invest in.   Maybe later in the season or next year, he has improved and can secure a two way spot.    Playing with two guards in the summer league in Williams and Gortman should get him a lot of experience rolling to the rim.

[omahen]

Assuming there will be no TDL trades, I agree it will be Grimes. I don't think Exum is much better creator than Grimes anyway and he is (mostly) reluctant to shoot or do much on offense. At least he was a complete non factor on offense in the playoffs. Grimes has a quick trigger and I also believe he will remember how to shoot. Two more players will seem to be in the playoff rotation - SD and Maxi.

We mostly thought Kidd will stagger Luka-Kyrie-Klay to have two of them on the floor at the same time. If I am not mistaken, he currently staggers Luka, Kyre and SD to have two creators on the floor at all times. Might be this is just an early season test in finding things that work best, but as of now it is like this.

[omahen]

Interesting observation in the Mavs part (didn't read the rest). The Mavs can play big if they want and Mavs unit with Luka, 3 wings (Klay, Naji and PJ) and a center is very dominant in a small sample.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/1014...-right-now

[mvossman]

Assuming there will be no TDL trades, I agree it will be Grimes. I don't think Exum is much better creator than Grimes anyway and he is (mostly) reluctant to shoot or do much on offense. At least he was a complete non factor on offense in the playoffs. Grimes has a quick trigger and I also believe he will remember how to shoot. Two more players will seem to be in the playoff rotation - SD and Maxi.

We mostly thought Kidd will stagger Luka-Kyrie-Klay to have two of them on the floor at the same time. If I am not mistaken, he currently staggers Luka, Kyre and SD to have two creators on the floor at all times. Might be this is just an early season test in finding things that work best, but as of now it is like this.

I originally liked the Dinwiddie signing, but at the moment I am leaning towards Killer's thinking that he is just taking away developmental/adjustment minutes from Grimes and Hardy.  Hopefully Naji can take over the third playmaking role and Din can fall further down the depth chart.

[omahen]

I originally liked the Dinwiddie signing, but at the moment I am leaning towards Killer's thinking that he is just taking away developmental/adjustment minutes from Grimes and Hardy.  Hopefully Naji can take over the third playmaking role and Din can fall further down the depth chart.

I am very happy with this team. I think they created a very credible team and I could easily see them in the finals again. Mavs have really improved in skill. All their guys, other than centers, can now put the ball on the floor when given space and do something with it. While they are not level of defenders DJJ or DFS were, they are far more versatile on offense. They are also a very deep team and minutes are difficult to get for everyone. Especially because starters are playing heavy minutes so far, there are only so many of them to be had for bench guys. 
 
I think only Boston is still a great and extremely difficult team to beat, while I still don't really trust the young OKC, until they prove me otherwise in the playoffs. Although they currently of course look very dominant. I think Mavs are better than all the other teams in a playoff series. 

I don't think there is a plan to have Naji as a creator. He can put the ball on the floor, but I don't see him as capable of running an offense. One thing I am thinking about - did SD actually "take" Maxi minutes (but not his role) since he got injured? I think Naji and Grimes are not really playing more unless they are really hot (each had one such game so far) and SD started playing when Maxi went out. Although it is also true Hardy also lost his minutes.

I am a bit suprised at low minutes for Grimes. He is not efficient on offense (so far), but he is a good defender. But again, minutes are difficult to get with the deep team Mavs have. Hope it doesn't become an issue (dissatisfaction with a small role).

[Ghost of Podkolzin]

I originally liked the Dinwiddie signing, but at the moment I am leaning towards Killer's thinking that he is just taking away developmental/adjustment minutes from Grimes and Hardy.  Hopefully Naji can take over the third playmaking role and Din can fall further down the depth chart.

Minutes are earned.  Until Grimes and Hardy make an impact with the minutes they get, they won't get more.

[mvossman]

I am a bit suprised at low minutes for Grimes. He is not efficient on offense (so far), but he is a good defender. But again, minutes are difficult to get with the deep team Mavs have. Hope it doesn't become an issue (dissatisfaction with a small role).

Me too.  His three is not falling yet but he has the highest net rating on the team (small sample alert) so he is prolly doing something right.  Early on I wondered if he might feel like he is not getting minutes because he didn't sign extension (in fact Kidd made a comment that folks need to be patient regarding minutes on such a deep team and I wonder if that was mostly directed to Grimes) but all he has to do is look at Hardy who did sign an extension and is getting even less minutes.  I hope his minutes ramp up soon.  I think he is the kind of player that you get more out of the more he plays.

[SleepingHero]

Grant Afseth (@GrantAfseth)
Dallas Mavericks to list Dereck Lively II (right shoulder sprain) and P.J. Washington (right knee sprain) as out against Phoenix Suns.

Maxi Kleber (right hamstring strain) to be upgraded to doubtful.

Danté Exum (right wrist surgery) remains out.

[SleepingHero]

https://twitter.com/miss77ela/status/185...4427835900

This is hilarious. Luka's reaction upon hearing they play Golden State on Tuesday next week. Dude has zero idea about the schedule and only cares about the game they play that night.

[RGP1981]

https://twitter.com/miss77ela/status/185...4427835900

This is hilarious. Luka's reaction upon hearing they play Golden State on Tuesday next week. Dude has zero idea about the schedule and only cares about the game they play that night.

/boring

I would have found this funny in years gone by... but after becoming a CC fan, and because I now have a different barometer to compare him to... when I see stuff like this, it just seems like Luka is clueless, immature and not a winner. Plays pretty offensive basketball but is simply not a winner.

Honestly, Caitlin has replaced Luka as my favorite basketball player, and videos like this one, as well as him coming into this season as tubby and unfit as he has ever been... well, it's a no-contest at the moment. Luka needs to make a better effort... with his fitness and defense first, but also at everything else, like his awareness... which includes him being clued into when his team plays the ex-team of the star that just left them to join his team.

[StrandedOnBeauboisHill]

/boring

I would have found this funny in years gone by... but after becoming a CC fan, and because I now have a different barometer to compare him to... when I see stuff like this, it just seems like Luka is clueless, immature and not a winner. Plays pretty offensive basketball but is simply not a winner. And please don't tell me about him winning in the EU, because my answer will be that he was the big fish in a small pond there.

Honestly, Caitlin has replaced Luka as my favorite basketball player, and videos like this one, as well as him coming into this season as tubby and unfit as he has ever been... well, it's a no-contest at the moment. Luka needs to make a better effort... with his fitness and defense first, but also at everything else, like his awareness... which includes him being clued into when his team plays the ex-team of the star that just left them to join his team.

cool

[SleepingHero]

/boring

I would have found this funny in years gone by... but after becoming a CC fan, and because I now have a different barometer to compare him to... when I see stuff like this, it just seems like Luka is clueless, immature and not a winner. Plays pretty offensive basketball but is simply not a winner. And please don't tell me about him winning in the EU, because my answer will be that he was the big fish in a small pond there.

Honestly, Caitlin has replaced Luka as my favorite basketball player, and videos like this one, as well as him coming into this season as tubby and unfit as he has ever been... well, it's a no-contest at the moment. Luka needs to make a better effort... with his fitness and defense first, but also at everything else, like his awareness... which includes him being clued into when his team plays the ex-team of the star that just left them to join his team.

Should I make you a dedicated WNBA channel here so you can continue talk about it? Seem like THE single fan of them. Unfortunately here we mostly talk about the NBA 95% of the time and the other 5% is made up of grammar debates so you're not going to get much responses about the WNBA here.

[RGP1981]

Should I make you a dedicated WNBA channel here so you can continue talk about it? Seem like THE single fan of them. Unfortunately here we mostly talk about the NBA 95% of the time and the other 5% is made up of grammar debates so you're not going to get much responses about the WNBA here.

Not needed but thanks for asking.

I guess what I'm hoping for is that Luka will take a few pages out of her book is all.

[Chicagojk]

Season is still young and we don't even know the type of team we have yet. I was wondering as we look forward with this roster, what type of moves we are looking for moving forward. Is it an addition to the roster or is an upgrade from someone on the roster? Or is it just holding steady for the next 2 years? If so, with addition or upgrade, what type of players or positions do you think would be a target?

[ballsrchr]

/boring

I would have found this funny in years gone by... but after becoming a CC fan, and because I now have a different barometer to compare him to... when I see stuff like this, it just seems like Luka is clueless, immature and not a winner. Plays pretty offensive basketball but is simply not a winner.

Honestly, Caitlin has replaced Luka as my favorite basketball player, and videos like this one, as well as him coming into this season as tubby and unfit as he has ever been... well, it's a no-contest at the moment. Luka needs to make a better effort... with his fitness and defense first, but also at everything else, like his awareness... which includes him being clued into when his team plays the ex-team of the star that just left them to join his team.

I'm also a big CC fan.  Not necessarily of Women's basketball, but I do watch it quite often.  CC is really on a different plane than most, if not all, other players.  There is quite a lot that men can learn from the women's game and adapt to men's basketball.

But...there is little comparison between the respective games...or the players.  I agree that the maturity level between Luka and CC is different.  Luka would learn a lot if he went back and watched CC play.  I think Luka has at least 1 possibly 2 levels of play that he can achieve.  He must "mature" to achieve either level--emotionally, physically, technically, and desire.  Luka plays the way he does because he has never learned better.  Nobody has ever held his nose to the grindstone.  The Mavs need to find someone he respects and will listen to.  Maybe someone like Chandler to Lively.  I don't know.
 
Maybe it's Kidd?  ***  *** *** hmmmm.   Naw...I don't think so.  Stranger things have happened, I guess.  Kidd had some of the same problems.

Luka is my favorite basketball player...despite his shortcomings.  But CC is right up there!

[ballsrchr]

Season is still young and we don't even know the type of team we have yet.  I was wondering as we look forward with this roster, what type of moves we are looking for moving forward.  Is it an addition to the roster or is an upgrade from someone on the roster?  Or is it just holding steady for the next 2 years?    If so, with addition or upgrade, what type of players or positions do you think would be a target?

As you say...still early in the season.  I would like to see improved play by our wings and power forwards.  Kyrie does play as a shooting guard some of the times, but beyond that we need better play.  This can be done by our present line up if/when they start meshing.

Upgrades are hard.  A diamond in the rough is easier...