(06-23-2021, 11:42 AM)KillerLeft Wrote: And for the record, just because I loathe the way Cuban has chosen to operate doesn't mean that every move will automatically be the wrong one!
Voulgaris might be really smart.
Mosley might end up being a great coach.
It's just that I believe, personally, there's a ton of evidence that the victories and defeats (of decision making) will happen randomly in the future, as they so often have in the past. I don't see system or process here. At least not in any sense that gives me hope right now.
I am mourning the loss of hope for the organizational approach I would implement. That's all.
"And for the record, just because I loathe the way Cuban has chosen to operate doesn't mean that every move will automatically be the wrong one! "
I think this is a smart view. And I think it applies to analyzing the past as well as the future.
The fact is, Cuban has been (and will continue to be, by all reports and indications), the sole decision-maker for the Mavs' basketball operations. He takes the input of various others (as well as his own counsel), weighs what that tells him, and then makes a decision. As a result, since everything filters through him, the Mavs are limited by his own abilities, biases, and willingness to listen.
Looking backward, they have gotten some things right and had some big successes at times. They did keep Dirk, they did win a title and had a long period of good teams, they did find and draft Luka.
Looking forward, it's understandable that he wants to hire more voices and add opinions before he makes a decision on additional hires.
My comments have been mostly about the fact that this IS how things have operated. Everyone knows it. It is how it is, whether you accept it or not. Now that Cato had the willingness to write about it, anyone who tells you about the Mavs that you trust is willing to say, "Yeah, that's true. It's always been all Cuban." Cuban is big on loyalty, so it's been an open but unpublished truth forever.
I do have criticism of this approach but it isn't that he never can get it right, but that he just doesn't have the personal skills (or perhaps willingness to defer) to run a superior roster-building operation at the highest level in the NBA. I like Cuban. I wish him well. But every decision and weakness impacts the value of everything else you do. It's a very competitive business, and the differences are at the margins. Others seem to have way better ability to work the cap, evaluate, negotiate contracts, and attract talent. With the same guy continuing to lead the way, I'm not sure how they'll fix those deficiencies.