MAVS 105, TIMBERWOLVES 111

[mavsluvr]

DECIMATED MAVS ROSTER CRATERS IN FOURTH
NICO GIVES AN UPDATE

An 11-man Mavericks team traveled to Minnesota to face a similarly depleted Wolves squad. The Mavs hoped to bounce back from their overtime loss to the Lakers on Wednesday.  Unfortunately, they fell just short.  


GAME NOTES

The Mavs have six players out — Luka (ankle), Willie (personal issues), Bullock and Green (COVID protocols), Frankie (non-COVID illness), and Omoruyi (foot). The Wolves are also missing a few, including Anthony Edwards. I have a feeling we are not going to be watching a classic basketball game tonight, but we’ll see what both teams can accomplish on a short-handed basis. 

Starting lineup   Brunson-Hardaway-DFS-KP-Powell

FIRST QUARTER

DFS opens the scoring off a pass from JB. — KAT responds. — Tim hits a second-chance jumper from a DFS OR. — DFS lobs to Powell. — Brunson records his first points with free throws. — Kidd on the sideline looking not too pleased with his team failing to contest a  rebound. — Wolves take their first lead with an open corner three. Dorian responds. — Hardaway runs the floor for a nice move in the lane. — At the first timeout, Doe-Doe has 2 baskets and 2 assists. 

13-9 6:35

Moses is in, draws a foul on KAT. Sterling Brown coming in, making his return from several games off with a foot problem. — KAT is awarded a dubious continuation. — Wolves make a run, then the Mavs return the favor. — Kleber slams the ball to the floor in frustration at being called for a foul he didn’t agree with. He’s teed up. 

25-27 after one

Tim leads the Mavs with 12 points, KAT has 9 for Minnie. Mavs 3-13 (23%) from three, luckily Wolves are not much better (3-10). Mavs 8-8 from the line. 

SECOND QUARTER

KP hits over Vanderbilt. — McDaniels gets by KP. — KP off the glass from Tim. — KP toss to THJ, running the fast break for a dunk. 

33-34 8:19

Brunson pull-up gives the lead back to Dallas. — McLaughlin entering the court! — Powell is called for his third foul. — Vanderbilt has the crowd cheering with a transition bucket. Timeout Dallas. Mavs turning the ball over, down to 3-16 (19%) from range. 

35-40 6:19

Another Mavs turnover, with a SCV. Aargh. — Brunson with another turnover, but Beverley gives it right back. — KP scores off a broken play. First shot attempt in six possessions for the Mavs. — Maxi called for his third. KAT and Powell also have three. — Vanderbilt jumps on Brunson, who is knocked to the floor. — JB hits a tough shot on the other end. — Ball called out off Mavs, Dorian incensed, Kidd challenges. Challenge successful. Brunson capitalizes with a three! — Beverley answers. — Tim with a rejection, but the Mavs turn it over on the other end and give up a transition three. — Beverley called for his third, goes out. 

Hardaway finds KP with a nifty pass, and Porzingis goes to the line. Hits both. — Burke hits a giant-killer. — Brunson turns it over, Russell hits a pull-up three. — Technical fouls called on Vanderbilt and the Wolves head coach!  KP takes the technical free throws, hits both. Vanderbilt bumped Brunson right in front of God and the ref, coach let his feelings be known with gestures. — Brunson claims Dallas’ last points of the half with free throws. 

50-56 HT

Mavs have “improved” to 21% from beyond the arc (4-19), while the Wolves are shooting 47% (8-17) from distance. Both teams have been perfection from the line (Mavs 14-14, Wolves 10-10). Dallas have given up 16 points to turnovers. THJ, KP and JB in double figures, led by Timmy with 14 points. KAT and Russell combine for 26 for the Wolves. 

Dameris speculates that the lineups that have never played together, or even practiced together, may be the reason for the Mavs’ uncharacteristic turnover difficulties. Also suspects that Beverley, one of the league’s biggest irritants, may be getting into Brunson’s head. 

THIRD QUARTER

Dorian gets the first points of the half at the line. MIN has another technical, this one on Russell. — Powell jam off a put-back! — Wolves leave Dorian in the corner. He punishes them. — DFS with another three! Woo-hoo! — DFS fouls KAT, who falls to the floor, and is still down. He gets up, looks okay. Play reviewed. Flagrant One. Nico applauds KAT for his acting job. — Tim initiates the offense, which ends up with another basket by DFS. — DFS puts in a lob from JB. — Corner three from Timmy! — Powell is down. Timeout. 

70-74  4:59

MIN makes a few points, Kleber responds with a three. — Moses scores on downcourt pass from Jalen. 

80-81 2:20

Uh-oh. News that KP will not return to the game, due to right foot soreness. Dang. The Mavs’ 10 remaining players will finish the game.  — Kick-out three from Timmy! — Jaylen Nowell hits a three with enough time to get a sandwich. — Mo draws a blocking foul from KAT, his fourth. — Sterling Brown gives Dallas the lead with a corner three in the last seconds of the clock. 

88-86 after three

38-30 third period for the Mavs. Dorian had 14 points in the quarter, and the Mavs were 7-11 from three. Now, that’s the way to make a comeback. Teams have combined for 36 free throws, and they’re 36-36.

FOURTH QUARTER

Reid ties the game with a slam. — Nowell for three, reclaims the lead for MIN.

88-91 10:30

Kleber with a second-chance three, ties it up again. Wolves staying just a jump ahead of Dallas.

93-96 7:45

MIN force a SCV. — Wolves pile on with a three from Beasley. — A Timmy flush from JB. — Beverley draws a shooting foul on Brunson in the last second of the play. Ugh. — Hardaway pull-up! — Powell called for his fifth on KAT. — He goes out, leaving Maxi as the only big for Dallas. KAT misses both freebies. — McDaniels hits a corner three.  — Sterling turns it over, MIN doesn’t capitalize. — KAT takes THJ out, called for his fifth. Review for a flagrant for jumping into Hardaway’s landing space, with Timmy landing on KAT’s foot. Common foul. Tim still gets three free throws. Misses the third, and Sterling Brown turns the ball over with a loose ball foul on the rebound. Vanderbilt misses both free throws.

99-103  3:31

Brunson misses a corner three. MIN calls a use-it-or-lose-it timeout. 

99-103  3:11

Maxi is furious about being called for his fourth. Beverley to the line. — Brunson to the cup. — Russell misses a three, ball goes out of bounds off the shot clock. — DFS slam from THJ! — KAT for three over Brunson. — Brunson drive is successful. — KAT misses. — Brown three is no good. — Russell does the rip-through move on Hardaway, earns free throws since the Mavs are over the limit. — Powell comes back. 

105-110 51 seconds

Brunson called for an offensive foul on Beverley. Beverley hamming it up, grimacing and grabbing his head. — THJ misses a three. — Brunson fouls with 11 seconds left. Mavs bench looking despondent. Wolves miss the second free throw, Beverley grabs the offensive rebound, game over. 

105-110 FT


ANALYSIS 

Mavs point differentials tonight were +6 on points from twos, -9 on points from threes, and -3 on made free throws. They continued to shoot badly from distance, going 12-41 (29%). MIN had an advantage of three made triples, despite taking 7 fewer attempts (15-34, 44%). The Mavs also lost 19 points off turnovers. They had a 15-3 advantage in second-chance points, but in the end, it wasn’t enough.

Speaking of the end, the Mavs stayed in the game for the first three quarters, even taking a 2-point lead into the fourth, but collapsed in the final period. They scored only 17 points in the frame, were 1-11 from three, had a 3-14 deficit in free-throw attempts, and turned the ball over three times. They surrendered their lead right away, and went behind for good within the first three minutes. 

Still, they had a chance. They were within 3 with 1:04 to go, when Sterling Brown took and missed a dubious three-point attempt 5 seconds into the shot clock. Tim was called for a foul on Russell’s rip-through move. Brunson was called for an offensive foul.Tim missed a desperation three with 22 seconds to go, down 5. Kidd bemoaned the late series of mistakes after the game. 

Closing lineup   Brunson-Hardaway-DFS-Sterling-Powell


PLAYER NOTES 

HARDAWAY (41 min) — Tim led all scorers with 28 points, and also recorded 6 boards and 6 dimes. Stayed aggressive throughout. He and DFS were the heroes of the night. Nico made it a point to emphasize that the team considers Tim a starter. Says they wanted to shake things up a little lately, and that Tim has been great to play off the bench, but it is very clear that they consider his primary position to be a starter. Also, even when he isn’t on the floor for the first possession, he is in the closing unit, which is more important. 

BRUNSON (39) — Jalen had 18 points, 11 assists, and 5 turnovers. He filled in as best he could, but Beverley was a tough defender, and Brunson didn’t have the size and strength to play him off the floor, like Luka does. Nico observed that Jalen is great, but allowed that he needs to learn to think about creating shots for other guys, not just scoring. Maybe his 11 assists in this one will be a place to start. 

DFS (37) — Dorian had an amazing 23 points in this one, on 9-13 shooting with 3-5 threes. Wow! He anchored the comeback in the third quarter with 14 points. Also had a very tough defensive assignment in D’Angelo Russell. Nico said that being able to rely on Doe-Doe for offense is “huge.”

KLEBER (31) — Maxi boasted 14 rebounds in this outing, although he scored only 6 points. Appeared visibly frustrated in the game, and took vehement exception to some of the referees’ decisions.

PORZINGIS (23) — KP’s night was cut short with foot soreness in the third quarter. He had 13 points, largely as a result of going 9-9 from the line. He was 2-9 from the field. Without either him or Luka, the Mavs struggled in the fourth. Dameris commented that this is always the issue with KP — whether he can stay on the floor. Kidd reported after the game that X-rays were negative. 

POWELL (20) — Dwight had 6 points and 4 boards, two offensive. With the team being so short-handed, he had to play against Towns, and it wasn’t a great matchup for him. He was in foul trouble for much of the game, which limited his minutes in the fourth.  

STERLING (20) — Sterling, making his return after missing a few games, had 3 points and 4 rebounds on 1-7 attempts. One of those misses included an arguably ill-advised three with a minute left and the team down three. Kidd discussed the late-game issues, and said that the game was essentially over with that miss. 

MENTIONS. BURKE (17) backed up Brunson, and had 4 points, going 2-8.  MOSES (10)  had 3 points and 4 rebounds, hitting 1-7 from the field.  MCLAUGHLIN had a 3-minute cameo. BOBAN did not play. 

WOLVES.  The self-described best big man shooter in the game, Towns, was a heap of trouble for the Mavs, with 24 points. He did draw 13 FTA, but I don’t know about the best big-man shooting. He was 6-15 from the floor, 1-3 from three. Really? Pshaw! Russell added 22 points. Nowell (16), Beasley (13), McDaniels (12), and Beverley (10) were also in double figures. Speaking of Beverley, this game reminded me of what an annoying little a-hole he is. It would do my heart good to see him put in his place. 


OBSERVATIONS 

Bally. Losing KP mid-game was tough. The spacing was worse, and it was difficult for the Mavs to create good shots. But, they had some opportunities, and missed a lot of wide open threes. Regarding the last miss by Sterling Brown — he still had 20 seconds left on the shot clock, and Brian would have liked them to work for a better shot, but also observed that, without Luka and KP, there wasn’t much they could do. Beverley was shutting down Brunson’s scoring in the second half, and the lineups they were using hadn’t played together very much. Defensive rotations were late throughout the game. Allowing a bad 3-point shooting Wolves team to shoot 46% from distance was a result of the way the Mavs were playing them. 

The Mavs defended KAT well in the post, but Moses was having a tough time guarding him, and Powell was not big enough. Beverley figured out how to play Brunson by the second half, which really slowed down the offense. Brunson did a pretty good job adjusting, but it affected their ability to get good three-point shots. 

Kidd. Jason noted that his squad was in the game, on the road, with a minute left, but didn’t come through. The guys fought hard and played a lot of minutes. Didn’t shoot great, but stayed in the game. Just couldn’t make a shot when they had to.


This was a disappointing game, since it ended up being so close, but probably no worse than we could expect with the Mavs entering the game with only 11 players and then losing KP in the third quarter. Too bad brilliant games from Tim and Dorian were wasted in a loss. Maybe this will prove to be a corner-turner for them. Three-point shooting continues to be horrendous. The game itself was quite choppy, what with 47 personal fouls being called and 53 free throws attempted. It was passably interesting, but I don’t think this match is going to make it as a season highlight.


TEAM UPDATE

Followill interviewed Nico during the third quarter, and the new GM gave us a bit of an update. 

 — Asked about where he stands in the evaluation of the team, Nico says he is “starting to know who we are as a team.” Emphasizes that he hasn’t been around very long, and is still in a learning mode. They had intended to evaluate the Mavs around Christmas, but there have been so many injuries, especially to the core players, that they may need to extend that.  

—  Thinks defense has improved, but we need to remember that Kidd has brought in all new schemes, and it takes a while to learn them. 

—  Thinks the enforced absence is good for Luka. He is finally getting the rest he needs for his ankle, and he is also able to work out some. (The head trainer, Casey Smith, stayed home from the trip to work with Luka individually). 

—  Thinks Kidd is amazing, and that people don’t realize what a very hard worker he is.  Said the players are “starting to understand” that Kidd knows something about basketball. (Wut?) 

— Thinks Green and Frank have been “amazing,” and says the most important thing for the Mavs is to be flexible.


Nico seems like a nice fellow, but if he were being judged solely by this interview, I would have to say that he seemed a little ill at ease, and "impressive" is not a word I would use to describe it. Someone on Mavs twitter (Nick, maybe?) defended him, noting that one of the job areas where Nico lacks experience is the public-facing aspect, and that no one is good doing his first broadcasts or interviews. That must be why Cubes is still maintaining most of the media responsibilities. Keep chipping away at it, Nico!


NEXT. The Mavs take on the Wolves again on Wednesday in the second leg of the home-and-home. Kidd said they will take a look at Luka tomorrow to assess where he is, but didn’t seem to encourage hope that he would play. 

The Mavs are now back under .500, and 9th in the West, which would put them in the bottom tier of the play-in tournament if the season ended today. This is so not what I hoped for or expected when the season started. 

Well, onward and hopefully upward, Mavs fans. 

[aguiar95]

HARDAWAY  Nico made it a point to emphasize that the team considers Tim a starter. Says they wanted to shake things up a little lately, and that Tim has been great to play off the bench, but it is very clear that they consider his primary position to be a starter. Also, even when he isn’t on the floor for the first possession, he is in the closing unit, which is more important. 

This is very, very concearning. We are going nowhere with Thimothy as a starter.

[ItsGoTime]

This is very, very concearning. We are going nowhere with Thimothy as a starter.

It’s also very, very funny when you combine that quote with Kidd earlier in the season talking about “starter” doesn’t mean anything. There was a bit of discussion about that when he said it too.

---

Also should have asked him if he considers Powell a starter.

[Chicagojk]

The Nico interview still bothers me.  I don't expect him to give any breaking news but I really was interested in hearing him talk about a vision he views moving forward.    It was a tough interview for Followill (BTW he did great doing the game by himself).   He doesn't want to ask uncomfortable questions and he still has to call the game.   I hope Nico is keeping things really close to the vest.  Although the Mavs dysfunction the last 10 years is making me not trust anything and judge purely off results.   

Less Cuban is always a good strategy.   He is the owner so he will have ultimate say, but I want him out of all roster building, for the most part.   I don't know if Nico has the personality to manage Cuban correctly.   As much as I love Dirk, if he is involved there is a much better chance that he is Vlade than a Jerry West.   Michael Finley looks the part and I am sure he is very smart, but he had a front row seat to the clown show the last few years.   

I want the vision to be Nico's (or whoever we hired for that role) moving forward.   I just get a weird feeling it is still a decision making process where there are a lot of cooks in the kitchen and not just one vision being followed.   I hope I am wrong.  I feel like we have been burned for so long, I am taking the approach I am going to be skeptical until proven incorrect.

[SleepingHero]

The amount of empty possessions this team had going into the 4th. Three after three after three. I think at one point they were 1/7 on threes and 2/2 from 2 in the first 5 minutes of the 4th.

I swear Trey Burke had 3 straight attempts at 3 clanking all of them. Brunson had a transition pull up three after airballing one. What is he thinking? He's not Steph Curry.

THJ the same. Went ice cold in the 4th. Lone bright spot was DFS. 

This game was easily winnable. But for whatever reason this team doesn't want to win. 9-10 possessions that's a pull up three 5 seconds into the shot clock are wasted possessions. No one on this team is good enough to do that. I'm appalled at this team's shot selection, injuries be damned.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

The Nico interview still bothers me.  I don't expect him to give any breaking news but I really was interested in hearing him talk about a vision he views moving forward.    It was a tough interview for Followill (BTW he did great doing the game by himself).   He doesn't want to ask uncomfortable questions and he still has to call the game.   I hope Nico is keeping things really close to the vest.  Although the Mavs dysfunction the last 10 years is making me not trust anything and judge purely off results.   

Less Cuban is always a good strategy.   He is the owner so he will have ultimate say, but I want him out of all roster building, for the most part.   I don't know if Nico has the personality to manage Cuban correctly.   As much as I love Dirk, if he is involved there is a much better chance that he is Vlade than a Jerry West.   Michael Finley looks the part and I am sure he is very smart, but he had a front row seat to the clown show the last few years.   

I want the vision to be Nico's (or whoever we hired for that role) moving forward.   I just get a weird feeling it is still a decision making process where there are a lot of cooks in the kitchen and not just one vision being followed.   I hope I am wrong.  I feel like we have been burned for so long, I am taking the approach I am going to be skeptical until proven incorrect.

Cuban will never cede complete control of basketball operations to Nico.  He'll always have a say in anything they do.  Pretty sure that was the case with Donnie as well.

[omahen]

I think Mavs have several burning questions to answer in the next short term period as we can assume they have a three years window to finalize a contending roster. Start of the new administration is certainly not encouraging. As Mavs have basically same roster for three years, there is really very little need for long term observations. We know what we have.

Defense

First of all it would be wise to admit that this roster is not a small move away from contending, especially not after Kidd entered the picture and the schemes he wants to play. I totally understand GM will not say this publicly, but I hope they have stopped fooling themselves. It would be also nice if they would stop disrespecting the fans. When fans were not satisfied with the offseason, they were dismissed with something like "Mavs twitter will always be negative". Well "boys", as of now it turns out that Mavs twitter was mostly correct and the Mavs FO was mostly wrong. Roster is seriously flawed. Problem is, it is not working neither on offense nor defense. 

Lets first have a look at defense. I think we can agree the team will be build around Luka. He has his limitations on defense so you have to adjust accordingly. I think Mavs were totally correct in their summer statements you have to put long and switchable defenders around him. Problem is that what they actually did is basically the exact opposite. Instead of long switchable defenders they gave him a center, a center playing PF and being hidden on worst opposing perimeter player (once reserved for Luka) and THJ (not really a good defender). There is plenty of data from last 2 years that shows how Luka-KP-THJ equals bad defense. I understand they couldn't let THJ walk in the summer as it would be even bigger disaster than it was. However, the result is basically what we were affraid of. Moving THJ to bench improved defense, but having 18 mil/per reserve is quite a luxury, once Luka extension kicks in. Saying that it is not important who starts but who finishes is fools gold, as Luka-KP-THJ defense will work equally "well" in the fourth as it does in the first quarter. 

In addition to the trio discussed above, Mavs need to solve the Brunson "puzzle". He is playing great on offense, but is nothing special on defense. He will certainly be targeted in playoffs due to his size. This is especially problematic if he is played next to the trio above as little help can be expected from them. The sample size of all of them playing together from last two seasons is small but not really encouraging. Assuming Brunson will cost around 15 mil per year, Mavs would have over 30 mil locked in two players coming from the bench.

In my opinion, Mavs will need to trade at least one of THJ or KP to hope having decent defense. Brunson is still a puzzle. 

Offense

On the offensive side the lack of talent has never been so obvious as this year. Mavs can get offense to respectable level but then defense suffers. It seems like 13 out of 15 players can't put it on the floor with hope of resulting in a reasonable outcome. Luka is literally the only player that requires special attention from more than one opponent defender. Brunson is good but can be limited (see yesterday). KP can be defended perfectly well with a more or less random wing as his ability to exploit his size is totally limited. KP is good if he recieves the ball very deep in the paint shooting 68 % from less than 5 feet. When he is further away from the basket it is a disaster. 37 % from 5-9 feet away, 38 % 10-14 feet and so on. All KP post ups more than 5 feet away are a bad possession. Perhaps he is happy, but the result is bad. 

While Wright and JRich could put it on the floor at least to some extent, Bullock has zero ability. I think there are only so many DFS/Bullock types a starting line-up can afford. If Mavs would have three players capable of putting it on the floor together with DFS and Bullock it could work, but for some reason Mavs are playing Powell and KP with them. 

I won't even go into how zero sense makes playing Powell (or any other non shooting center) in a system where KP wants to post up on offense. Mavs insisting on this line-up is getting beyond ridiculous. I don't even blame Powell, this one is on the coaching staff.

Conclusion

Mavs need to start working as the clock is ticking. Last three years have been a disaster from team building perspective. Whatever strategy Mavs decide to go for it would have to be extremely creative and of course successful. No more room for mistakes. At this point, if a good deal is not to be reached by TDL, I would actually consider a one year tank. Sit Luka for whatever reason, trade a couple of players for assets and hope for a top 5 pick. Who knows, perhaps Mavs are already doing that. The team desperately needs a significant talent infusion.

[omahen]

This article summarizes nicely what I was trying to say.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2951...ing-season

[mavsluvr]

This is very, very concearning. We are going nowhere with Thimothy as a starter.

Mark didn't even ask Nico about whether Tim was a starter. He just asked for Nico's thoughts about Tim, which I took as a softball question giving Nico a lead-in to say something like, "Oh, Tim has been great for us, blah, blah, blah."

Nico volunteered the starter info, and said it a couple of times. I saw/heard some comments analyzing the possible subtexts of the statement. Like, maybe Tim isn't feeling so hot about being benched, and they're dapping him up. Or, maybe they're trying to announce to possible trade partners that Tim isn't really a bench player, he's totally a starter, and other teams should be eager to pay a high price for him. Maybe. It sounded a lot like Nico was just looking for something to say, but who knows?

Anyway, I don't know what the choice is, at this point. It's not like Bullock was lighting it up, and now he's sick.

[juanc]

  It was a tough interview for Followill (BTW he did great doing the game by himself).   He doesn't want to ask uncomfortable questions and he still has to call the game.   

A true hero of Mavsboard! All hail Mavslu... I mean Mark Followill!

[mavsluvr]

A true hero of Mavsboard! All hail Mavslu... I mean Mark Followill!

A tough job, combining the interview and game call, if I do say so.

[Chicagojk]

You can just feel the Mavs offense come to a striking halt when the fourth quarter hits.   It looks like they are trying to run the same offense they do with Luka.   Maybe the fatal flaw is we don't have enough guys who can put pressure on a defense and/or create shots.   With Luka, at least there is a chance he is going to cause teams fits.   But we have seen this offense for years.  It is little off ball movement and limited passing.   As much as I like Jalen, his strength is not breaking down a defense in half court late in games.  It is really unfair to ask him to excel in this.  He should be playing off a top tier creator imo.   The Mavs do their ball handoff at the top of the key and high pick and you just see defenses go ok you beat us.  We challenge you.    When it matters the only shots we can get are three pointers and typically ones that are contested.   I hate the offense.   The three point shooting sucks and is bad but I am more frustrated that we don't get easy baskets in the lane very often.

[mavsluvr]

The Nico interview still bothers me.  I don't expect him to give any breaking news but I really was interested in hearing him talk about a vision he views moving forward.    It was a tough interview for Followill (BTW he did great doing the game by himself).   He doesn't want to ask uncomfortable questions and he still has to call the game.   I hope Nico is keeping things really close to the vest.  Although the Mavs dysfunction the last 10 years is making me not trust anything and judge purely off results.   

Less Cuban is always a good strategy.   He is the owner so he will have ultimate say, but I want him out of all roster building, for the most part.   I don't know if Nico has the personality to manage Cuban correctly.   As much as I love Dirk, if he is involved there is a much better chance that he is Vlade than a Jerry West.   Michael Finley looks the part and I am sure he is very smart, but he had a front row seat to the clown show the last few years.   

I want the vision to be Nico's (or whoever we hired for that role) moving forward.   I just get a weird feeling it is still a decision making process where there are a lot of cooks in the kitchen and not just one vision being followed.   I hope I am wrong.  I feel like we have been burned for so long, I am taking the approach I am going to be skeptical until proven incorrect.

There was nothing at all about that interview that gave me any feeling at all that Nico has a vision for the team, or is leading a charge out of the dark and into the light. 

He seemed a little nervous, like he was mostly trying not to say something wrong. His goal, if he had one, seemed to be to establish that he is still in a learning stage. Some of the things he did say seemed a little odd, given the situation. Throwing shade at Brunson for emphasizing his own scoring over getting shots for others, for example. Or that the players are "just beginning to understand" that Kidd actually knows something about basketball. Sounded sort of like repeating stuff he had heard in other contexts. 

I understand the hopeful takes that this is all next-level genius, and Nico is intentionally hiding his light under a bushel. I don't know, I don't really buy all the nine-dimensional chess speculation. It seems like they're just flailing around, and don't know what to do.

[michaeltex]

Closing lineup   Brunson-Hardaway-DFS-Sterling-Powell

This is all one really needs to know what kind of night it was for DAL.

[Chicagojk]

There was nothing at all about that interview that gave me any feeling at all that Nico has a vision for the team, or is leading a charge out of the dark and into the light. 

He seemed a little nervous, like he was mostly trying not to say something wrong. His goal, if he had one, seemed to be to establish that he is still in a learning stage. Some of the things he did say seemed a little odd, given the situation. Throwing shade at Brunson for emphasizing his own scoring over getting shots for others, for example. Or that the players are "just beginning to understand" that Kidd actually knows something about basketball. Sounded sort of like repeating stuff he had heard in other contexts. 

I understand the hopeful takes that this is all next-level genius, and Nico is intentionally hiding his light under a barrel. I don't know, I don't really buy all the nine-dimensional chess speculation. It seems like they're just flailing around, and don't know what to do.

Yeah it was weird.   One of the first things he said was he is getting use to all the travel.    It seems like he has been mostly traveling with the team.   I could maybe better understand if he was traveling scouting, but it appears he is just hanging out with the team.  It just seemed odd when the question was asked how he was growing into the job.  

I also agree with Omahen about about the farce about needing a certain amount of time for observations. Whether there is a move to be made or not, it is not that complicated.     At one point, I was actually pretty satisfied Kidd was pretty deliberate with his rotations.   I am past that now.  The Mavs have limited options, but I am surprised we have not seen more changes with our limitations.   I know Nico was hired late and I understand Kidd wanted to see the roster in his system.  But frankly most of these answers should have been made prior to FA, for the most part.   There are years of film on most of the current players....most of them playing for the Mavs.

[KillerLeft]

Nico seems like a nice fellow, but if he were being judged solely by this interview, I would have to say that he seemed a little ill at ease, and "impressive" is not a word I would use to describe it. Someone on Mavs twitter (Nick, maybe?) defended him, noting that one of the job areas where Nico lacks experience is the public-facing aspect, and that no one is good doing his first broadcasts or interviews. That must be why Cubes is still maintaining most of the media responsibilities. Keep chipping away at it, Nico!

Yeah, I was pretty surprised at how awkward it all felt. He came off as a bit of a simpleton, though I have a strong feeling that he's actually really smart.

[ItsGoTime]

I've always had reservations about the hire, I'm just willing to give him a chance to do something with the team. One offseason where he had a month to prepare is not in any way enough time for all the hate poured his way. I would've liked to see lots of moves that offseason, and there needs to be lots of moves going forward. I WILL start to sour on him if he doesn't make a move or 2 by the TDL this year.

[dynamicalVoid]

I dont want to bash Nico...but he has seemed nervous in every interview I have heard him in since becoming GM.  Not only that...I have not been impressed with his answers.   

People were glowing about his answers in his post hire interviews but they came across as very "Fly by the Seat of your Pants" to me.   Very "fake it 'til you make it" type answers.

And...I dont blame him for taking a job that up'ed his lifestyle financially.   If he is being put in a terrible position to succeed...its not totally his fault.  Unless you think he shouldnt have taken the job if not qualified.

Anyway...

Going back to the Nico hire...has this angle been discussed here...

Does Cuban have a bad relationship with a lot of agents?  Could this be why Nico was hired?  His previous job supposedly was dealing with agents for players merchandise deals.

I know it is repeatedly said that Nico was hired for his relationships with players and agents.   But could it be not just that....but because Cuban is very "in the dog house" with agents for some reason?  Which is why  no one comes here as free agents?  I am just speculating...but I could see an owner needing to hire a fresh middleman(that is in good graces with agents) to deal with agents if said owner/gm became in the dog house with agents around the league.

Omahen...great post, dude.

[mavsluvr]

I've always had reservations about the hire, I'm just willing to give him a chance to do something with the team. One offseason where he had a month to prepare is not in any way enough time for all the hate poured his way. I would've liked to see lots of moves that offseason, and there needs to be lots of moves going forward. I WILL start to sour on him if he doesn't make a move or 2 by the TDL this year.

Do you perceive that a lot of hate is being thrown Nico's way?

I haven't really gotten that feeling. I guess it could be construed as hate to say a person isn't qualified for the job he holds, in general. But specifically, if the guy has never done the job or anything like it, I think it's just a factual statement, and not a smear. He's essentially a trainee, at least at some aspects of the job. 

If the Mavs don't make an in-season move that improves the team, I don't even really think it will be Nico's fault. How is he supposed to know what moves to make, or how to make them?

[Mavs2021]

I've always had reservations about the hire, I'm just willing to give him a chance to do something with the team. One offseason where he had a month to prepare is not in any way enough time for all the hate poured his way. I would've liked to see lots of moves that offseason, and there needs to be lots of moves going forward. I WILL start to sour on him if he doesn't make a move or 2 by the TDL this year.

I have not seen any hate so far, but he simply cannot sit on his hands much longer either.  Surely the new plan can´t be the same as the old plan.

I think six months are long enough to hire your own staff, learn the rules and regulations of the salary cap, understand our own cap situation, analyze the players/roster and formulate a long-term strategy going forward.  Now it´s time to execute.