I'm out on the 2023-24 season ....

[RGP1981]

If you think I'm wrong, let me know what the answer is.

How about a competent NBA coach?

If Luka had gone 1st or 2nd in that draft, as he should have, where would the Mavs be today? Top of the dumpster heap along with the Wizards, Pistons and Hornets, IMO, and changing the coach would not help.

I think the correct answer is to get a different owner than Cuban. Someone who does not meddle or try to build the team according to his belief of what a contending roster should look like, cause Cuban's vision of that sucks.

Or... the Adelson/Dumont family should step in and hire a competent GM (like Rob Pelinka), and insist that Cuban stays completely out of his way. Rob Pelinka would be an amazing get for this team, to be honest, as valuable as drafting Luka.

Then they need to start building a proper scouting, video and analytics department, and coaching staff. Please don't tell me that the Mavs have proper versions of any of these... they simply don't. The LA Lakers are great at those things... and that is why trades and other stuff keep "falling into their lap", as some like to say. The Lakers aren't the only Cali/LA based team, so it's not location. They make their own luck because they're good at what they do. On the other hand, the Mavs have always been winging it but pretending to be smarter than they are, like Cuban. A chip of the old block, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. And that is why NOTHING has fallen into the Mavs' laps for years and years. Except for that one time in band camp when they got super fortunate and the Hawks decided to trade Luka for a midget.

The outcome on G Williams is probably my biggest issue. He hasn't really filled any hole.

G-Will is a player with a big body to throw at Giannis in the playoffs, i.e., if the two teams ever meet each other. Kind of like how the Spurs used Malik Rose on Shaq. If anyone had higher hopes for him than that, like if they thought he could be the starting PF next to Luka at SF, well, that was never going to happen.

4 wasted years of Luka.

This is actually Luka's 6th year in the NBA, not his 4th or 5th. Sorry, I know, that makes it worse.

[mvossman]

I think the correct answer is to get a different owner than Cuban. Someone who does not meddle or try to build the team according to his belief of what a contending roster should look like, cause Cuban's vision of that sucks.

Or... the Adelson/Dumont family should step in and hire a competent GM (like Rob Pelinka), and insist that Cuban stays completely out of his way. Rob Pelinka would be an amazing get for this team, to be honest, as valuable as drafting Luka.

Then they need to start building a proper scouting, video and analytics department, and coaching staff. Please don't tell me that the Mavs have proper versions of any of these... they simply don't. The LA Lakers are great at those things... and that is why trades and other stuff keep "falling into their lap", as some like to say. The Lakers aren't the only Cali/LA based team, so it's not location. They make their own luck because they're good at what they do. On the other hand, the Mavs have always been winging it but pretending to be smarter than they are, like Cuban, a chip of the old block, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. And that is why NOTHING has fallen into the Mavs' laps for years and years. Except for that one time in band camp when they got super fortunate and the Hawks decided to trade Luka for a midget.

I feel like this was a lot stronger argument a year ago.  This last offseason was the most un-Cuban we have had in many years.  Instead of sending the pick out for a win now veteran, we manage to get an almost day 1 starter in the draft.  We actually leveraged a TPE!  We took on bad salary for an asset!  These are things this FO never used to do.  We made multiple low cost signings, either for vets we knew (Curry, Powell) or guys with upside (Exum, DJJ).  I want to see if this kind of stuff continues.  Before last offseason almost anything would be better, now I am not so sure.

[hakeemfaan]

Lost Brunson for nothing. I don’t care it was not completely Nico’s fault. That kind of thing is a fireable offense. If they had to go hire Brunson’s dad two years prior like the Knicks did, that’s what they had to do.

Even after screwing up badly they still had a chance to money whip him at the end and chose not to offer the max they could have. Many here said that max contract could be moved if needed. It looked like a bargain then and looks a total bargain now.

One can nitpick smaller moves till the cows come home. When you mess up a major piece like that it literally takes years to recover.

[vfromlmf]

Why over react to one game? First half officiating set the tone. Luka T'd up. Kyrie hurt. Exum is out.

Yes, missing Exum is huge. Josh Green is a rotation player but if Exum continues to play like he did over a month of 30 MPG, he makes this team much much better. His role is being way undersold. Josh Green is Payton Pritchard. Dante Exum can be Derrick White.

This team is one trade away from being super dangerous in the playoffs and it's obvous, we need a better F with length, athleticism, strong defense, and the ability to put up 20+ any given night to replace THJ's inefficient game. I personally think Wiggins can still play and he's available at a discount. No 2 option on a recent championship team.

Right now, we have 6-7 solid guys who can play if the playoffs started today. Luka, Ky, Exum, Lively ... with a bench of Green, Jones Jr, and Kleber (or a better 5-out center if we can find one). Everyone else should be on the block along with the 27 pick to to find that next guy. Nothing else really matters, especially a January loss to Boston.

[surfpuckmd]

Why over react to one game? First half officiating set the tone. Luka T'd up. Kyrie hurt. Exum is out.

Yes, missing Exum is huge. Josh Green is a rotation player but if Exum continues to play like he did over a month of 30 MPG, he makes this team much much better. His role is being way undersold. Josh Green is Payton Pritchard. Dante Exum can be Derrick White.

This team is one trade away from being super dangerous in the playoffs and it's obvous, we need a better F with length, athleticism, strong defense, and the ability to put up 20+ any given night to replace THJ's inefficient game. I personally think Wiggins can still play and he's available at a discount. No 2 option on a recent championship team.

Right now, we have 6-7 solid guys who can play if the playoffs started today. Luka, Ky, Exum, Lively ... with a bench of Green, Jones Jr, and Kleber (or a better 5-out center if we can find one). Everyone else should be on the block along with the 27 pick to to find that next guy. Nothing else really matters, especially a January loss to Boston.

I appreciate your optimism and I especially like the Dante Exum- Derrick White comparison.

However, Andrew Wiggins is done forever.  He had a single great playoff run but has been among the NBA's worst players this season.  Please keep him away from the Mavericks.

[vfromlmf]

Regarding Wiggins, fair enough. Maybe it's Kuzma then. Personally, I take Wiggins because I just don't think players of that caliber simply lose it at 28 years old. You have a young stud in Kuminga and he wants to play or be traded. It's Kuminga or Wiggins. They're taking each others minutes and it's nut cutting time. Give me the veteran who knows how to play and let's go.

[mvossman]

Regarding Wiggins, fair enough. Maybe it's Kuzma then. Personally, I take Wiggins because I just don't think players of that caliber simply lose it at 28 years old. You have a young stud in Kuminga and he wants to play or be traded. It's Kuminga or Wiggins. They're taking each others minutes and it's nut cutting time. Give me the veteran who knows how to play and let's go.

That veteran has sucked most of his career and has an albatross contract.  I liked your post but neither Wiggins nor Kuz fits your description of what we need.

[F Gump]

Why over react to one game?

For me it's not one game. It's one MORE game, that has occurred with regularity, of a team that plays small, and lacking energy, and overmatched, with mediocre defense, rather than being competitive.

Too many times they don't even have any juice at all, from the outset.

The best teams come to the game, at least keep it close for 3 quarters, and then pick up the intensity, go to a better level, and take the win in the 4th. The Mavs tend to be the team on the bottom end of that equation.

It's also an observation that as we go round and round in circles over various trade ideas, it's getting very obvious there's no trade possible that moves the needle in a good way. None of the supposed candidates are any more valuable than death warmed over - just one overpaid meh guy after another, and all requiring a strip of assets to get that mostly-junk player. We're now debating PJW vs Kuzma vs Wiggins vs Grant,and all at a high price? Yikes. Gag. A desperate overpriced deal is always possible, but none of these players can make much difference now, and they are yet another piece whose price and baggage will set the team back in the long run.

That's what has made me jump ship, not one game. It's a a team that's repeatedly just blah, and a lack of any potential route that feasibly upgrades the future.

[SwisherPrice]

This team just can't guard anyone...if they make threes then they can make up for it but there are just too many weak links always on the floor at all times. Poor individual defenders, which leads to someone always being out of position. If they're always going to be poor defensively then they might as well bring in a great offensive coach like Mike D'antoni to run his system. Like Nellie's Big Three Mavs in the early 2000s, they were bad on defense but their offense was good enough to beat most of the league except for about 5 teams.

[vfromlmf]

For me it's not one game. It's one MORE game, that has occurred with regularity, of a team that plays small, and lacking energy, and overmatched, with mediocre defense, rather than being competitive.

Too many times they don't even have any juice at all, from the outset.

The best teams come to the game, at least keep it close for 3 quarters, and then pick up the intensity, go to a better level, and take the win in the 4th. The Mavs tend to be the team on the bottom end of that equation.

It's also an observation that as we go round and round in circles over various trade ideas, it's getting very obvious there's no trade possible that moves the needle in a good way. None of the supposed candidates are any more valuable than death warmed over - just one overpaid meh guy after another, and all requiring a strip of assets to get that mostly-junk player. We're now debating PJW vs Kuzma vs Wiggins vs Grant,and all at a high price? Yikes. Gag. A desperate overpriced deal is always possible, but none of these players can make much difference now, and they are yet another piece whose price and baggage will set the team back in the long run.

That's what has made me jump ship, not one game. It's a a team that's repeatedly just blah, and a lack of any potential route that feasibly upgrades the future.

I get it man, but remember this is sports, and you've got like 25 teams trying to win. If you're a player, the sport is all on the court, but if you're a fan, the sport is this, the build, the journey. "Accept the challenges so you feel the exhilaration of victory." I think George S Patton said that, or something similar. 

Who would have thought a lottery bust playing in the Australian league would put up better numbers for a month, than Spencer Dinwiddie ever did as a Mav?

Who would have imagined in their wildest dreams that a 19 year old who couldn't score in college would play -- this year! -- like a top 5 center in Mavs history? 

If we were paying the full MLE for Jones Jr and the vet min for Williams, would anyone complain?? 

This team still has the best back court in the NBA. We've had a ton of injuries. It's only January and we're still giving minutes to guys who wouldn't sniff the court in a playoff game. 

Let's see how things shake out at the trade deadline. And who knows, one of "PJ, Kuz, Grant, Wiggs" could be the next bum to turn around his career in Dallas. 

Of course, the whole thing could go tits up. We just don't know. Mavs went on a 7 game losing streak in January of 2011 then won the title. That's the sport of it!!

[surfpuckmd]

For me it's not one game. It's one MORE game, that has occurred with regularity, of a team that plays small, and lacking energy, and overmatched, with mediocre defense, rather than being competitive.

Too many times they don't even have any juice at all, from the outset.

The best teams come to the game, at least keep it close for 3 quarters, and then pick up the intensity, go to a better level, and take the win in the 4th. The Mavs tend to be the team on the bottom end of that equation.

It's also an observation that as we go round and round in circles over various trade ideas, it's getting very obvious there's no trade possible that moves the needle in a good way. None of the supposed candidates are any more valuable than death warmed over - just one overpaid meh guy after another, and all requiring a strip of assets to get that mostly-junk player. We're now debating PJW vs Kuzma vs Wiggins vs Grant,and all at a high price? Yikes. Gag. A desperate overpriced deal is always possible, but none of these players can make much difference now, and they are yet another piece whose price and baggage will set the team back in the long run.

That's what has made me jump ship, not one game. It's a a team that's repeatedly just blah, and a lack of any potential route that feasibly upgrades the future.

One year ago, we were a boring team to watch.  We had Luka and a bunch of role players.  Dinwiddie dribbled too much and we actually started Reggie Bullock.  It was a dark time. 

We now have a second superstar with Kyrie Irving.  He's not just a great talent but he's one of the most amazing players to watch.  The man is a performance artist.  

We also have the 2nd-best rookie from the 2023 class-  Dereck Lively.  Our center problems are thus solved.   

We have a couple of fun and effective players we picked up off the scrap heap with Dante Exum and DJJ.  

This is a much more fun team than last season.

As to how we can improve, we can obtain a new coach this coming off-season.  We'll be more organized on the court and we'll see less hopeless lineups.

The young guys like Josh Green and Lively should improve with experience.  OMax will also finally be unleashed.  There is plenty of reason for optimism.  We're not a contender this season but we're improving.

[vfromlmf]

I'll add, I don't want to blow smoke up anyone skirt. This team sucks in some big-time ways. We ARE small but that will be mostly solved by adding the right forward. We're not physical enough. Luka plays with force on offense. Green, DJJ and Exum play with some physicality on defense. Lively will get there but he's only 19 and still growing lol. Kyrie is a savant. That's six. Kleber is soft but he's a good defender. That's seven. Everyone else can go. The young guys are cute but that's for teams who are betting on the future or OKC with a million top 5 picks. This Mavs team needs veterans who can play. Vets win championships. Give me a big vet forward who can dribble score and play physical defense and we have a respectable 8-man playoff rotation.

This team isn't ready to win a title even if they had landed Siakam, but the scaffolding is there. This team is better than last year's team. Just keep getting better.

[RoyTarpleysGhost]

Coincidence.

I cancelled my Fubo TV/Bally subscription today. I just don’t get joy from watching this team. Part of it is probably watching too much sports for the last 30 years. Part of it is I just don’t connect with this team. Both the style of play and the superstar annoy me. I’m a big Steph and Jokic fan and I just can’t stand the diva behavior and the iso ball. I don’t care how efficient this offense might be. Ball movement basketball is beautiful to watch. This Harden ball isn’t. It feels like a chore watching games.

Honestly I can’t stand Luka. The fake tough guy thing where he’d probably get his ass whooped by most people he talks shit to if he did it on the street. The constant complaining with the referees. The constant not running back on defense and ball watching. The yelling at teammates when they make mistakes. The showing up to games hungover. Hunting triple doubles like Westbrook and Harden. His act has gotten old to me.

It’s not even about oh if they had a better roster I’d love the team.

[ThisIStheYear]

We need a real coach to find out if Luka is him or just an empty stats guy. Jordan or Lebron with this roster would win 54 games easy. That’s what I thought Luka was but I’m losing faith. He puts up tremendous stats, but he needs to win. It will take a different coach to find out.

[Razzmatazz_Hopskidillydoo]

We need a real coach to find out if Luka is him or just an empty stats guy. Jordan or Lebron with this roster would win 54 games easy.  That’s what I thought Luka was but I’m losing faith.  He puts up tremendous stats, but he needs to win. It will take a different coach to find out.

And if he doesn't listen, doesn't want changes, gets into friction with his new coach..
trade his azz..

[Mavs2021]

We need a real coach to find out if Luka is him or just an empty stats guy. Jordan or Lebron with this roster would win 54 games easy.  That’s what I thought Luka was but I’m losing faith.  He puts up tremendous stats, but he needs to win. It will take a different coach to find out.

We already know Luka is that guy from his play for Real Madrid and Slovenia. We also know Cuban is not that dude. We can argue whether Porzingis is the 3rd or 5th best player on the Celtics, but our 3rd best guy was the throw away piece in the Porzingis trade. That was in 2019. So in five years we have not been able to replace Timmah as our 3rd best player. We just replaced Brunson with Kyrie. We are again on a treadmill, it´s just new and shinier than the 2010s post championship version.

[ThisIStheYear]

Two years ago, the Mavs performance was practically identical to the Celtics. Both lost late in the postseason to the same team. They had practically the same record. The Mavs beat them in Boston in a late season showdown. It was no fluke. They were evenly matched. Since then, the Mavs have fallen hard and the Celtics have become amazing. They just waltz into our building on a tough back to back and it’s not even a competitive game. It’s ridiculous. Jobs should be on the line.

[The Jom]

Whoa there on the Porzingis take. In his first January with the Mavs, we were all pretty high on him. It’s not the first half of the first season that’s ever been his problem. Anywhere.

[The Jom]

Dear Forest Gump,

Your post kind of makes me want to sing the You’ll Be Back tune from Hamilton. Or maybe Chicago’s Hard Habit to Break. Either way, I feel your pain, and I expect the Mavs to have another run or 2 to bring back some of your joy yet this season. No guarantees. But that seems to be the NBA way.

Re the team, from my perspective, they don’t look as far off as your OP suggests. The hardest thing is always the second star. Now we have 2 efficient superstars who can deliver in crunch time? That’s what we’ve been longing for ever since Steve Nash departed 20 years ago, no? What we’re griping about this season is not having the right COMPLEMENTARY pieces. How many seasons would we have loved for THAT to be our chief complaint?

Next hardest hole to fill, it seems to me, is a center who can protect the rim without killing the offensive flow on the other end. Since I moved to town in 01, the Mavs have had that in exactly 3 seasons. 2011 (Tyson Chandler), 2015 (Tyson Chandler), 2024 (Derick Lively). And speaking of centers, this is Dwight’s 10th year as a Mav, and he’s a $4 million third stringer. How many of the previous 9 seasons would we have LOVED Dwight at that price and spot?

That leaves 2 complementary spots to fill, for which we have over-performing minimums (Exum, Jones), developing youth (Green, Prosper), and seasoned vets (Kleber, Hardaway).

Certainly better health and friendlier whistles would be welcome. So would a steal of a deal on the trade front. But more than anything else, the Mavs just need Josh and Omax to develop. That and Luka locking in on D makes this team a contender.

[Nowitzki Way]

Honestly I can’t stand Luka. The fake tough guy thing where he’d probably get his ass whooped by most people he talks shit to if he did it on the street. The constant complaining with the referees. The constant not running back on defense and ball watching. The yelling at teammates when they make mistakes. The showing up to games hungover. Hunting triple doubles like Westbrook and Harden. His act has gotten old to me.

I'm at this point with Luka also. I cant stand the guy on the court. 

He's a generational, once in a lifetime talent. He'll end up as one of the best players of all time. But he's a punk. A crybaby. And a wimp.

He's about to turn 25 with 6 years in the NBA and was a professional at what? 14 years old? He should be mature by now. But he's still whining and crying to the refs on every possession. I'm sure he's a cool guy off the court, and most of his teammates seem to like him. I think. But his act has to grow tired to those around him when it starts to cost his team points and games.

Not getting back on defense because you're crying to the refs about a non call. Or getting un-necessary and un-timely technical fouls should not be happening at the rate it does for this guy. 

I honestly don't mind the yelling at teammates. Most of the greats did it.  Jordan. Lebron. Kobe.  And that's the disappointment with Luka, he'll be mentioned with those guys at the end of his career. He's that good. He has the greatness gene. But we wont come nowhere near the championships those guys have if he doesn't change his act.  And i definitely don't think those championships will come with the Mavs. 

Honestly the only thing to save his legacy and cement him as a great, would be to leave the Mavs and join a superteam. I can see him leaving here at the end of his contract and joining up with Jokic or Giannis or both. Maybe even Wemby or some other talent that will come along in the next few years.  He's no Dirk. He's not long for here. And honestly, as long as we dont Brunson this situaution, the Mavs might be better off without him.