2026 Dallas Mavericks Preseason

[Smitty]

Getting closer to watching basketball instead of just talking about it... A couple things I'm looking forward to seeing next week:

Kyrie back on the court
Flagg's year 2 outside shooting (frequency/efficiency)
Rez against NBA-level talent
The backup guard battle between Sergio/Sasser
If Tarik looks to be a legit movement shooter in the NBA
Who wins the starting spot between Max and ZR? Naji and PJW?

[KillerLeft]

For me, there's one thing on the list:

Will there be evidence of offensive design that originated this century, and will they put combinations of players on the floor together with the best chance of executing within that system?

That's pretty much all I need to have fun watching this team again. I honestly don't care if they go 0-82 this year, as long as that hurdle is cleared. Even the '24 team that went to the finals wasn't fun to watch, though I wasn't honest with myself about that at the time.

[cow]

I think Christie starts of ZR. Naji, despite the new contract, is too important a creator to the second team to be a starter.

[SkenfromLMF]

I would not be surprised if the decision in the long run is to trot out a starting 5
KI
Max
ZR
Flagg
Gafford/Morez

This allows a 2nd team of:
Gafford/Morez
PJ
Flagg/Aldama
Naji
Sergio/Sasser

Kyrie is the first sub out and it would RARELY be done via platoons. The one thing that is intriguing is how much lineup flexibility this team currently has with the exception of the guard situation. In a PERFECT world, Lively returns and can contribute enough not force Aldama to the 5 for extended periods of time and that Sergio and Sasser are so productive it allows a bit of Kyrie at the 2. I think they would like to run a 2/3 of Risacher and Marshall with one of the backup PGs and play a large ball lineup and kill people on the boards.

Biggest fear is that Cisse is counted on for heavy minutes and cannot stay on the floor due to fouls or other complications. Morez and Moussa foul trouble will be a major factor to watch.

[KillerLeft]

I would not be surprised if the decision in the long run is to trot out a starting 5
KI
Max
ZR
Flagg
Gafford/Morez

I love this line of thinking, and wish you were in charge, but I'm pretty skeptical that PJW coming off the bench will even be considered. It's part of why some of us were hoping for a couple more steps towards a certain roster balance, but we'll see what happens.

[Smitty]

I would not be surprised if the decision in the long run is to trot out a starting 5
KI
Max
ZR
Flagg
Gafford/Morez

This allows a 2nd team of:
Gafford/Morez
PJ
Flagg/Aldama
Naji
Sergio/Sasser

Kyrie is the first sub out and it would RARELY be done via platoons. The one thing that is intriguing is how much lineup flexibility this team currently has with the exception of the guard situation. In a PERFECT world, Lively returns and can contribute enough not force Aldama to the 5 for extended periods of time and that Sergio and Sasser are so productive it allows a bit of Kyrie at the 2. I think they would like to run a 2/3 of Risacher and Marshall with one of the backup PGs and play a large ball lineup and kill people on the boards.

Biggest fear is that Cisse is counted on for heavy minutes and cannot stay on the floor due to fouls or other complications. Morez and Moussa foul trouble will be a major factor to watch.

I like this. I don't see it happening Game 1, but by Game 20 or 30? Maybe. 

A lot probably depends on PJ. He'll need to get back to his '24-'25 shooting splits. Be able to attack closeouts effectively. Handle the ball without turning it over in traffic. He's shown he's capable, but if he gets off to a slow start, then inserting ZR might make it all come together.

It will be interesting to see how many minutes the starters play together this year with May. Kidd was always bottom of the league there, with the starters only getting run together the first 5-6 minutes of the first and third quarter. This team supposedly has depth, not so much top-end guys, so maybe the starting 5 still only play 10-12 minutes together each game again. My hope is that May finds a way to put the best 5 on the court closer to 18-20 minutes a game like some of the great teams in the league do.


But... Something I'll be tracking this year, is how well the numbers look with these 5 on the floor together: 

Sergio - Max - ZR - Flagg - Morez 

That's your "future"... with Max being the oldest of the group. At the ripe old age of 23.

[Smitty]

@RonKnowsSports
Dusty May gives an update on Morez Johnson Jr:

“It’s a lower leg soreness. We’re just managing his workload. I think today he was in every other live session.”


@RonKnowsSports
Dusty May on the Mavs starting 5:

“I think with our team it’s going to be an ongoing thing. I can’t see us settling in on a starting 5 anytime soon.”




Another thing to watch for in preseason....

Dusty May On Switching Defenses:
Dallas’ switching scheme will depend on its own personnel and on the opponent, May said. His teams have switched one through three in some seasons and two through five in others.

“Probably 15 out of the last 17 years of my career as a coach, we’ve been a switching team. Each year has looked a little bit differently based on our personnel,” May said. “Sometimes you switch one through four, sometimes you switch two through five, sometimes you switch one through [five]. Sometimes you switch one through three. And so it comes down to who are we and who’s the other team.”

“… That’s another thing that I’m learning about the NBA. We have to go throw some different looks. We can’t go out and just throw our fastball and fastball changeup. We need to have a curveball. We probably need to have a slider,” May continued. “And some of that is solved just through different personnel with [what] each guy brings [to] the team.”

[Jym]

@RonKnowsSports
Dusty May gives an update on Morez Johnson Jr:

“It’s a lower leg soreness. We’re just managing his workload. I think today he was in every other live session.”


@RonKnowsSports
Dusty May on the Mavs starting 5:

“I think with our team it’s going to be an ongoing thing. I can’t see us settling in on a starting 5 anytime soon.”




Another thing to watch for in preseason....

Dusty May On Switching Defenses:
Dallas’ switching scheme will depend on its own personnel and on the opponent, May said. His teams have switched one through three in some seasons and two through five in others.

“Probably 15 out of the last 17 years of my career as a coach, we’ve been a switching team. Each year has looked a little bit differently based on our personnel,” May said. “Sometimes you switch one through four, sometimes you switch two through five, sometimes you switch one through [five]. Sometimes you switch one through three. And so it comes down to who are we and who’s the other team.”

“… That’s another thing that I’m learning about the NBA. We have to go throw some different looks. We can’t go out and just throw our fastball and fastball changeup. We need to have a curveball. We probably need to have a slider,” May continued. “And some of that is solved just through different personnel with [what] each guy brings [to] the team.”

Im liking the hire more and more 
We'll see what kind of dumb crap he ends up doing during games but just from a personality fit he seems to have a real future as an nba head coach

[SkenfromLMF]

I love this line of thinking, and wish you were in charge, but I'm pretty skeptical that PJW coming off the bench will even be considered. It's part of why some of us were hoping for a couple more steps towards a certain roster balance, but we'll see what happens.

Thank you...

What I did not mention is that I believe PJW finishes games as the POA defender.
So the closing lineup looks like:
KI
Max/ZR/Sasser/Sergio
Flagg
Wash
Morez/Gafford

I don't know that I want to see Coop closing games at the 2 so the backcourt is the best of the other 4 guards with Kyrie.

[michaeltex]

Getting closer to watching basketball instead of just talking about it... A couple things I'm looking forward to seeing next week:

Kyrie back on the court
Flagg's year 2 outside shooting (frequency/efficiency)
Rez against NBA-level talent
The backup guard battle between Sergio/Sasser
If Tarik looks to be a legit movement shooter in the NBA
Who wins the starting spot between Max and ZR? Naji and PJW?

The Sunday-Wednesday turnaround could be tough. Best case commercial flight time (1-stop) is ~20 hours. Figure wheels up around noon Sunday (CDT) and they're back in DAL early Monday morning. Couple of days back to re-set their body clocks. Couple of days practice to get their routine re-established will help.

Are any of these televised?

[Smitty]

Are any of these televised?

Local/MavsTV is all I could find with a Google search earlier.

[ballsrchr]

Local/MavsTV is all I could find with a Google search earlier.

Does this mean over the air TV?  I live west of Waco--which has a sister station to the one in Dallas.  I'm having a heck of a time getting the antenna/TV tuner set up right.  Seems there have been some changes over the year.  I do have a fall back, but prefer not to use it...

I'm not going to pay for MavsTv.  Just one more streaming service!

[KillerLeft]

Does this mean over the air TV?  I live west of Waco--which has a sister station to the one in Dallas.  I'm having a heck of a time getting the antenna/TV tuner set up right.  Seems there have been some changes over the year.  I do have a fall back, but prefer not to use it...

I'm not going to pay for MavsTv.  Just one more streaming service!

I could be wrong, but if you live that far out you should be able to find it on television easily. My father lives in Tyler and can watch the games much more easily than I can.

[ballsrchr]

I could be wrong, but if you live that far out you should be able to find it on television easily. My father lives in Tyler and can watch the games much more easily than I can.

Tyler is another area entirely, but it is served by a sister station just like Waco is.  So...if Tyler can get it this year we will be in good shape.  I think it is KCEN and KAGS out of Waco.  My antenna is 14' off the ground, about 6' above the corner of the house.  I can get KCEN ok.  I may raise the antenna.  I'm 79 years old, almost 80.  If my wife catches me up a ladder she yells, "...get your ass off that ladder you old fool.  You're going to kill yourself!"  Ahhh...not yet...got another year of the Mavs to watch...

Another thing. Apparently I live in an area that is in the viewing area of Dallas AND San Antonio, so both of them get blacked out.
edit: This is when I'm paying for any of the streaming services--and I've tried quite a few.

[david75090]

The Mavs are on TV in my area in Grayson County. There's an over the air channel that carries the games but I can't pull it in over the air. I subscribed to MavsTV. There's no app for my Samsung in the living room. Got a fire stick for the bedroom that works. Problem is, if I lay down, I'll fall asleep when I try and watch it. I end up watching online. Bought a fire stick for the Samsung smart TV. It won't work. The app shows up when I install it, but when I try it, it says "no email/password found" or some such. Works on the PC and online, not on this firestick. I've contacted MavsTV techs, but so far they're not helping. Would love to watch on my 75" TV, but not so far.

[ballsrchr]

The Mavs are on TV in my area in Grayson County. There's an over the air channel that carries the games but I can't pull it in over the air. I subscribed to MavsTV. There's no app for my Samsung in the living room. Got a fire stick for the bedroom that works. Problem is, if I lay down, I'll fall asleep when I try and watch it. I end up watching online. Bought a fire stick for the Samsung smart TV. It won't work. The app shows up when I install it, but when I try it, it says "no email/password found" or some such. Works on the PC and online, not on this firestick. I've contacted MavsTV techs, but so far they're not helping. Would love to watch on my 75" TV, but not so far.

I'm in Coryell county, 35 miles west of Waco, with about 7 or 8 prisons in town.  No...I'm not in prison.  That would put a crimp in TV watching.  I'm surrounded by 4 very large monitors.  I generally use a 45" monitor to view videos, the Mavs, etc.  I was able to watch the Mavs on my monitor last year using a usb TV tuner.  Apparently "upgrades" have thrown a monkey wrench in the different software, so it's a treat to figure everything out again.  

You would think that the Mavs would understand the need to make watching the games on TV and online easier.  It's not as if the online games are keeping me from driving to Dallas and watching the games there.  I'm not going to Dallas--very often.  More people watching...more ad revenue.

[michaeltex]

Tyler is another area entirely, but it is served by a sister station just like Waco is.  So...if Tyler can get it this year we will be in good shape.  I think it is KCEN and KAGS out of Waco.  My antenna is 14' off the ground, about 6' above the corner of the house.  I can get KCEN ok.  I may raise the antenna.  I'm 79 years old, almost 80.  If my wife catches me up a ladder she yells, "...get your ass off that ladder you old fool.  You're going to kill yourself!"  Ahhh...not yet...got another year of the Mavs to watch...

Another thing.  Apparently I live in an area that is in the viewing area of Dallas AND San Antonio, so both of them get blacked out. 
edit: This is when I'm paying for any of the streaming services--and I've tried quite a few.

One of the problems I have with streaming is where the internet gateway is located. I'm in Tyler and will get blackout notices if my internet provider, ATT, connects (for example) to a gateway server in DAL. I'll get TV ads from Houston, Austin, San Antonio or Dallas for local businesses depending on where the AI thinks I'm located because of the gateway. Sometimes I can change it by re-booting my access point, but that's not a guarantee, and it messes with the non-roaming security on services like Hulu.

[david75090]

One of the problems I have with streaming is where the internet gateway is located. I'm in Tyler and will get blackout notices if my internet provider, ATT, connects (for example) to a gateway server in DAL. I'll get TV ads from Houston, Austin, San Antonio or Dallas for local businesses depending on where the AI thinks I'm located because of the gateway. Sometimes I can change it by re-booting my access point, but that's not a guarantee, and it messes with the non-roaming security on services like Hulu.

Hulu. Supposed to get local channels with Hulu. Problem is, they mean local-major-network channels. The local affiliates have digital channels that show up on cable, but not Hulu. I'd get the Mavs on one of those digital channels if the digital channels were included on Hulu. But, noooo...

[Smitty]

@GrantAfseth
Dusty May said Marcus Sasser has stood out in Dallas Mavericks training camp, mostly for what he does away from the ball.

"He's had a lot of those hidden plays that really make the team go," May said.

[ballsrchr]

One of the problems I have with streaming is where the internet gateway is located. I'm in Tyler and will get blackout notices if my internet provider, ATT, connects (for example) to a gateway server in DAL. I'll get TV ads from Houston, Austin, San Antonio or Dallas for local businesses depending on where the AI thinks I'm located because of the gateway. Sometimes I can change it by re-booting my access point, but that's not a guarantee, and it messes with the non-roaming security on services like Hulu.

That may be what happens to me when trying to use one of the paid streaming services.  I HAVE Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Youtube TV, Paramount Plus, and probably more that I don't remember right now.  People (my wife) says I'm getting senile but it is what it is.  I was forgetful at the age of 20, so I don't worry about it.  Ah, yes, Peacock.

I've tried MavsTV, ESPN, NFL whatever it's called now (back when I watched football), NBA league pass, and--others.  Some worked but were continually blacked out.  Others wouldn't even work no matter what I did.  Part of the problem is that I'm on linux OS.  This streaming stuff is just getting to be a living hell.  I have direcTV to the big television, but my wife won't let me use it.  Trying to set it up on the computer--doesn't work.

I love the internet, my computers, and the Mavs.  So I'll do what I got to do...