GAME 18: DAL (8-10) @ UTA (14-4) | 104-116 loss

[RDB]

The negativity is natural.  Through a ton of circumstance this team is a mess a right now.  And I do think that everyone has a clock in their head and worry how long we'll be able to keep Luka.  A lot of that comes down to the past failings of the MBT.  

It's way too early to punt on the season but there are a lot of troubling signs.  Everyone will calm down by the morning and like was mentioned above, maybe the real concerns will set in around the halfway point of the season.

You make a good point and I don’t think punting is wise as well.  I just hope MBT is in the laboratory trying to figure out how to prepare for Luka’s eventual payday and not expecting some of their existing players to be something they are not.  I know the track record isn’t great but fortunately we have some time and the planning needs to start now.

[khaled1987]

Before this game the Mavs were 25th in the NBA with 274.1 passes per game (76ers lead the league with 314.1 per game) and 26th in the NBA with 393.9 touches per game (76ers lead the league with 439.1 touches per game).

That is really awful

[ThisIStheYear]

Biggest problem the Mavs have is a complete inability to control the boards or even break even, The center has a terrible rebound percentage for his position as does the power forward. Even when they go big they struggle. I’d start putting guys in the dog house or trading them if they’re not boxing out. Roster moves may be needed. I gotta say, I didn’t see this as the fatal flaw it’s turned out to be.

[dirkfansince1998]

Biggest problem the Mavs have is a complete inability to control the boards or even break even,  The center has a terrible rebound percentage for his position as does the power forward. Even when they go big they struggle. I’d start putting guys in the dog house or trading them if they’re not boxing out.  Roster moves may be needed.  I gotta say, I didn’t see this as the fatal flaw it’s turned out to be.

Hard to believe but compared to last season the Mavs aren´t any worse on the defensive board.

Last season: 77.7% DRR 13th
This season: 77.4% DRR 15th

Offensive rebounding is worse:

Last season: 23.2% 10th
This season: 18.8% 26th

[ballsrchr]

Wow.  What a putrid game.  After a very short time I started watching the mavs players like a hawk...positioning, the flow of the game.  What were they doing?  Nothing!  Lot of standing around.  Lack of effort.  When the dribble was picked up (and it was picked up a lot!) nobody came to help.  When the ball penetrated nobody cut to to the basket!...or moved to an open lane...thus the ball handler (who picked up the dribble!) would be left on an island.  Luka looked discouraged.  He also looked like..."...if nobody is coming to help I'll just do it myself--but I'm getting tired of this...!"  When there was some actual ball movement it was like a hot potato with nobody wanting to shoot an open shot (and no cutting to the basket!)  Of course, they weren't hitting open shots, so I guess it didn't matter much. One particular sequence would be the pass to an open player in the corner:  hesitation!...then dribble toward the basket into a snake's den of defense.  And no snake catcher comes to help.  Even if the Mavs do manage to make a mini-run a couple of 35' clankers put a stop to that.  Two such clankers can result in a 10 or 12 point turnaround--for the other team!

Enough with the offense.  What about the defense?  Let me rephrase that.  What defense?  Aside from the first few minutes and dribs and drabs thereafter...there was no defense.  Defense is anticipation, execution, BBIQ, and effort.  Don't need to say any more than that.

Now...lest anyone think I am a negative nellie...I do have a solution--of sorts.  Coaching and accountability.  Maybe just coaching accountability, but--no--players need to be held accountable as well.  Maybe the players are discouraged over the way the year has gone.  Maybe the coaches are discouraged.  Hmmm...maybe I am a negative nellie...

[mtrot]

Wow.  What a putrid game.  After a very short time I started watching the mavs players like a hawk...positioning, the flow of the game.  What were they doing?  Nothing!  Lot of standing around.  Lack of effort.  When the dribble was picked up (and it was picked up a lot!) nobody came to help.  When the ball penetrated nobody cut to to the basket!...or moved to an open lane...thus the ball handler (who picked up the dribble!) would be left on an island.  Luka looked discouraged.  He also looked like..."...if nobody is coming to help I'll just do it myself--but I'm getting tired of this...!"  When there was some actual ball movement it was like a hot potato with nobody wanting to shoot an open shot (and no cutting to the basket!)  Of course, they weren't hitting open shots, so I guess it didn't matter much. One particular sequence would be the pass to an open player in the corner:  hesitation!...then dribble toward the basket into a snake's den of defense.  And no snake catcher comes to help.  Even if the Mavs do manage to make a mini-run a couple of 35' clankers put a stop to that.  Two such clankers can result in a 10 or 12 point turnaround--for the other team!

Enough with the offense.  What about the defense?  Let me rephrase that.  What defense?  Aside from the first few minutes and dribs and drabs thereafter...there was no defense.  Defense is anticipation, execution, BBIQ, and effort.  Don't need to say any more than that.

Now...lest anyone think I am a negative nellie...I do have a solution--of sorts.  Coaching and accountability.  Maybe just coaching accountability, but--no--players need to be held accountable as well.  Maybe the players are discouraged over the way the year has gone.  Maybe the coaches are discouraged.  Hmmm...maybe I am a negative nellie...

Eh, I've been saying these same things for about five years now, i.e., the Mavs are just very deficient in basketball fundamentals.  It's almost as if they deliberately collected players, with a few exceptions, who want success to come easily and are not willing to do the hard work of adhering to these fundamentals you mentioned. 

Or, in the alternative, these players at one point knew how to play right and have lost that focus and commitment AFTER they got to the Mavs, which, if true, is an even bigger problem.

[mavsluvr]

Wow.  What a putrid game.  After a very short time I started watching the mavs players like a hawk...positioning, the flow of the game.  What were they doing?  Nothing!  Lot of standing around.  Lack of effort.  When the dribble was picked up (and it was picked up a lot!) nobody came to help.  When the ball penetrated nobody cut to to the basket!...or moved to an open lane...thus the ball handler (who picked up the dribble!) would be left on an island.  Luka looked discouraged.  He also looked like..."...if nobody is coming to help I'll just do it myself--but I'm getting tired of this...!"  When there was some actual ball movement it was like a hot potato with nobody wanting to shoot an open shot (and no cutting to the basket!)  Of course, they weren't hitting open shots, so I guess it didn't matter much. One particular sequence would be the pass to an open player in the corner:  hesitation!...then dribble toward the basket into a snake's den of defense.  And no snake catcher comes to help.

A sadly accurate description.