5 hours ago
Man, watching those opening night games (I saw one of them and watched the highlights from the others) really drew focus to what the Mavs are/aren't. All six teams clearly spent the summer secure in the knowledge they'd be playoff teams and had these opening night games (most against specifically relevant opponents) circled. Physical, intense play, emotional moments, even fights.
It's so easy to lose your sense of where things actually are around the league when your team (the one that draws 98% of your attention) isn't part of the inner group of competitive teams. This has gotten worse recently, I think, because if you're looking for it you can find a ton of content centered around any team, regardless of where that team is in the hierarchy of the current moment. For example, there might be more "the league isn't ready" or "how'd the NBA let them get away with this" content out there about the Charlotte Hornets than there was about the entire NBA going into the 1990 season. Depending on your algorithm, it's almost impossible to have any true perspective on what actually matters and which teams have a chance.
I just hope this transitional era of the Mavs goes by quickly and we have relevant basketball to cheer for soon, as in by the end of Flagg's rookie deal, ideally. Sooner would be great, obviously.
It's so easy to lose your sense of where things actually are around the league when your team (the one that draws 98% of your attention) isn't part of the inner group of competitive teams. This has gotten worse recently, I think, because if you're looking for it you can find a ton of content centered around any team, regardless of where that team is in the hierarchy of the current moment. For example, there might be more "the league isn't ready" or "how'd the NBA let them get away with this" content out there about the Charlotte Hornets than there was about the entire NBA going into the 1990 season. Depending on your algorithm, it's almost impossible to have any true perspective on what actually matters and which teams have a chance.
I just hope this transitional era of the Mavs goes by quickly and we have relevant basketball to cheer for soon, as in by the end of Flagg's rookie deal, ideally. Sooner would be great, obviously.
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