(11-07-2025, 12:09 PM)Dirknows Wrote: You dont get the nickname “Street Clothes” or “Day to Dayvis” for nothing.

(11-07-2025, 07:57 AM)DanSchwartzgan Wrote: It is an interesting theory.  The hallmark of a good tank at this point in the season is plausible deniability.  The fact that there are people on all sides of this means so-far, so-good if that is indeed the plan.  There comes a point when you are so far behind everyone else that you don't have to keep pretending.

So here are my questions (if indeed this is a tank)...

Is Kidd going rogue or is everyone in on this?  

Will this be another 10th/11th type tank as we've seen twice now where they keep their options open regarding a playoff run.  Or, will they fully commit and go for a top 3 pick?

How do they do this without killing AD's trade value?

Would the gap year theory mean we are 1. Rebuilding around the two kids (plus Lively and maybe Christie), or 2.  Still all-in with Nico's vision in 26/27 (which is mainly AD/Kyrie as your stars).  I don't think a tank necessarily means we plan to jettison AD...unfortunately.

Do we sell off some pieces at the TDL to teams that are in need of some of what we have?  I can see selling off some depth in either scenario above...especially if it helps the financial situation heading into the 26 and 27 seasons.

(11-07-2025, 10:20 AM)vfromlmf Wrote: Once Kyrie went down with the ACL injury, the smartest move for this season became pretty clear. 

(11-07-2025, 01:46 PM)mvossman Wrote: While I agree that Kidd is a poor offensive coach and Rick would have been able to squeeze more out of this roster offensively, there is a limit to what he could have done.  Part of the reason Rick's offense was so good is that he made it a priority to get the right personnel on the court to run it.  How often did we see three guard (or even 3 PG) lineups on the court?

As much as I think Kidd is the wrong coach to squeeze offense out of this roster, the real issue is the roster itself.  Changing coaches is not going to fix the real underlying problem.

(11-07-2025, 07:57 AM)DanSchwartzgan Wrote: So here are my questions (if indeed this is a tank)...
1 Is Kidd going rogue or is everyone in on this?  
2 Will this be another 10th/11th type tank as we've seen twice now where they keep their options open regarding a playoff run.  Or, will they fully commit and go for a top 3 pick?
3 How do they do this without killing AD's trade value?
4A Would the gap year theory mean we are 1. Rebuilding around the two kids (plus Lively and maybe Christie), or 2.  Still all-in with Nico's vision in 26/27 (which is mainly AD/Kyrie as your stars).  I don't think a tank necessarily means we plan to jettison AD...unfortunately.
4B  Do we sell off some pieces at the TDL to teams that are in need of some of what we have?  I can see selling off some depth in either scenario above...especially if it helps the financial situation heading into the 26 and 27 seasons.

(11-07-2025, 12:24 PM)KillerLeft Wrote: I wavered on this a bit during the finals run, but I think Kidd is pretty awful, honestly. I think the worst, most depressing development of this summer might've been his last minute extension.

Looking back, my complaints about Luka's game started around the time Carlisle left, and got steadily worse from there. Don't get me wrong, I understand that Carlisle had been here so long that his leaving solved some issues that were blocking the way forward at the time. I'm not suggesting that everything would've worked out fine had he stayed, but he was a real coach with real expertise as an architect and teacher of cutting edge systems that work in the NBA. Kidd's "offense" is pathetic, regardless of whose skills it's built around, only Luka was dominant enough to make it (the offense) just passable enough for the team to be competitive, while still being ineffective enough to piss me off.

Luka's coach is obviously not the problem when it comes to his inconsistent conditioning, complaining to the refs instead of getting back on defense and prioritizing his national team over his NBA team (all complaints I've had about him), but I watched the SA/LAL game the other night, and the ball was moving more that night than it had been here since Kidd took over from Carlisle, so I do think Luka will benefit from Reddick's ability to think the game.

You'd think that would be a strength of Kidd's, too, since he's such a basketball savant, but I've seen basically no evidence of it during his time here. His offensive systems are TRASH, regardless of whose skills they're "built" around. His ATOs are even worse. His defensive systems seem lacking in any acknowledgement that the shots the Mavs want to give up are the exact shots modern offenses are hoping to generate. I think Kidd has some talent in the area of relating to his players, and that's a good thing, but even that he manages to mess up pretty regularly by refusing to take any blame for anything, ever. I could be wrong about this part, but when he denigrates players or personnel publicly, it doesn't seem to me that those are calculated decisions born from understanding of psychology the way Carlisle's used to be.

This is why I don't fall in with the "fire Nico" crowd. I have no need for Harrison to escape blame, or retain his job, and I think he SHOULD be fired, even if it's just to help the fanbase heal. But, I think people are focused on him to an unhealthy level in the context of what's wrong now. Removing the GM won't fix this. It's not as simple as "things were working here when Lindsey was on board," I can promise you that. If we attribute the PJW/Gafford deals to him, we must also attribute the offer of two firsts for Kyle Kuzma to him. The Grant Williams signing comes to mind, too, as do other things. The reality is that no GM is going to get everything right, and the other reality is that, as RoyTarpleysGhost pointed out above, many of the people most critical of Harrison have been 100% on board this summer with the architectural structure of HOW THIS TEAM WAS DESIGNED TO BE PLAYED. I find it mildly offensive that some loud voices are trying to have their cake and eat it, too, on some of these matters.

I agree with Smitty that we haven't had a chance to truly see the imagined identity of this team on the court yet, but I don't care. I hate it. THAT is the reason to hate Harrison, only the same people calling for his head seem to AGREE with how he sees the game and it drives me crazy.

Further, if we think this is all happening "to" Kidd, I think that's a hugely incorrect interpretation. I think HE'S on board with the architecture of this team, too, and I hate it doubly from him, because HE should've known better.

I guess what I'm saying is that between how the basketball side is running with a lack of transparency, the apparent lack of a professional staff in place to prevent and minimize injury, the apparent belief (from top to bottom) the organization had that this was a complete, balanced roster, the hair-pulling ineptitude of the game plan on a night-to-night basis, etc...I fear it might take a lot more than a GM change to fix this, and while I'm ready for Harrison to go, I won't be happy unless Kidd goes with him. In fact, if forced to make a choice between the two, I might actually prefer Kidd go first. I know I'm probably the only one who feels that way, and don't get me wrong - I think the new owners missed a chance to win back a lot of support when Harrison wasn't fired this summer.

(11-07-2025, 03:38 PM)fifteenth Wrote: I agree. We need new ownership, GM and coach

(11-07-2025, 03:47 PM)Chicagojk Wrote: https://archive.ph/2025.11.07-192256/https://www.dallasnews.com/sports/mavericks/2025/11/07/nico-harrison-dallas-mavericks-flagg-luka-doncic/

(11-07-2025, 04:05 PM)KillerLeft Wrote: Yeah, and since that's not likely to happen (I'd say ANY of those happening is unlikely, ALL of it happening is pretty much impossible) the question becomes: follow the Mavs, or don't follow the Mavs.

(11-07-2025, 04:05 PM)KillerLeft Wrote: Yeah, and since that's not likely to happen (I'd say ANY of those happening is unlikely, ALL of it happening is pretty much impossible) the question becomes: follow the Mavs, or don't follow the Mavs.