MAVS NEWS:

[Smitty]

I think they are mostly done as well, but I can't help but have PTSD from last summer when folks were on here saying they are fine from a creation standpoint.  That we are free from Luka heliocentric basketball and now we can have more "flow" to the offense.  The Mavs are obviously better off than last year, but if you have to mention PJ (and Martin, LOL!) then we are likely going to be in for some pain.

Their plan last year never came to fruition. They planned to have DLO hold down the fort until December, for Kyrie to come back, and then they’d have both. DLO proved incapable and Kyrie played zero games. Run a lot of offense through AD, as a high usage Big. Who played very little. Develop rookie Flagg as more of on-ball player, leading to an eventual point-forward modern NBA archetype. To have Lively, who many think is capable of being an offensive hub of sorts, run more DHO’s and passing from the short roll. He played single digit games. I’m sure I’m missing some other key factors, but their entire plan was never realized. To take anything from how last year actually played out as an “I told you so”, is in bad faith IMO.

[mvossman]

So you're saying they DO need Mathurin?! Happy you've seen the light - I concur.

Don't get me started on that again!  I am officially MathurOut.

[KillerLeft]

Don't get me started on that again!  I am officially MathurOut.

[F Gump]

Their plan last year never came to fruition. They planned to have DLO hold down the fort until December, for Kyrie to come back, and then they’d have both. DLO proved incapable and Kyrie played zero games. Run a lot of offense through AD, as a high usage Big. Who played very little. Develop rookie Flagg as more of on-ball player, leading to an eventual point-forward modern NBA archetype. To have Lively, who many think is capable of being an offensive hub of sorts, run more DHO’s and passing from the short roll. He played single digit games. I’m sure I’m missing some other key factors, but their entire plan was never realized. To take anything from how last year actually played out as an “I told you so”, is in bad faith IMO.

The fact that Nico the Idiot was running the show when it came to creating the roster and getting pieces in place was a HUGE problem. The DAR addition was bad, but maybe even bigger was the utterly moronic signing of a potentially key PG piece (Exum) who might have been able to pick up the slack, except he was so injured he couldn't even play a single game and had to be waived at full salary. Stupid. 

But the big pivot point was AD. Even with better (so-so level) PGs, he would still have made them way better, and instead was the domino that fell to ultimately push it all off the rails last season, getting hurt and staying hurt. Once that happened, it made no sense to do anything beyond proclaim everyone injured, and max out the development of Flagg and perhaps a few others.

If they all get hurt this season, it will be just as bad. But at least we won't have to deal with AD.

[mvossman]

Their plan last year never came to fruition. They planned to have DLO hold down the fort until December, for Kyrie to come back, and then they’d have both. DLO proved incapable and Kyrie played zero games. Run a lot of offense through AD, as a high usage Big. Who played very little. Develop rookie Flagg as more of on-ball player, leading to an eventual point-forward modern NBA archetype. To have Lively, who many think is capable of being an offensive hub of sorts, run more DHO’s and passing from the short roll. He played single digit games. I’m sure I’m missing some other key factors, but their entire plan was never realized. To take anything from how last year actually played out as an “I told you so”, is in bad faith IMO.

I wildly disagree.  There were many of us who recognized the massive creation hole created by the Luka trade and that it wasn't close to filled with DLO, an oft injured, limited creator in AD and a rookie.  It was even worse than I expected as I thought they would get more out of DLO, but I feel like some folks don't realize just how much this roster is still lacking in creation.  Larry turning into a legit NBA point guard sooner rather than later would be a really big help.

[KillerLeft]

I feel like some folks don't realize just how much this roster is still lacking in creation.  Larry turning into a legit NBA point guard sooner rather than later would be a really big help.

Know what else would help?

[Smitty]

I wildly disagree.  There were many of us who recognized the massive creation hole created by the Luka trade and that it wasn't close to filled with DLO, an oft injured, limited creator in AD and a rookie.  It was even worse than I expected as I thought they would get more out of DLO, but I feel like some folks don't realize just how much this roster is still lacking in creation.  Larry turning into a legit NBA point guard sooner rather than later would be a really big help.

I think 99% of us have said this team still lacks at least one more ball-handler, creator. Many of us have posted numerous fantasy trades that have the Mavs landing one that might be available. That doesn’t really matter to my point about not being able to take much of anything away from last year as far as what the plan was and how it didn’t work. We’ll never know, because it never came to fruition. Kyrie-Coop-AD-Lively played zero minutes together. Double Bigs was never a thing. Sure, I didn’t think it’d work great, but it’s not like I was proven right. I never got to see it.

[Jmaciscool]

The fact that Nico the Idiot was running the show when it came to creating the roster and getting pieces in place was a HUGE problem. The DAR addition was bad, but maybe even bigger was the utterly moronic signing of a potentially key PG piece (Exum) who might have been able to pick up the slack, except he was so injured he couldn't even play a single game and had to be waived at full salary. Stupid. 

But the big pivot point was AD. Even with better (so-so level) PGs, he would still have made them way better, and instead was the domino that fell to ultimately push it all off the rails last season, getting hurt and staying hurt. Once that happened, it made no sense to do anything beyond proclaim everyone injured, and max out the development of Flagg and perhaps a few others.

If they all get hurt this season, it will be just as bad. But at least we won't have to deal with AD.

Your overall point about Exum is spot on, but technically it was Omax that was stretch waived to create the roster spot to sign Exum. Exum was eventually included in the AD trade to Washington. 

I only mention that because it was one other casualty of the bad Exum signing.

[Scott41theMavs]

Your overall point about Exum is spot on, but technically it was Omax that was stretch waived to create the roster spot to sign Exum. Exum was eventually included in the AD trade to Washington. 

I only mention that because it was one other casualty of the bad Exum signing.

I feel bad, because I liked Exum and what he brought to the floor when healthy. I liked OMax better, though.

[windjc]

This board is generally underestimating May’s stated objection to have the Mavs be the best passing team in the league. Passing as a tactic is a form of creation.

Look no further than the passing clinic the Knicks put on in the playoffs. They weren’t exactly overrun by “creators”. Outside of Brunson they had hard hustle guys and incredible ball rotation that kept the Spurs chasing.

[Smitty]

This board is generally underestimating May’s stated objection to have the Mavs be the best passing team in the league. Passing as a tactic is a form of creation.

Look no further than the passing clinic the Knicks put on in the playoffs. They weren’t exactly overrun by “creators”. Outside of Brunson they had hard hustle guys and incredible ball rotation that kept the Spurs chasing.

You bring up a good point. A team like the Knicks only played 2 "PG's" in their playoff rotation. They had a traditional starting 5:

(USG%)

PG Brunson (30.4%)
SG Hart (16.7%)
SF Bridges (17.3%)
PF OG (19.7%)
C KAT (25.9)

And the bench, in order of total minutes played in the playoffs:

SG McBride (18.2%)
SG/SF Shamet (15.7%)
C Robinson (10.7%) 
SF/SG Clarkson (21.1%)
PG Alvarado (18.9%)


Brunson (Guard) and Kat (Big) were the offensive engines and then everyone else shared the load. The Knicks ran with 1 Guard - 3 Wings - 1 Big. The biggest difference between the Knicks roster construction and the Mavs upcoming one is they had a true stretch Big / All-Star at C.

Of course, this isn't meant as some 1 for 1 comparison between the Mavs roster and the Champs. I'm just adding to your point that there's more than one way to build a roster. A lot has to go right. When it doesn't (for 29 other teams) you may have to start over from scratch, or you might just be one move away.

I think the Mavs want to see what they have with Sergio and Sasser. We (me) might not think they're good enough to handle the non-Kyrie minutes. We (me) would instead prefer a proven ball-handler/playmaker/creator/initiator... But I think we're about to see if those guys will sink or swim early on -- and live with the growing pains. For better or worse.

[RoyTarpleysGhost]

Their plan last year never came to fruition. They planned to have DLO hold down the fort until December, for Kyrie to come back, and then they’d have both. DLO proved incapable and Kyrie played zero games. Run a lot of offense through AD, as a high usage Big. Who played very little. Develop rookie Flagg as more of on-ball player, leading to an eventual point-forward modern NBA archetype. To have Lively, who many think is capable of being an offensive hub of sorts, run more DHO’s and passing from the short roll. He played single digit games. I’m sure I’m missing some other key factors, but their entire plan was never realized. To take anything from how last year actually played out as an “I told you so”, is in bad faith IMO.

So in other words, their plan didnt work because they didn't have enough creation.

[RoyTarpleysGhost]

Let's address the obvious. This roster makes a lot more sense right now if you replace Morez Johnson with Brayden Burries. Masai and Schmidt better be right on the choice they made.

[From Dirk to SCREW YOU Nico]

Let's address the obvious.  This roster makes a lot more sense right now if you replace Morez Johnson with Brayden Burries.  Masai and Schmidt better be right on the choice they made.

I'm hopeful it will be similar to the Dirk vs Paul Pierce debate and we end up with the better of the two players.

[Smitty]

So in other words, their plan didnt work because they didn't have enough creation.

Their plan, which was flawed in my opinion, was never to have multiple perimeter creators. It was to run 2 Bigs. Twin towers. Davis was their best player, on both ends. It was to run offense through him. Like the Knicks do with KAT for example. AD played 4 games before getting injured. Gafford missed the first 5. By the time AD came back, they were 5-14. Their second-best player to start the year (Lively) was already out for the season. Twin towers never happened. Kyrie never came back in December, because the tank was officially on. Their "plan" was never realized. However flawed we think it was going into the season, it just never played out.


This year I think their plan is much better going into the season. The only time we'll see "twin towers" is when Morez or Aldama share the floor with one of Lively, Gafford, or Cisse. I think they'll have some creation/stability from the guard spot with Kyrie back. Then they have a combination of 7-8 guys that do a bit of everything. Maybe 1 or 2 that specialize in one specific thing. They've prioritized adding outside shooting. They'll lean on young guys like Sergio and Sasser to cover the non-Kyrie minutes. It's not perfect. I've said several times they're still one proven ball-handler short from being the 'best' version of this particular roster construction. BUT it is a better plan than last year IMO, even if that plan was never realized -- and we can't know for sure.

[mvossman]

You bring up a good point. A team like the Knicks only played 2 "PG's" in their playoff rotation. They had a traditional starting 5:

(USG%)

PG Brunson (30.4%)
SG Hart (16.7%)
SF Bridges (17.3%)
PF OG (19.7%)
C KAT (25.9)

And the bench, in order of total minutes played in the playoffs:

SG McBride (18.2%)
SG/SF Shamet (15.7%)
C Robinson (10.7%) 
SF/SG Clarkson (21.1%)
PG Alvarado (18.9%)


Brunson (Guard) and Kat (Big) were the offensive engines and then everyone else shared the load. The Knicks ran with 1 Guard - 3 Wings - 1 Big. The biggest difference between the Knicks roster construction and the Mavs upcoming one is they had a true stretch Big / All-Star at C.

Of course, this isn't meant as some 1 for 1 comparison between the Mavs roster and the Champs. I'm just adding to your point that there's more than one way to build a roster. A lot has to go right. When it doesn't (for 29 other teams) you may have to start over from scratch, or you might just be one move away.

I think the Mavs want to see what they have with Sergio and Sasser. We (me) might not think they're good enough to handle the non-Kyrie minutes. We (me) would instead prefer a proven ball-handler/playmaker/creator/initiator... But I think we're about to see if those guys will sink or swim early on -- and live with the growing pains. For better or worse.

The Nicks model was shooting and playmaking up and down the roster.  Even their center could shoot and create for others, and their 3&D wing was dishing out 5 assists per game.  Mavs have taken some steps in that direction (Larry, Aldama, Sasser) but they have a long way to go.  I feel like Burries was the perfect player for that model, but we will see what we get from Rez.

[FireNicoHarrison]

Their plan, which was flawed in my opinion, was never to have multiple perimeter creators. It was to run 2 Bigs. Twin towers. Davis was their best player, on both ends. It was to run offense through him. Like the Knicks do with KAT for example. AD played 4 games before getting injured. Gafford missed the first 5. By the time AD came back, they were 5-14. Their second-best player to start the year (Lively) was already out for the season. Twin towers never happened. Kyrie never came back in December, because the tank was officially on. Their "plan" was never realized. However flawed we think it was going into the season, it just never played out.


This year I think their plan is much better going into the season. The only time we'll see "twin towers" is when Morez or Aldama share the floor with one of Lively, Gafford, or Cisse. I think they'll have some creation/stability from the guard spot with Kyrie back. Then they have a combination of 7-8 guys that do a bit of everything. Maybe 1 or 2 that specialize in one specific thing. They've prioritized adding outside shooting. They'll lean on young guys like Sergio and Sasser to cover the non-Kyrie minutes. It's not perfect. I've said several times they're still one proven ball-handler short from being the 'best' version of this particular roster construction. BUT it is a better plan than last year IMO, even if that plan was never realized -- and we can't know for sure.

That plan was a failure before the start of the season.

No ballhandler. No floor general.

You can just fail. No other options.

[Scott41theMavs]

Let's address the obvious.  This roster makes a lot more sense right now if you replace Morez Johnson with Brayden Burries.  Masai and Schmidt better be right on the choice they made.

Oh, they’re probably wrong. But Rez will still be a great, impactful player. He’ll never be the guard-level creator that Burries is and will be, but I do see him as having a ceiling as a poor man’s Cooper Flagg who can create off the dribble from the elbow as a forward, which, if he gets there and with all the other stuff he brings to the table, he’ll be a multi year all-star. 

Burries is indeed like Paul Pierce in that he will go waaaaay higher in a five years from now redraft, but there are some differences. Pierce was, for whatever reason, way underrated by the time of the ‘98 draft in spite of being very highly rated among those players going into the college season. Burries is different - stock rising going into the draft, but it didn’t rise nearly high enough. GMs should have seen that he deserved to be drafted fifth or sixth, and they didn’t. Pierce ended up being the second-best player (or at least having the second-best career) in that draft. Burries may end up better than one of the top four in this draft, but he’s not going to surpass all of them. 

I’m hoping that, wherever Morez lands in the 2031 redraft of 2026, he’s no more than one slot below Burries. I do believe he’ll be top seven or eight. I’m not losing my poop about it because 1) I trust in whatever vision M&M have and where Rez fits into it, and 2) I know they’ll make up for it in other areas of team-building.

I do believe that they’re underrating the importance of creation at this point, but believe that ship will be righted by the time the team is ready to contend.

[Chicagojk]

Watched the Risacher highlights from his rookie year and he is really good in the open floor filling the lanes and getting ahead of defenders.    I know May says he wants to play fast, but if they can defend and rebound well, they should be fun in the open court with Coop and others.    Especially if they have someone who can make a quick outlet pass.   

His shot seems a little weird to me.    I could see why he can be a little streaky.   Although being 36% is not bad from three.  I wonder if he can make a jump like Max did.   Max finished the year at 40%.   I think Max is a good shooter, not a great one.   Although defenses need to guard him out there.

[Smitty]

The Nicks model was shooting and playmaking up and down the roster.  Even their center could shoot and create for others, and their 3&D wing was dishing out 5 assists per game.  Mavs have taken some steps in that direction (Larry, Aldama, Sasser) but they have a long way to go.  I feel like Burries was the perfect player for that model, but we will see what we get from Rez.

Agree with everything here. And I'm not trying to make a point that the Mavs are somehow trying to build a roster that mimics the Knicks. Only if you squint is it even comparable. I think instead of having that "Center that can shoot and create for others, and 3&D Wings dishing out 5 assists per game", this team will be one that runs and guns. A lot less halfcourt oriented. A team that is built on getting boards and getting out in transition. A team that shares the ball. More movement and less ISO. No more spamming 1-5 high PnR. It will be different... because Flagg is not Luka.