MAVS NEWS:

[Smitty]

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/4645...-mavericks


Damn, training camp hasn't even started yet...

Gafford out 2-3 weeks with a sprained ankle...

I also heard on the radio this morning that Brandon Williams has a strained hamstring and will be out at least a week.

And Exum has yet to practice, but nobody knows if its injury related yet...

Not a good opening to TC.

[Chicagojk]

I saw Rick Welts was with Dirk at his unveiling of Dirk’s court in Germany. Good for the mavs for doing this. Really glad welts is a part of this organization. Sure he made some silly comments after the trade but he was put in a no win situation with all that.

[michaeltex]

Video of Flagg during team practice...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLoMVcCBvpM

[myconsumerclub]

Should have signed another center to play back up if Gafford is out 2 to 3 weeks that is a horrible thing to risk. Id bet we regret keeping Powell instead of adding a Kai Jones or Moses Brown to the team so we are better prepared to face adversity.

B Will may be hurting his chance to win a spot. Exum as well. That is 3 of our 6 being questionable early on. We still have DLo. Nembhard, and Dennis Smith. If it is to be believed Cooper can PG it and if desperate add in Naji and Hardy to the list.

All these injuries starting up first thing just to let us know how stupid our GM is at picking talent that is healthy enough to count on them. He even traded a 20 PPG guard for a guy that was injured making nearly 10 million a year. Anyone see what Martin is looking like in training camp is he looking like a fit with everyone or another overpaid loser that gets paid for wearing street clothes.

[michaeltex]

They did sign Cisse, 6-11 center, to a camp contract. So he and DP can carry some of the load for the pre-season.

Disappointed that BWill has a hammy, but should be back in a week. I was hoping that the extra pre-season practice time would help him continue developing.

I'm very concerned about Exum. No practicing, but no reason given. He already has a rep for missing time, probably his worst attribute, and this is a bad start to the season for him.

So some bumps in the road during training camp/pre-season, but the heavy home game schedule early on will allow for continued development of new schemes (Like a flow offense) and integration of new/returning players.

My rose colored glasses take for the day.

[Chicagojk]

Yeah, not a great look for Exum.   Who knows if there is anything there but for a guy who was unavailable for most of last year, it is not a great start if he isn't practicing.    Especially first half of the season when creation was lacking.  I was actually pretty interested to see how the Exum and Williams battle went.   Exum has been good when healthy and Williams had a nice run.   Exum is the much better defender and has more size.    Williams is better getting to the rim.  Both can up the pace.    Hopefully the injuries are not serious and more precautionary.   Also, hopefully our training staff is working on the correct hamstrong for Williams.

[Chicagojk]

Jason Kidd says the Dallas Mavericks want Dereck Lively II to shoot the ball in Year 3.
Kidd on Lively: “We’re going to let him shoot. We want him to be the champion of the paint. We want his leadership.”

**************************
I don't have any grand aspirations, but if shooting three pointers is ever going to be a thing for Lively he needs to at least get 40-50 up this year.   Not the 2-3 that Cuban said, but just something.   You just need to start dipping your toe in the water if it is ever going to be a thing.

[michaeltex]

Jason Kidd says the Dallas Mavericks want Dereck Lively II to shoot the ball in Year 3.
Kidd on Lively: “We’re going to let him shoot. We want him to be the champion of the paint. We want his leadership.”

**************************
I don't have any grand aspirations, but if shooting three pointers is ever going to be a thing for Lively he needs to at least get 40-50 up this year.   Not the 2-3 that Cuban said, but just something.   You just need to start dipping your toe in the water if it is ever going to be a thing.

Can you imagine a 7'2" guy getting the defensive rebound then acting as a trailing 3pt shooter? Didn't some guy, Dirk Something?, make a career out of that type of action? He was pretty good, as I recall.

[michaeltex]

A lot of HOF big men developed key moves that were pretty un-guardable.

e.g.,
Kareem with the Skyhook
Akeem with the Dream Shake
Dirk with the one leg step back
Duncan with the bank shot
Shaq with just his hugeness

I'm not saying that DLive will ever be a HOFer, but I wouldn't mind him exhibiting something more than just a lob threat.

[DallasMaverick]

A lot of HOF big men developed key moves that were pretty un-guardable.

e.g.,
Kareem with the Skyhook
Akeem with the Dream Shake
Dirk with the one leg step back
Duncan with the bank shot
Shaq with just his hugeness

I'm not saying that DLive will ever be a HOFer, but I wouldn't mind him exhibiting something more than just a lob threat.

Sometimes players improve by adding new moves or skills.

Sometimes they just improve the things they already do.

We shall see.

[Winter]

DLive already had a face-to-the-basket game when he was in college, but he's never been asked to use it much. There is a video of him shooting 10 3's in a row during his rookie training camp in Dallas, so he's got a shot.

I think what Kidd is talking about with Lively is both when to shoot and where to shoot. If there's a new offensive system, probably all the players are working through some of this.

[KillerLeft]

A lot of HOF big men developed key moves that were pretty un-guardable.

e.g.,
Kareem with the Skyhook
Akeem with the Dream Shake
Dirk with the one leg step back
Duncan with the bank shot
Shaq with just his hugeness

I'm not saying that DLive will ever be a HOFer, but I wouldn't mind him exhibiting something more than just a lob threat.

It would be cool, but I don’t need this, personally. I just want him to A) anchor a dominant defense and B) bring enough to the table offensively to avoid forcing his team to play 4 on 5 on that end. And honestly, with the dribble hand off skills he has been showing (will work great in a “flow” offense) and his ability to make awesome passes out of the short roll, he’s kind of already there. 

Honestly, my main hope for Lively is that he can play 25-32 minutes per game for 65+ this year, and that’s just because I’m sick to death of reading around here that he’s injury prone.

[F Gump]

Honestly, my main hope for Lively is that he can play 25-32 minutes per game for 65+ this year, and that’s just because I’m sick to death of reading around here that he’s him being injury prone.

FIFY. 

Lively's propensity to get injured repeatedly is only talked about because it's been a major limiting factor in his ability to contribute each and every year. You're not the only one who hopes that he can find a way to stay healthy. 

There's also a financial concern looming - how do you pay him on the next contract, if he has another season where he gets dinged over and over and misses multiple chunks of the season? Lively's Next Contract is the question they will be dealing with in a year from now.

Oh, and fwiw, I don't think the Mavs are targeting him to play 25-32 mpg. Or Gafford either. I'm thinking when everyone is healthy, they will split 40 mpg, and maybe a bit less, which puts them each in the 18-22 mpg range. Matchups are likely to dictate how much of that goes to whom (when everyone is healthy). imo.

[KillerLeft]

FIFY. 

Lively's propensity to get injured repeatedly is only talked about because it's been a major limiting factor in his ability to contribute each and every year. You're not the only one who hopes that he can find a way to stay healthy. 

There's also a financial concern looming - how do you pay him on the next contract, if he has another season where he gets dinged over and over and misses multiple chunks of the season? Lively's Next Contract is the question they will be dealing with in a year from now.

I don't disagree, I just think it's silly to be so doom and gloom about it so early in his career. I think adjusting to the grueling NBA season as a young player coming out of college is a skill, particularly for bigs who are still growing. There's a long history of bigs being injury prone, but there's also a fairly long list of those who seemed injury prone to start their careers and ended up as dependable, difference making players. 

I do agree with the "looming financial" deadline - that's the only thing that concerns me, really, but if he still hasn't learned to stay healthy by then I'd find an alternative path and not give him the contract his talent makes us all assume he'll want. 

I sure hope you're wrong about not testing the upper limits of his minutes per, in part specifically because of the looming second contract coming. I want to know whether or not he can be THE guy on defense, like his talent suggests. His effect on the floor dwarfs most centers so drastically that it would be a shame to preemptively decide he's a part time player. Gaffford, for example, while a good NBA player, doesn't come remotely close to the same quality of play as Lively. Like, it's not even a fair comparison, especially now that it seems the team is trending away from spamming spread pick and roll. I'm very afraid that this will mean Gafford is about to seem more underwhelming than expected on both sides of the floor, rather than just the defensive side. He made a tangible positive impact on offense as Luka's pick and roll partner, but I doubt that specific action will be Dallas' spam/go to now, even if they don't abandon it completely, and it will be much harder for he or Lively to thrive in it without Luka being the other half. Lively, alternatively, could thrive in a variety of different systems, and has already proven he's more than just "a lob threat," to quote an earlier poster, can't remember who. That's not meant as a slam on Gafford, either, as he's one of the very best backup centers in the league and probably more effective (in the right system) than quite a few starters. It's just that to my thinking, what Lively (and Davis, for that matter) bring to the position is quite literally the dream. I think one of those two at center is the biggest and best way for the Mavs to create a nightly advantage over their oponents with this roster that doesn't really have an offensive player you're scared of at the moment.

[Jym]

I'm going to be so, so disappointed if Lively is actually in that 18 to 22 mpg range 
he can be so much more than that and we need him to show it in year 3.

[KillerLeft]

I'm going to be so, so disappointed if Lively is actually in that 18 to 22 mpg range 
he can be so much more than that and we need him to show it in year 3.

That's the way I feel, too. 

I hope we're right. If he is just a part time player, and not a star, it's not the end of the world. A GREAT part time player is still wonderful to have, but a lot of my hope for the next five years hinges on Lively being an absolute stud difference maker on defense. 18 minutes of stud defense isn't exactly a cornerstone piece of a great team.

[david75090]

My concern with Lively is, body-type. Ultra tall and slender. Prone to certain conditions and injuries that are always going to be limiting.

[KillerLeft]

My concern with Lively is, body-type. Ultra tall and slender. Prone to certain conditions and injuries that are always going to be limiting.

That's the best part, in my view. Tyson Chandler, Marcus Camby, etc. That's the type of center who can MOVE and RUN and SWITCH.

[david75090]

That's the best part, in my view. Tyson Chandler, Marcus Camby, etc. That's the type of center who can MOVE and RUN and SWITCH.

IF he can stay healthy, which so far, looks iffy. Bill Walton was sturdier, and a Hall of Fame talent with foot issues. It's not a talent concern, it's a health concern. It's hard on the freakishly tall. Some more than others.

[KillerLeft]

IF he can stay healthy, which so far, looks iffy. Bill Walton was sturdier, and a Hall of Fame talent with foot issues. It's not a talent concern, it's a health concern. It's hard on the freakishly tall. Some more than others.

I get and agree with your point regarding height. Foot injuries, in particular, seem to come with it at times. 

I'm just saying my personal favorite type of centers are the slender, quick ones. I have no science or data to back this up, but my guess is that the lack of extra weight might help prevent some of those injuries, too.