MAVS NEWS:

[Chicagojk]

I liked the off-season. I like the Masai, Schmitz, May and most of the players. I have questions about some of them and they will not all work out, but I see the vision and I like the gambles on most.

I am not going to change my view if doesn’t work right away or complaining if this is not a finished product yet. I expect there will be many more changes.

My two main negatives as we stand now though are the following:

1) lack of a young guard who can turn into a top 3 player on this team. Maybe one develops, but at the moment we have a 34 year old Kyrie and limited draft assets. It is a scary place to be if Kyrie does not reach his level of before his injury trying to find that guard.


2). Mavs used their flexibility and some assets for Morez, Aldama, and Risacher (Tarek to a much lesser case) and none of these guys have a clean vision to a ton of minutes. Maybe Morez is brought along slowly. Maybe Risacher gets minutes behind Max—-even if he cannot really create his own shot. Typically when you invest in gambles you want to give them a clean run of a lot of minutes. Maybe that comes but things are very crowded currently. Especially when you consider flag gets 32 plus minutes, PJ gets 28, and Marshall gets 25. The wing minutes are almost gone just with that.

[windjc]

I liked the off-season.  I like the Masai, Schmitz, May and most of the players.  I have questions about some of them and they will not all work out, but I see the vision and I like the gambles on most. 

I am not going to change my view if doesn’t work right away or complaining if this is not a finished product yet.  I expect there will be many more changes.

My two main negatives as we stand now though are the following:

1) lack of a young guard who can turn into a top 3 player on this team.  Maybe one develops, but at the moment we have a 34 year old Kyrie and limited draft assets.  It is a scary place to be if Kyrie does not reach his level of before his injury trying to find that guard.


2). Mavs used their flexibility and some assets for Morez, Aldama, and Risacher (Tarek to a much lesser case) and none of these guys have a clean vision to a ton of minutes.  Maybe Morez is brought along slowly.  Maybe Risacher gets minutes behind Max—-even if he cannot really create his own shot.  Typically when you invest in gambles you want to give them a clean run of a lot of minutes.  Maybe that comes but things are very crowded currently.  Especially when you consider flag gets 32 plus minutes, PJ gets 28, and Marshall gets 25.  The wing minutes are almost gone just with that.

Maybe the way to win is to create massive competition at all positions and to have depth that can compete through injuries and in the 2nd team, where many games are won and lost?

Culture and coaching. Culture and coaching. Culture and coaching.

[Chicagojk]

saw the Bam height comparison right after the draft. The Al Horford size surprises me though. I thought he is bigger. The Dwight Howard size is pretty shocking to me.

https://x.com/NickVanExit/status/2085065468012892565

[mvossman]

saw the Bam height comparison right after the draft.  The Al Horford size surprises me though.  I thought he is bigger.  The Dwight Howard size is pretty shocking to me. 

https://x.com/NickVanExit/status/2085065468012892565

Yeah, folks kept referring to him as a small ball 5.  He is overall bigger than Gafford.  The fact that he is that size, can guard the perimeter and has all the intangibles bodes well for his development.

[mvossman]

I liked the off-season.  I like the Masai, Schmitz, May and most of the players.  I have questions about some of them and they will not all work out, but I see the vision and I like the gambles on most. 

I am not going to change my view if doesn’t work right away or complaining if this is not a finished product yet.  I expect there will be many more changes.

My two main negatives as we stand now though are the following:

1) lack of a young guard who can turn into a top 3 player on this team.  Maybe one develops, but at the moment we have a 34 year old Kyrie and limited draft assets.  It is a scary place to be if Kyrie does not reach his level of before his injury trying to find that guard.


2). Mavs used their flexibility and some assets for Morez, Aldama, and Risacher (Tarek to a much lesser case) and none of these guys have a clean vision to a ton of minutes.  Maybe Morez is brought along slowly.  Maybe Risacher gets minutes behind Max—-even if he cannot really create his own shot.  Typically when you invest in gambles you want to give them a clean run of a lot of minutes.  Maybe that comes but things are very crowded currently.  Especially when you consider flag gets 32 plus minutes, PJ gets 28, and Marshall gets 25.  The wing minutes are almost gone just with that.

Agree will all of this.  This is probably a stretch but I think there is a chance Larry can be that guy.

[FireNicoHarrison]

saw the Bam height comparison right after the draft.  The Al Horford size surprises me though.  I thought he is bigger.  The Dwight Howard size is pretty shocking to me. 

https://x.com/NickVanExit/status/2085065468012892565

He is a center.

[Scott41theMavs]

He is a center.

I think he’s more a center than a power forward, but most folks after seeing him in summer league think he isn’t ready to be an NBA center. Methinks that’s a rather drastic conclusion because it would mean he’s already a bust. That was not what I saw in summer league.

[Chicagojk]

I think he’s more a center than a power forward, but most folks after seeing him in summer league think he isn’t ready to be an NBA center. Methinks that’s a rather drastic conclusion because it would mean he’s already a bust. That was not what I saw in summer league.

I can't say for certain yet on Morez, but I think I like him less if his best position is center.   I have tried not to chime in with Lively because he needs to prove he can be healthy.   Although in an ideal world, I think my favorite Mavs lineup would be Lively, Morez and three decent sized creators (one being Coop).

Others may like Johnson at the five, Coop at the big forward and three more creators.    

I will need to watch more of Johnson but at the moment I envision him more of a PF type.

[WillE]

saw the Bam height comparison right after the draft.  The Al Horford size surprises me though.  I thought he is bigger.  The Dwight Howard size is pretty shocking to me. 

https://x.com/NickVanExit/status/2085065468012892565

To put this into perspective a bit more, take standing reach into account:

Bam 9' 0'' (53%ile)
Al Horford 8' 11'' (38%ile)
Dwight Howard 9' 3.5'' (90%ile)
Morez 8' 11'' (38%ile)

Aday Mara 9' 9'' (100%ile)

[mvossman]

I can't say for certain yet on Morez, but I think I like him less if his best position is center.   I have tried not to chime in with Lively because he needs to prove he can be healthy.   Although in an ideal world, I think my favorite Mavs lineup would be Lively, Morez and three decent sized creators (one being Coop).

Others may like Johnson at the five, Coop at the big forward and three more creators.    

I will need to watch more of Johnson but at the moment I envision him more of a PF type.

I think the hope/plan is that he can be both.  If you look at the last several NBA champions, they had a key player who could play the 4 or 5 (or in Jokic case a 5 that has 4 skills).  I hope he can easily fit into both your lineups eventually.

[mvossman]

To puts this into perspective a bit more, take standing reach into account:

Bam 9' 0'' (53%ile)
Al Horford 8' 11'' (38%ile)
Dwight Howard 9' 3.5'' (90%ile)
Morez 8' 11'' (38%ile)

Aday Mara 9' 9'' (100%ile)

To put things into even more perspective, lets add vertical leap:

Bam: 39
Horford: 35
Howard: 39
Morez: 39
Mara: 28

That puts max vertical reach at

Bam: 12' 3"
Horford: 11' 10"
Howard: 12' 6.5"
Morez: 12' 2"
Mara:  12' 1"

[KillerLeft]

I think the hope/plan is that he can be both.  If you look at the last several NBA champions, they had a key player who could play the 4 or 5 (or in Jokic case a 5 that has 4 skills).  I hope he can easily fit into both your lineups eventually.

If he can be both, that's super. I'm all for it. 

However, I can't wrap my head around the opinion that if pressed to make a choice, one would prefer him at the 4, where his skills are lacking (right now). To contrast this, his ability to move his feet and process things extremely quickly on defense, combined with a high motor, pretty much make him the ideal, prototypical center. The type that can impact a regular season game and a playoff series. There are like fewer than 10 such players in the entire NBA, and if Lively ever maintains health and Johnson can live up to the hype, they'll have two of them. 

Why on EARTH would people be upset if they don't end up being a good fit on the court TOGETHER?! I couldn't care less about that, tbh.

[mvossman]

If he can be both, that's super. I'm all for it. 

However, I can't wrap my head around the opinion that if pressed to make a choice, one would prefer him at the 4, where his skills are lacking (right now). To contrast this, his ability to move his feet and process things extremely quickly on defense, combined with a high motor, pretty much make him the ideal, prototypical center. The type that can impact a regular season game and a playoff series. There are like fewer than 10 such players in the entire NBA, and if Lively ever maintains health and Johnson can live up to the hype, they'll have two of them. 

Why on EARTH would people be upset if they don't end up being a good fit on the court TOGETHER?! I couldn't care less about that, tbh.

If Lively ever gets truly healthy you are going to want him on the court at least mid 20s a game.  If Morez lives up to potential you are going to want him on the court over 30.  These numbers will be higher during the playoffs.  They will need to be able to spend at least 10 minutes on the court together to get full value.  Not to mention, any ability Morez develops to make him more effective on the court with Lively will be just as useful when he is playing the 5.

[Scott41theMavs]

If Lively ever gets truly healthy you are going to want him on the court at least mid 20s a game.  If Morez lives up to potential you are going to want him on the court over 30.  These numbers will be higher during the playoffs.  They will need to be able to spend at least 10 minutes on the court together to get full value.  Not to mention, any ability Morez develops to make him more effective on the court with Lively will be just as useful when he is playing the 5.

I agree with both of you all. To me Morez needs to be both a center and a PF with the C aspect predominating.

[KillerLeft]

If Lively ever gets truly healthy you are going to want him on the court at least mid 20s a game.  If Morez lives up to potential you are going to want him on the court over 30.  These numbers will be higher during the playoffs.  They will need to be able to spend at least 10 minutes on the court together to get full value.  Not to mention, any ability Morez develops to make him more effective on the court with Lively will be just as useful when he is playing the 5.

Sure, sure...but...all I'm saying is if that 5 isn't a little emboldened compared to the 4 next to Johnson's name on some dry erase board somewhere...on a team that will apparently have Flagg, PJW, Aldama, Marshall, Risacher AND Biberovic all fighting for (and deserving) forward minutes...

IF they really think Johnson is a 4 (I don't), then they were sooooooo stupid not to draft Burries. 98% of the draw of Johnson is that he can defend on the perimeter FROM THE CENTER POSITION, enabling you to move away from drop coverage and switch in more situations without going small. That's the entire point of taking the guy top 10 and if they don't see it that way then I flat out hate the pick.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

Davis Bertans retires: Thank you for the great 15 years! It has been exactly a decade and a half since my first official match in the Latvian senior national team jersey. The time has come to listen to my body and, unfortunately – but with great joy and pride for everything I have experienced in these 15 years – the time has come to put an end to my career in the national team. It may hurt a little that we did not end the last match with a victory, but I believe that during all these years we have experienced incredible emotions – both in our hall and in tournaments and matches outside Latvia, such as the European Championships and the World Cup, which will remain in our memories for a very long time. I sincerely hope that basketball in Latvia is in a much better place today than it was before my first match. In the future, I will definitely be one of the biggest fans of the national team; I will always support them and, whenever I have the opportunity, cheer them on from the stands. Thank you all for your support, for being with us after both victories and defeats, for celebrating with us, and for grieving with us. Thank you!”

BasketNews

[Chicagojk]

If the keep PJ to start the season they better have him in a good role and get him plenty of playing time.    I thought he was pretty bad last year.  His defense was really disappointing.  He really struggled covering anyone on the perimeter.  That needs to change.  I will give last year a pass but he needs to play better.    Otherwise those remaining years at 21, 22 and 24 million are not going to be easy to get off of.    It will be challenging with an already crowded front court if they don't clear some out a little.

[myconsumerclub]

Having Lively at 7'3" Cisse 6'11" and Gafford 6'10" 265# I can say that the center spot is solid and in good hands with players who are tested and proven to do what it takes to control the rim (when healthy). Morez is more likely a small ball center when we need a 5 that can shoot the 3 just as Santi is a PF who can also fill in as a 5 and hit the 3 but he is 7' not 6'9. Cooper can also man the 4 and we can play small ball with him and morez as the 4 and 5 out there. Our front court is as deep as I have ever seen it. If Morez takes a bit to develop his 3 that is okay with me I say let him play because as I recall Dirk even took some time to get his all star game happening. PJ has contributed in the Playoffs and he deserves minutes too if he is still here. The front court is crowded with starting level talent at the 4 and 5 both, but maybe PJ will play more at the 3 behind Cooper.

Backcourt is were we gambled more and I concur that they may have the steal of the offseason in Risacher and quite possibly in getting Tarik to come over from Europe as well.

POINT
Kyrie is clearly one of the top ball handlers in the game if not the top ball handler in the NBA.
Sergio over Sasser or vice versa? Or Naji as a ball handler? Sasser could be a better Brandon Williams that hits near 40% and that is a good thing if he can defend also. Sergio is young so I think we need to give him a bit to develop more before we attempt to judge how many minutes he needs. We saw Cooper and Naji both bring the ball up last season and they both did okay when given a shot and they both improved over time so I won't be surprised if they experiment that way again though I can see Kyrie wanting to get a lot of minutes so he can work himself back into shape and get back to his perennial all star status but if Sergio shines in his minutes I will be pretty hopeful for our future because we need to groom a PG that can replace Kyrie as he retires eventually and in some sense he may give us hope to give Luka's ghost some rest as well.

WINGS
Cooper leads this category if he plays at the wing more this season and he should tease at getting to all star level status but we have a lot of talent to evaluate and experiment with probably Risacher and Tarik will be the 2nd and 3rd best but Max may impress us and start to show more confidence. Klay is still here as will Martin so the question is do we need to move on from the old vets or keep them around to provide more education and leadership and then again maybe they need to get put out to pasture whatever path the future brings in view I have to say I enjoyed having Klay here and he was all class.

2 WAYS
Lawal Howard and John Bla bla bla maybe we develop some trade assets

EURO STASHED Seva Ishchenko another big euro that can get assists and play point maybe he can play here next season

[Dirknows]

Having Lively at 7'3" Cisse 6'11" and Gafford 6'10" 265# I can say that the center spot is solid and in good hands with players who are tested and proven to do what it takes to control the rim (when healthy). Morez is more likely a small ball center when we need a 5 that can shoot the 3 just as Santi is a PF who can also fill in as a 5 and hit the 3 but he is 7' not 6'9. Cooper can also man the 4 and we can play small ball with him and morez as the 4 and 5 out there. Our front court is as deep as I have ever seen it. If Morez takes a bit to develop his 3 that is okay with me I say let him play because as I recall Dirk even took some time to get his all star game happening. PJ has contributed in the Playoffs and he deserves minutes too if he is still here. The front court is crowded with starting level talent at the 4 and 5 both, but maybe PJ will play more at the 3 behind Cooper.

Backcourt is were we gambled more and I concur that they may have the steal of the offseason in Risacher and quite possibly in getting Tarik to come over from Europe as well.

POINT
Kyrie is clearly one of the top ball handlers in the game if not the top ball handler in the NBA.
Sergio over Sasser or vice versa? Or Naji as a ball handler? Sasser could be a better Brandon Williams that hits near 40% and that is a good thing if he can defend also. Sergio is young so I think we need to give him a bit to develop more before we attempt to judge how many minutes he needs. We saw Cooper and Naji both bring the ball up last season and they both did okay when given a shot and they both improved over time so I won't be surprised if they experiment that way again though I can see Kyrie wanting to get a lot of minutes so he can work himself back into shape and get back to his perennial all star status but if Sergio shines in his minutes I will be pretty hopeful for our future because we need to groom a PG that can replace Kyrie as he retires eventually and in some sense he may give us hope to give Luka's ghost some rest as well.

WINGS
Cooper leads this category if he plays at the wing more this season and he should tease at getting to all star level status but we have a lot of talent to evaluate and experiment with probably Risacher and Tarik will be the 2nd and 3rd best but Max may impress us and start to show more confidence. Klay is still here as will Martin so the question is do we need to move on from the old vets or keep them around to provide more education and leadership and then again maybe they need to get put out to pasture whatever path the future brings in view I have to say I enjoyed having Klay here and he was all class.

2 WAYS
Lawal Howard and John Bla bla bla maybe we develop some trade assets

EURO STASHED Seva Ishchenko another big euro that can get assists and play point maybe he can play here next season

Lively shouldn't even count, he won't be ready for training camp and has barely been healthy in his career so far. Cisse hasn't proven much beyond playing garbage minutes on a tanking team. If the best 5 man lineup is Morez at the 5, I'm sure May will go with that.

[myconsumerclub]

It will be positionless basketball you will see Santi Morez and Cooper all able and capable at the 3, 4 and 5 and getting that part of their game going and when Kyrie and Sergio or Risacher and Tarik will be there to be klutch from 3 and or drive it to the rim that rounds out the top 7.

Then 8 9 and 10 that is PJ Max and Naji so even if the Lively Cisse and Gafford center rotation can't do crap because they stub their toes that won't matter one bit because they are not even needed in the top 10 rotation anyway. Everything we get out of them is a bonus as far as I am concerned and by the TDL we are going to maybe see more new faces.

Sergio could be Irvings understudy or it might be Sasser one of them is going to do that job and be good at it there are 2 to choose from not one. I like those odds. If Naji is needed as a ball handler that is 3 to choose from. However I want and I think that Sergio is going to surprise us by mid season because he is going to show up as someone that can do that job. That is a good deep rotation guys we are going to see some really good basketball this year.