Let's be real about what we had with Starter Powell

[embellisher]

I appreciate the good game by Powell, but we need to tap the brakes on assuming this is what we'll see the rest of the year. I think Powell's performance in this game confirms just what a terrible defender Drummond is. Possibly the worst P&R defender I've ever seen.

[Mavs2021]

I appreciate the good game by Powell, but we need to tap the brakes on assuming this is what we'll see the rest of the year. I think Powell's performance in this game confirms just what a terrible defender Drummond is. Possibly the worst P&R defender I've ever seen.

Yeah most teams seems to favour the let Doncic get his approach. The play the rim-runner first (where Powell´s loss of athletism hurts his effectiveness), and the three point shooters second and then Luka.

Vogel´s gameplan was awful. Also why not play Gasol more in that case? At least he´s a little smarter than Drummond AND Davis.

I think Gasol regrets it big time, that he did not sign with the Mavs. At least here he could make an impact and he has a title already.

[Jommybone]

Dwight update below. FTs and Rebs looking more or less like pre-injury Dwight. FG% off the charts after last night’s 11/12 outing. I’m ready to say he’s back. And for those thinking he misses JJB, I’d say the Luka feeds are making that narrative more and more unsustainable. 

Minutes: 17.5 (Jan), 11.9 (Feb), 12.5 (Mar) 15.5 (Apr)
Points: 4.1, 4.3, 4.5, 6.8
Points/min: .24, .36, .36, .44 (compare .35 last season)
Rebounds: 3.6, 2.9, 3.6, 3.8
Rebounds/min .21, .24, .29, .25 (.28 career season high)
FG%: 41.7, 40.0, 58.1, 74.0 (last year’s 63.8 only time in the 60’s)
FT%: 50, 86, 91, 77.8 (never finished a season in the 80s)

By the way, comparing Dwight's output to scrubs is kinda beside the point. You are of course welcome to your own opinions. But the point I’m trying to substantiate with numbers here is that he’s performing like pre-injury Powell. And the numbers certainly suggest he’s doing that. 

[StepBackJay]

I don't care what the stats say, I listen to my heart and it says Powell is the GOAT.

Feels good to be so right...

[ClutchDirk]

https://i.redd.it/8c4uemjaoav61.jpg

[HanspardsShowerVoice]

I appreciate the good game by Powell, but we need to tap the brakes on assuming this is what we'll see the rest of the year. I think Powell's performance in this game confirms just what a terrible defender Drummond is. Possibly the worst P&R defender I've ever seen.

 Also the Mavs had the best offensive efficiency in the history of the NBA last year running the 5 out offense.   The good news is when the Mavs have their full squad they should be able to run both PnR heavy and 5 Out at a high level and can alternate as needed.

[embellisher]

 Also the Mavs had the best offensive efficiency in the history of the NBA last year running the 5 out offense.   The good news is when the Mavs have their full squad they should be able to run both PnR heavy and 5 Out at a high level and can alternate as needed.

And being able to play both ways offensively will make us a nightmare to defend, which bodes well for the win column.

[IamDougieFresh]

 Dwight!!!!!!!

[StepBackJay]

As a former DP-hater current DP-apologist I respect the things he does out there. I am not saying I am committing to keeping him long-term but I want to see how this KP/DP/Maxi frontcourt works out. 

I like DP as your starter energy guy with Maxi closing a lot of games, depending on the situation. DP closed the Lakers game in spectacular fashion but that was a unique circumstance which we may not see in a long-time.

Just those 3 can soak up a lot of the PF/C minutes for a game with some 5-10 min contributions from WCS and or Melli. 

I have learned that Powell is rarely going to wow you with his box score numbers. One thing that is a little misleading I think are his rebound numbers, I'd really like to see team numbers when he is out there bc I have a feeling the fact that he is actually trying to box out ppl means we probably do okay with defensive rebounding. We certainly have seen him aggressive on the offensive boards.

On defense he is a good team defender and lately has been showing better as an individual defender. A lot of teams are going to want their PF/C star player to abuse Powell. I want to see how he does going forward. I also think Mavs as a team are getting better at help defense when he is outmatched (which will happen a lot).

All that to say I want to ride this thing out to the finish line this year with MVPowell and see how it goes. We tried 5 out basketball with Maxi and it's fine for stretches of the game (I especially like it in closing lineups) but its not working as like a full-time strategy.

[embellisher]

 Dwight!!!!!!!

Admins/mods, somebody has obviously hacked @"IamDougieFresh" account! 

[Mavs2021]

I wonder whether Brandan Wright is depressed. He never got this much money or attention for being able to catch and dunk a basketball occasionally.

Powell is a on a hot streak right now, which statistically means he´s averaging 7.6 PPG and 3.9 RPG.

Also Powell had seven double digit scoring games this season, three have been against the Lakers. 20/21 from the field. Any chance Powell is dating Vogel´s daughter?

Or better question: Wilt ever shoot 95% from the field? What about Kareem? Shaq? Look at these stats Lakers brass. You know you want him.

[HanspardsShowerVoice]

If nothing else about the Lakers game, when you get really obsessed about how overpaid Dwight Powell is at $10 million a year realize that someone gave Andre Drummond 5 years  $127 million.

[Mavs2021]

If nothing else about the Lakers game, when you get really obsessed about how overpaid Dwight Powell is at $10 million a year realize that someone gave Andre Drummond 5 years  $127 million.

He had a real bad game it happens. This exact context-less focus on reputations leads to our team missing out on the next Julius Randle or Zach Lavine. The guy played for Detroit and Cleveland his whole career.

Do I want to give him $130M? Absolutely not. Could he have helped us in our current situation? Absolutely.

In the other Lakers loss he was +14 in 30 minutes. The 18 minutes he wasn´t on the floor, the Lakers lost by 19 points.  Anthony Davis on the other hand (obviously due to his injury return) was atrocious in both games.  Minus 30 in 44 minutes.

This Schadenfreude over the failure of other teams and their bad contracts is a real annoying part of the Mavs fanbase. Probably born out of the fact that we can barely find any success stories in our own free agency history, as we sit on the bench pointing out the mistakes of the players in the actual game.

[StepBackJay]

Man if only we could play against Andre Drummond every night.

I do think DP next to KP is doable more than other pairings defensively. Where we saw DP get torched was at the start of the season when Rick thought it was a good idea to start DP at the 5 next to DFS for now discernible reason.

[IamDougieFresh]

Admins/mods, somebody has obviously hacked @"IamDougieFresh" account! 

?

I've been the crazy Canadian's#1 fan since we took on Rondo's trash ass to get him!

[F Gump]

Where we saw DP get torched was at the start of the season when Rick thought it was a good idea to start DP at the 5 next to DFS for now discernible reason.

That's part of why he sucked so hard. RC's big man rotations certainly were an ugly mess for much of the early season. But the Mavs were shorthanded too, which forced a lot of the ugliness.

But don't forget, DP truly sucked when he played. RC showed a lot of faith in him, or expectation of something good, and it was just awful. Let's not pretend that what we saw vs LA has been there all along, because it wasn't.

In fact, DP was so bad he was buried pretty deep under the bench until WCS was out and the availability of KP and Maxi became intermittent. RC pretty much had no choice but to play him. And typically, his contribution in that context has been mostly (or only) energy.

I think DP has become a good energy guy. But I'm still wary because of what we have seen before  -- can we saw Saturday be repeated, since there's no more Drummond on the schedule?

OTOH I have thought all year that playing 5-out -- with KP and Maxi being paired -- was a mistake, even though Maxi has performed at a much higher level. But neither of those guys are true rim-runners, and that's been badly needed. I think it would be better going forward if we see a rim-runner (DP or WCS) on the floor next to a stretch big. What would be ideal would be KP trying to do what DP does (because he certainly could), but that doesn't seem to be how he sees himself.

[embellisher]

?

I've been the crazy Canadian's#1 fan since we took on Rondo's trash ass to get him!

@"Mak" burner account confirmed!

[StepBackJay]

That's part of why he sucked so hard. RC's big man rotations certainly were an ugly mess for much of the early season. But the Mavs were shorthanded too, which forced a lot of the ugliness.

But don't forget, DP truly sucked when he played. RC showed a lot of faith in him, or expectation of something good, and it was just awful. Let's not pretend that what we saw vs LA has been there all along, because it wasn't.

In fact, DP was so bad he was buried pretty deep under the bench until WCS was out and the availability of KP and Maxi became intermittent. RC pretty much had no choice but to play him. And typically, his contribution in that context has been mostly (or only) energy.

I think DP has become a good energy guy. But I'm still wary because of what we have seen before  -- can we saw Saturday be repeated, since there's no more Drummond on the schedule?

OTOH I have thought all year that playing 5-out -- with KP and Maxi being paired -- was a mistake, even though Maxi has performed at a much higher level. But neither of those guys are true rim-runners, and that's been badly needed. I think it would be better going forward if we see a rim-runner (DP or WCS) on the floor next to a stretch big. What would be ideal would be KP trying to do what DP does (because he certainly could), but that doesn't seem to be how he sees himself.

I just think there was no scenario in any universe where DFS and Powell made sense as your frontcourt. Not saying DP was going to look amazing but I would have liked to see a Maxi/Powell frontcourt to begin the year. I honestly think it was more about punting on who to sit out of THJ and J Rich until they played some games.

[Kammrath]

https://twitter.com/NickVanExit/status/1...7320285188

[dirkfansince1998]

Might be better than ever. Offense is getting close to the pre injury level and the defense is clearly better. Feels like his positional defense is way better and he is also doing a solid job around the rim. Something he never did prior to his injury.
Really thought that an achilles injury would end his career but he proved me wrong. Made some adjustments and found ways to contribute. No need for two-handed lob dunks. A layup is just as good.