Heard It Through the Grapevine 2-10-09

Posted by Rob Mahoney on February 10, 2009 under The Grapevine |

• From David Moore of the Dallas Morning News: “The Mavericks bench has outscored their counterparts 38.2-29.1 this season, an edge that will be tested now that Jason Terry is out.”  Sounds about right, but replace ‘tested’ with ‘demolished.’  I’d guess that the bench scoring dips to around 22 or 23.  Not pretty.
• Skeets at Ball Don’t Lie is hosting a hypothetical 2-on-2 basketball tournament, and all the teams are invited.  The Mavs team is Dirk-Kidd, after JET’s recent injury.  Their first round opponent is the Timberwolves’ Randy Foye and Kevin Love.  Mavs are killing it right now, but get out and rock the vote.
• David Moore of The Dallas Morning News has a great piece outlining the ways that the Mavs will compensate for Terry’s production: “The Mavericks would not have beaten Chicago if J.J. Barea had not done what he did. He will see an increase in his minutes. Barea has had some big offensive games this season. But with Terry out, Barea won’t always be able to slip through the defensive cracks. Opponents will account for him now. He must hit the outside shot when defenses go under on the pick-and-roll to make things tough on Nowitzki, and get to the rim when he has the opportunity.”  That’s definitely an idea that hasn’t been played around with much.  J.J. proved himself to be enough of a threat earlier this season to at least get a mention in the scouting report, but we saw him periodically bust out for big games as he moved back into a role as a reserve.  A lot of teams are caught off-guard when forced to man up against a quick, active, sweet-shooting point guard off the bench without scouting briefs.  He’s not going to have his own page or anything, but with Terry out, Barea’s the most obvious solution and is likely to get more attention from opposing players and scouts alike.
• Former Mavs coach Dick Motta did not make the ballot for the Hall of Fame.  Tim Ziller does not approve.
• Thing you love to hear about your players: JET wanted to finish the game in Chicago.  I’m glad he didn’t, but the attitude is admirable.  From David Moore of The Dallas Morning News: “‘It’s in Jet’s and the Mavericks’ best interests that we get this right,’ said Donnie Nelson, the club’s president of basketball operations. ‘Jason wanted to finish the Chicago game with a broken hand and would have if we had let him. That’s just how he’s wired and why we love him…Sometimes, competitors like that have to be protected from themselves. We plan to take the necessary steps to protect both of our respective futures.’”
• Dirk comes in at #9 on the latest Blogger MVP Rankings.
• EDIT: I forgot to mention that last night turned out nicely for the Mavs, and they didn’t even play a game.  There wasn’t a huge trade or a sudden Jason Terry recovery, but Phoenix lost to Philadelphia, Houston lost to Milwaukee, and New Orleans lost to Memphis, and only one of those games was close.  The trendy pick to miss the playoffs has climbed up to 6th in the West, likely with their eyes on New Orleans’ 5th seed just a half-game away.  Nothing concrete, but it’s good to have a little breathing room.