Posted by Bryan Gutierrez on May 20, 2013 under Commentary | 
The game of basketball has turned into the business of basketball. Players are still slowly learning that fact. Fans should understand that now. The 2010-11 Mavs are a great example of how business could get in the way of a good thing.
Dallas won the title that year and decided that it wasn’t a safe risk to “bring the band back” for another run at the title. Giving the core a chance to defend their title would have been enjoyable, but there was clear and reasonable logic behind the move the front office made. Mark Cuban has gotten a lot of heat for that decision, but the results of the playoffs this year suggest he was right for letting everyone go. As the Conference Finals are in motion, the Indiana Pacers’ Ian Mahinmi is the lone former Mav from the championship roster who still is playing.
Let’s look at what the Mavs would have theoretically had to do to bring most of the band back. Remember, Brian Cardinal and Peja Stojakovic are out of the league now. That leaves J.J. Barea, Caron Butler, Tyson Chandler, Jason Kidd, Ian Mahinmi, DeShawn Stevenson and Jason Terry. One guy to remember but won’t exactly be figured into this equation – Corey Brewer. He signed a three-year, $9,177,000 deal. He is now a free agent.
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Posted by Bryan Gutierrez on May 17, 2013 under Commentary |
I think. I probably think way too much. That’s just what happens when you have time on your hands. Again, I just sat and thought about random things revolving around the Mavs. Answers popped up, and this is the end result. Another batch of 10 questions and answers in regards to the summer and the future for Dallas.
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Posted by Bryan Gutierrez on May 8, 2013 under Commentary |
The small forward position actually provides the most depth the Mavs had over the course of the season. The only change they saw was the addition of rookie Jae Crowder. Vince Carter was in his second year with the organization, and Shawn Marion was once again the starting small forward.
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Posted by Bryan Gutierrez on April 29, 2013 under Commentary, Recaps |
After a week of recharging the battery, it’s back to work. It’s certainly different not covering a team during the playoffs. Even if the Mavs snuck in as the 8th seed in the West, a direct path to another 4-0 sweep would still have them playing around this time.
Before tackling the challenges of what to do this summer and going forward, it’s worth looking back and getting a little flustered when looking back at the games that slipped away from the Mavs. There are 10 games that really could’ve changed the course for Dallas. If they win just five of the 10, they likely find themselves in the playoffs.
Let’s look back, and get weird.
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Posted by Bryan Gutierrez on April 25, 2013 under Commentary |
Episode 74 of the Mavericks Outsider Report is here.
For those who don’t know, MOR a podcast entirely devoted to your Dallas Mavericks.
The end of the regular season passes without a Mavericks playoff game for the first time since 2000. It’s already time to move on from this season and look ahead to what the Mavericks can do to make sure this year is just a minor bump in the road.
But first, we want to cover Rick Carlisle’s entertaining post-game O.J. Mayo commentary, and the thoughts shared by Mark Cuban following the team’s mathematical elimination from the playoff picture. Then, we look forward by pulling out the oldest segment we have – Buy, Sell, Hold – to run through Mavericks’ free agents and possible free agent acquisitions. The end result shows that there are more holes to fill than money to spend. We take a quick run through the playoffs in NBA Nuggets, and we close with some talk about Lamar Odom and VIP floor tickets.
Intro – Banter / Rick on OJ
22:45 – Cuban’s Concession Speech
42:10 – Buy, Sell, Hold (Current Mavs)
1:03:25 – Buy, Sell, Hold (Potential Free Agent Signings)
1:28:35 – NBA Nuggets, Playoff Edition
1:24:08 – Yelling at Lamar Odom from Baller Seats / Closing Thoughts
Catch us again shortly after the draft in June as we have our “Judgement Day” episode. We’ll have the Mavs Jedi Council in the house to really dig in and figure out if Dallas made the right move(s) during the draft, and is prepared for the pivotal summer that is staring them directly in the face.
Bryan Gutierrez writes about sportsmen. He also attended Ball So Hard University. Bryan channels his inner-Clark Kent on a day-to-day basis. You can follow him on Twitter @BallinWithBryan.
Posted by Bryan Gutierrez on April 19, 2013 under Interviews |
There’s not a great way to classify Dirk’s 2012-13 campaign. It started with the incredible personal highlight of being able to play in Germany in an exhibition game. Concern then started to circulate as he had issues with his knee, which ultimately led to surgery. He missed more than a quarter of the season due to the surgery. When he came back, he had doubts about whether or not he could actually return to the form everyone is used to seeing from him. The doubts eventually went away as he swagger returned. Unfortunately, there just wasn’t enough time for Dirk to help get the Mavs into the playoffs.
A pivotal summer is on the horizon for the Mavs. Dirk will be ready to do whatever he can to help the franchise get back to the playoffs and make this year more of an aberration than the new expected norm.
Here is the final exit interview of the season. Here is Dirk Nowitzki’s exit interview.
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Posted by Bryan Gutierrez on under Interviews |
Though the team’s record was 41-41, many would say that this year was one of Rick Carlisle’s best coaching performances of his career. He had to endure over a quarter of the season without his best player and found a way to make sure his team never quit. Carlisle had to balance the juggling act of a roster that was in flux and it was a roster that easily could have turned on him with new contracts on the horizon. That said, they didn’t turn because the coach never gave in.
It was a year of work for Rick Carlisle. The results didn’t bear any fruit, but it’s not due to his negligence. The summer begins early for him, with potentially a new set of issues he’ll have to prepare for. Dirk Nowitzki might be the best on-the-floor asset the Mavs have, but Rick Carlisle is truly an asset that should not be taken for granted.
Here is the exit interview with Mavs coach Rick Carlisle.
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Posted by Bryan Gutierrez on April 18, 2013 under Interviews |
With the season dead and gone for the Mavs, exit interviews are the next item of the docket. Mark Cuban is not one who usually participates in the exit interview process, though he was in the building saying goodbye to the team.
As always, he’s one who isn’t shy to speak to the media. Prior to the team’s season finale against the then New Orleans Hornets, he spoke to the media about figurative dating, O.J. Mayo, the pain of the season and what will happen going forward.
Here is Mark Cuban’s “exit interview” quoteboard.
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Posted by Bryan Gutierrez on April 16, 2013 under Interviews |
Mark Cuban was at it again with his open discussion with the media prior to the team’s game against the Denver Nuggets. His squadron was out of playoff contention, a position the team hasn’t been in for quite some time. This season definitely leaves him angry that he’s in a position that he’s not used to being in. He’s been knocked down and he’s motivated to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
Even more so than the discussion prior to the game against the Suns, Cuban opened up even more to reporters about his team’s disappointing year and what needs to happen going forward. He also had some high praise for one of his veterans. Here is the quoteboard for Mark Cuban for the game prior to the game against the Denver Nuggets.
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Posted by Bryan Gutierrez on April 15, 2013 under Interviews |
Talking with Mark Cuban is always a mixed bag. You get to hear about Donald Trump, Shark Tank and other things, while avoid sweat that drips off him as he’s working out on his stairmaster. Those topics come up, but there is often great discussion that comes from the chats with Cuban. The last two home games were no exception. The Mavericks were still clinging to hope and life going into the game against the Phoenix Suns.
Even with the hope, the writing was on the wall, so the media decided to see if Cuban would be pensive and start looking ahead to the summer. He obliged. Here is the quoteboard for Mark Cuban for the game prior to the game against the Phoenix Suns.