Posted by Rob Mahoney on May 22, 2010 under News | 
The D-League’s presence in Frisco has gone from idea to reality over the course of the last year. What started with a commitment by Donnie Nelson and Evan Wyly has morphed into something vaguely resembling a franchise, with Nancy Lieberman, Del Harris, and Spud Webb taking control of basketball ops. There’s still no roster to speak of, but ‘the Frisco D-League team’ has evolved into the Texas Legends, and the Legends now not only have the faces of their organization in the Liberman-Harris-Webb triumvirate, but logo and color scheme that make it all official. Behold:
Image via Ridiculous Upside.
I’m actually quite pleased with it. Using the Mavs’ color scheme was to be expected, but this logo is what Dallas’ logo should be: modern, basketball-centric, and a good balance between minimalism and flash. Instead, the big leaguers boast a logo that can best be described as Emo Horse. Great.
Posted by Rob Mahoney on May 19, 2010 under Commentary, News |
The Mavs’ first and only selection in this year’s draft is the 20th pick in the second round, or the 50th pick overall. Odds are that Donnie Nelson and Mark Cuban’s draft pick will never know what it means to be an NBA player. The D-League stints and European tours that will almost assuredly follow present an eternal divide between draft night and the true beginnings of a player’s NBA career; not every second rounder can find success like Marcus Thornton, DeJuan Blair, or Mario Chalmers. Due to the extremely finite number of roster spots in the league, a vast majority of second rounders won’t even get a legitimate shot at becoming an NBA mainstay. The divide isn’t made to be crossed, as the system itself works against prospects trying to make a name for themselves in the big leagues.
This year could be a little bit different, though. Armed with the Texas Legends, the Mavs can select a player late in the draft — or sign an undrafted rookie — and keep them in-house. Their development can be incredibly specific and carefully tracked, and proper appraisal against D-League level talent can be done using video and more advanced team-specific measures.
I don’t think it’s fair to expect immediate dividends from the Frisco D-League project, but this summer could be the first time the Mavs really put something into it. Maybe the selection will turn out to be lower-level talent in the D-League, and a world away from being able to produce on an NBA level. That’s fine. There is power in knowing, and that’s the benefit that owning a D-league team provides.
We’re able to get our first look at the types of players the Mavs are considering with the pick (or in free agency) by the workouts they’re conducting, and the first six players worked out by the Mavs are all guards. According to a report by Jason Dannelly of College Fanz, the Mavs worked out Jamel White, Tweety Carter, Tony Crocker, Jermaine Beal, Dwight Lewis, and Marquez Haynes on Monday (via the DMN). None of those six players is considered to be a true candidate for the 50th pick, as none are really registering on any draft radars. Nelson could surprise and select one of those six anyway, but based on their currently nonexistent draft stock, I’d say these workout players are more likely to be long-shot training camp filler or prospects for the Legends.
We’ll know more as the Mavs continue to work out more and more players, but for now, here’s a little bit of info and relevant 2009-2010 stats (both in per game and per 40 minute form) for each of the six prospects:
Jamel White
Senior SG, Texas Wesleyan
6’4”, 195 lbs.
24 years old (3-2-1986)
| PTS | REB | AST | TO | STL | FG% | 3FG% |
| Per Game | 22.4 | 5.7 | 3.3 | 2.9 | 1.4 | .476 | .437 |
| Per 40 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | -- | -- |
*Per 40 minute data not available because minutes played data not available. Thanks, Texas Wesleyan.
Tweety Carter
Senior PG, Baylor
5’11”, 185 lbs.
23 years old (10-25-1986)
| PTS | REB | AST | TO | STL | FG% | 3FG% |
| Per Game | 15.0 | 2.8 | 5.9 | 2.5 | 1.3 | .436 | .385 |
| Per 40 | 13.6 | 2.5 | 5.4 | 2.3 | 1.2 | -- | -- |
Tony Crocker
Senior SG, Oklahoma
6’5”, 187 lbs.Sr,
23 years old (1-17-1987)
| PTS | REB | AST | TO | STL | FG% | 3FG% |
| Per Game | 11.4 | 6.2 | 1.7 | 1.3 | 1.1 | .410 | .328 |
| Per 40 | 13.9 | 7.5 | 2.1 | 1.6 | 1.3 | -- | -- |
Dwight Lewis
Senior SG, USC
6’5”, 215 lbs.
22 years old (10-7-1987)
| PTS | REB | AST | TO | STL | FG% | 3FG% |
| Per Game | 13.8 | 2.9 | 1.5 | 2.5 | 1.2 | .396 | .305 |
| Per 40 | 15.5 | 3.2 | 1.7 | 2.8 | 1.3 | -- | -- |
Marquez Haynes
Senior PG, UT Arlington
6’3”, 185 lbs.
23 years old (12-19-1986)
| PTS | REB | AST | TO | STL | FG% | 3FG% |
| Per Game | 22.6 | 4.3 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 1.5 | .483 | .409 |
| Per 40 | 18.8 | 3.6 | 3.1 | 3.0 | 1.2 | -- | -- |
Jermaine Beal
Senior PG, Vanderbilt
6’3”, 205 lbs.
22 years old (11-4-1987)
| PTS | REB | AST | TO | STL | FG% | 3FG% |
| Per Game | 14.6 | 2.5 | 3.1 | 1.6 | 1.0 | .440 | .379 |
| Per 40 | 18.0 | 3.0 | 3.8 | 1.9 | 1.2 | -- | -- |
Stats courtesy of Draft Express, ESPN.com, and official team sites.
Posted by Rob Mahoney on May 12, 2010 under The Grapevine |
- The Nets’ honeymoon with Devin Harris is long since over, and they could be looking to trade him in anticipation of nabbing the #1 overall pick in the draft. This is more of an indication of John Wall’s value than it is Devin’s, but it’s interesting to see the way things have turned since the trade in 2008.
- Brendan Haywood, on the difference in professionalism between Dallas and Washington (via Dan Steinberg of D.C. Sports Bog): “Um, yeah, it was very obvious. It was very obvious. They had established the way things were done around there, and you were forced to basically adhere to a certain standard. We came from D.C., and that wasn’t always enforced. In Dallas, it was something totally different, and we liked it. Just look at the structure, how things were done, the no-nonsense attitude and just how everybody got along and the family atmosphere. There was no agendas. That was something totally different for us.”
- Fun times with Mark Cuban, Ross Perot Jr., and law suits. As is usually the case with the off-court issues, I’m staying away from this one.
- Dirk talks about Germany and the World Cup (via Tas Melas).
- The French national team has some interest in Rodrigue Beaubois. It’s no secret that Mark Cuban isn’t fond of Dirk risking his health playing for the German team over the summer, and should Beaubois become the long-time Mav many want him to be, he’ll give Cuban headaches for another decade or so if he decides to play for France.
- Late linking these, but so, so worth it: Trey Kerby of Ball Don’t Lie presents the Most Bloggable NBA Photos. Mav appearances at #14, #9, #6 (former), and #2. Make sure to check out all of the selections though. Priceless.
- The Texas Legends are hosting a few promo events in Carrollton and Plano, for those in the burbs.
- Shaquille O’Neal to Chris Ballard of Sports Illustrated: “‘I still don’t know how we won that championship [in 2006]. F—— partied every night in Miami.’”
- I respect Eddie Sefko’s wondering aloud whether or not the Mavs helped to end the Spurs’ playoff run, but I just don’t see it. I saw a San Antonio team that struggled to cover the Suns and couldn’t quite compensate for the pressure on Manu Ginobili, and that has nothing to do with the Mavs. It’s all on the Spurs for their inability to execute, and the Suns for playing a terrific, terrific series.
- ADDED: Mike Prada of Bullets Forever reviews Quinton Ross’ season as a Wizard, a personal favorite of mine whose jersey will undoubtedly hang in the AAC rafters someday.