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| Mark Cuban: Just living the dream. |
2009-10 Record: 55-27
Additions: Tyson Chandler (Trade), Alexis Ajinca (Trade), Dominique Jones (Draft), Ian Mahinimi (FA), Brian Cardinal (FA), Steve Novak (FA)
Subtractions: Erick Dampier, Matt Carroll, Eduardo Najera, Tim Thomas
The Mavericks are a good team. They're always a good team it seems. Other than the Spurs, its hard to find a team that has been so consistently good over the last decade. Even the Lakers had an off-year or two. The combination of Dirk Nowitzki and Mark Cuban have kept the Mavs respectable for a long time, especially during the regular season. But each year in the playoffs they somehow manage to screw it up. Can they reverse the trend this year?
Dirk Nowitzki is still great, coming off a career shooting year, but his overall production seems to be slipping. Ever since his MVP year, his PER, while still being good, has been dropping. He's definitely on the downside of his career, and probably not capable of carrying a team by himself anymore. Luckily the Mavericks have quite a bit of depth, even if that depth itself is growing old as well.
Jason Kidd is still going strong as a floor general and three point shooter, but he's become increasingly worse as a defender. Shawn Marion, whilst still being a rather good defender, has seen his athletic abilities deteriorate after various injuries, and his offensive game and rebounding ability have really suffered. Jason Terry experienced a bit of a dropoff last year after winning the 6th man award the previous season.
Still, the Mavs, like the Spurs, have had an infusion of youth as of late that could carry their title hopes along. Rodrigue Beaubois was a breath of fresh air last year, emerging as one of the most potent scorers on the roster. Hopefully Rick Carlisle will see fit to grant him more time this year when he comes back from a foot injury he suffered during the summer. Caron Butler isn't exactly young, but he's an All-Star swingman in his prime, and although he was especially disappointing in the playoffs, a full year in the system will benefit him. The hope is that he can take some of the scoring load off of Dirk. Dominique Jones is going to be a solid rookie as well, and he had a great summer league and preseason. Playing time will also be a question with him, as it always is with rookies and Carlisle.
The Mavs also increased their size and athleticism in the frontcourt this summer. They got rid of some dead weight in acquiring Tyson Chandler (who could help a lot defensively if he manages to be healthy), and also a young center with potential in Alexis Ajinca. Charlotte didn't really have time to wait for Ajinca to develop, but Dallas does, and he's in the right type of environment. The Mavs also acquired Ian Mahinimi, an underrated signing in my opinion. He's like Serge Ibaka with an offensive game, and he's spent the last couple years dominating the D-League and hanging around with Tim Duncan. Hopefully he gets his chance to shine in Dallas.
This team is deep, and the vets, while old, are still really good. I wouldn't be surprised at all to see Dallas end up with the best regular season record in the West, especially if the Lakers decide to save Kobe/Bynum for the playoffs. But its the playoffs where this team ends up faltering time and time again, and I can't help but shake the feeling that Mavericks fans will be disappointed once more.
Projected Win Range: 53-57
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