Team Preview #10: Dallas Mavericks

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 18:40:38 -0500

LAST SEASON After winning 67 games in '06-07 and getting knocked off by the Warriors in the 1st round of the Playoffs, the Mavericks won 51 games in '07-08 and got bounced in Round 1 by New Orleans. Dallas had a very slow pace factor under Avery Johnson (22nd in '07-08, 28th in '06-07, 26th in '05-06), so it's reasonable to expect more points per game under new coach Rick Carlisle. OFFSEASON MOVES Key Additions: Rick Carlisle, DeSagana Diop, Shan Foster, Gerald Green, James Singleton Key Losses: Avery Johnson, Devean George, Juwan Howard, Jamaal Magloire Avery Johnson compiled an impressive 194-70 regular season record (.735) as Dallas' head coach, but his teams were just 23-24 in the Playoffs. So out he goes, and in comes the '01-02 Coach of the Year Rick Carlisle. Diop has returned to Dallas after a brief layover in New Jersey, and they've decided to gamble on the athletic Gerald Green to replace Devean George at small forward. The Mavericks also drafted high-scoring swingman Shan Foster as the heir apparent to Jerry Stackhouse. In perhaps the quietest free agent signing of the summer, Dallas gave former Clipper James Singleton a guaranteed contract. I really like this pickup, because Dallas needs a defensive scrapper. ROTATION / PLAYING TIME At point guard, Jason Kidd played 34.9 minutes for Dallas and should see 34-35 minutes of action once again. In the past, they've been reluctant to give Jose Juan Barea consistent backup minutes, but after re-signing him to a two-year, $4.8 million contract, perhaps they're ready to give him 12-14 mpg this season. If not, Jason Terry can slide over and play point, but he'll spend most of his 30-32 mpg at shooting guard. Despite making two bone-headed mistakes in a little over three months, Josh Howard is still their starting small forward. The guy is a serious talent, but he's already 28 years old and needs to grow up before his career passes him by like a Pharcyde song. At the backup swingman spots, there will be a dogfight for minutes between Jerry Stackhouse, Eddie Jones, Antoine Wright, Shan Foster, James Singleton, and Gerald Green. None should have any fantasy value unless there's an injury. At power forward, Dirk should play 36 mpg once again while Brandon Bass gets his backup minutes plus a little extra PT at center. I'm projecting 24 minutes for Dampier and 16 minutes for Diop, which means limited value for both 7-footers. DON'T SLEEP ON: Dirk Nowitzki The arrival of Kidd immediately took pressure off of Dirk, as the veteran PG became Dallas' leader and made things much easier for the 7-foot German. With Jason in the lineup, Dirk averaged 25.5 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists, .7 steals, .8 blocks, and 1.6 threes while shooting 50% FG and 89% FT. His rebounds and assists were down, but the increases in points, threes, and FG% more than made up for it. From '99-'06, Nowitzki was a lock for 1.3-1.9 made threes per game, which was a huge boost for his fantasy value. But in '06-07, he made just .9 per game and was only making .8 per game before Kidd's arrival. If Dirk falls to #7 or later, I wouldn't hesitate to draft him, as he could easily be a Top 5 player this season. BE CAREFUL OF: Erick Dampier If the astute fantasy owner realizes Dirk's 2nd half increases with Kidd in the lineup, they may also recognize Dampier's improved statistics as well. After the All-Star break, Dampier was rock solid (by his standards at least), averaging 26.8 minutes, 7 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks while making an impressive 65.9% of his shots. Those are very respectable numbers for a #2 center. Of course, the main reason for his increased production was his increase in playing time, which he received because DeSagana Diop was traded to New Jersey in the Kidd trade. But after the season ended, Diop decided to return to Dallas, meaning Dampier's style will be cramped once again. If someone is looking at Damp's post All-Star numbers they might draft him in Rounds 10 or 11, but if you ask me, he's worth nothing more than a last Round pick. ROUND BY ROUND TARGETS (Where you should draft these guys in an 8-cat Roto league with 12 teams and 14 man rosters) Click on the link to find out!

Least Appealing Bulls Guard Drawing Interest?

Sat, 02 Aug 2008 01:06:28 -0500

A Daily Babble Production So appears to be the case. The rumors have been coming for a while about possible changes in scenery for Kirk Hinrich and Ben Gordon, but the Bulls may in fact be receiving suitors for a third member of their back-court, and he is easily the least desirable one to have in town. The Daily Herald's Mike McGraw reports (http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=224618) that the Bulls have discovered interest in Larry Hughes. Given that Hughes is scheduled to make more than $26 million over the next two seasons, any deal involving him would likely involve Chicago receiving another team's big contract in return. In that vein, McGraw names Portland (Joel Przybilla), New York (Jared Jeffries), Dallas (Erick Dampier) and Denver (Kenyon Martin) as some of the potential trading partners for the Bulls. While our-trash-for-your-trash deals aren't geared to be all that wonderful for either side, that the Bulls are even drawing inquiries for Hughes remains stunning to me. Managing to move this guy, particularly for an interior player (even if that interior player is overpaid and underproductive) could be a coup for Hicag. Read More.. (index.php?option=com_content task=view id=3713 Itemid=260)All of Steve's daily posts can be found in the CelticsBlog: NBA...

Rumors and Free Agent Updates - Yao is Worried Edition

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 09:05:46 -0500

It's the dog days of summer for Celtics fans. Too early to think about training camp and nothing is going on with the team. There were no new basketball articles in the Globe and the Herald just had one about Deng's new contract and Artest's trade. I still think Danny has something up his sleeve. We get little tidbits like Boston offered a sign and trade for Delonte but nothing definite. Makes you wonder who Danny was including in the trade from the Celtics. Personally I think the Cavs need a glue guy like Scal. It seems like a long time till training camp. The schedule is due out next week and that may give us something to talk about for awhile. There will be the Olympics and speaking of the Olympics, the Celtics 2nd round draft pick didn't look too bad on the Turkish national team against team USA. We can look forward to seeing him with the Celtics in a year or two. Another observation: D Wade is one of those players who just doesn't look right bald. NBA front-office sources are reporting that the Lakers were very disappointed not to land Artest. But, L.A. was reluctant to part with Lamar Odom and were even more reluctant to take Kenny Thomas along with Artest. Sacramento ultimately relented on its insistence that any team acquiring Artest take Kenny Thomas, as well, dropping that condition and agreeing to Houston's offer because the Kings are essentially coming away with two first-round picks for Artest. Artest for his part is thrilled to be rejoining Rick Adelman who was his coach when he first arriced in Sacramento. Yao is a bit concerned about the Rockets' new acquisition and had this to say about it: "We worry about the new attitude to the team. We are adding talent to the team and we need that, but building team chemistry is important. This is not bad. I don't mean he is not welcome to Houston. But a new player always needs some time. "Also, he was the biggest part of a team in Sacramento. He was a star player. We need more chemistry and more communication." "There's worry. Obviously, yes," said Yao. "We will think about it, of course. Hopefully, he's not fighting anymore and going after a guy in the stands. I'd say that Yao has good reason to be concerned. Artest has caused problems everywhere he has gone, both on and off the court. He has been charged with domestic abuse and animal cruelty. He has charged into the stands and attacked a fan. He has decided to take time off from playing to promote his rap CD. And, he has caused chemistry problems in both Indiana and Sacramento. However, he did seem to behave when he was playing for Rick Adelman so maybe Yao can relax a little, hopeful of his coach's ability to control the loose cannon that is Ron Artest. The Bulls finalized a six-year, $71 million contract with Luol Deng on Wednesday and the new deal includes incentives that could increase the total value to $80 million. With new contract in hand, Deng is scheduled to leave for the European Championships, where he will play for the British team. The Bulls remain far apart in negotiations with Ben Gordon. Gordon's agent has told the Bulls that Gordon should be the highest-paid player on the team because he has led the team in scoring each of the last three seasons. Deng got the big contract in spite of his declining from 18.8 points per game to 17 in an injury plagued season last year. The Bulls aren't expected to guarantee up to $80 million over a maximum six years for Gordon, so if negotiations continue to stall, the sides might pursue a sign-and-trade deal. Gordon would have to approve such a move. Gordon also has strongly considered signing the team's qualifying offer of $6.4 million for next season, after which he would be an unrestricted free agent. Along with signing Deng and negotiating with Gordon, the Bulls have been busy pursuing trades as well. They were very interested in trying to acquire Nenad Krstic before he decided to go to Europe. They have also had discussions with Sacramento about center Brad Miller according to a league source. Reportedly, the Bulls are offering Nocioni as trade bait. The Bulls also had some interest from teams wanting guard Larry Hughes, as long as they're willing to take a big contract back in return. Since the Bulls need to thin out their backcourt rumors are that the possibilities include Joel Przybilla, Jared Jeffries, Erick Dampier or Kenyon Martin. The Denver Nuggets announced on Wednesday that they have signed Dahntay Jones to a contract. Jones was a former first-round pick by the Boston Celtics in 2003. He was sent to the Grizzlies in the trade that brought Marcus Banks and Kendrick Perkins to the Celtics and he played his first three seasons in the NBA with the Memphis Grizzlies. The Clippers have been making news by signing players and losing players and now they have waived one. On Wednesday, the Clippers announced that they had waived 6'9" forward Josh Powell. Powell averaged 5.5 PPG, 5.20 RPG and 0.7 APG in 19 mpg last season. The Clippers got a real deal when they signed Ricky Davis for $2.3 million a year. I really like Ricky and hope he can finally shake off all the negativity that has in most cases followed him. The Clippers are also trying to re-sign free agent point guard Shaun Livingston. He is an intriguing prospect. If he can stay healthy he could be something very special. Former Cavs guard J.R. Bremer is the latest NBA player to jump to Europe. Bremer has signed a two-year, $5 million deal with Moscow Dynamo Triumph. He will join former New Jersey center Nenad Krstic on the Triumph roster. Krstic signed a two-year deal worth $3 million euros (about $9 million U.S., when figuring in taxes). There have been rumors from the Suns that both Boris Diaw and Leandro Barbosa are on the trading block. The Cavs have been rumored to be interested in Barbosa but now, an NBA source said the Suns may not be making him available after all. However, the source said that Boris Diaw might be available to be traded. The Suns are still looking for a point guard to back up Steve Nash. They have to keep going back to the 2007 draft and kicking themselves for giving away Rajon Rondo to the Celtics. The Lakers have confirmed that they have invited Robert "Tractor" Traylor in for a private workout to be conducted Thursday. Traylor has not played in the NBA since the 2004-2005 season, when he averaged 5.5 points and 4.5 rebounds in 74 games with the Cavs. If the workout goes well, Traylor likely would be signed to a non-guaranteed contract and invited to training camp. Traylor was the 6th pick in the 1998 draft and has never come close to fulfilling the expectations for him. He has the distinction of having been picked before both Dirk Nowitzki and Paul Pierce and we all know how both of those players worked out.

History Repeats Itself: Golden State Warriors Love to Let Good Players Go.....

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 22:53:30 -0500

I dont know what it is with the Golden State Warriors. It seems every time they have a pretty decent team all the good players leave either through horrible managment, personal interest or in some cases conflicts. Im going to list Players that Golden State has gotten rid of in the past couple of decades and what not, to show that Golden State likes to get rid of good players... Starting with 1) Mitch Richmond 2) Tim Hardaway- was he fun to watch or what 3) Rony Seikaly 4) Chris Webber 5) Joe Smith 6) John Starks 7) Latrell Sprewell- supposedly is coming back to Golden State (no i actually dreamed of that last night, pretty homo) 8) Gilbert Arenas-Buttbuddy of Antwan 9) Antwan Jamison-BUttbutddy of Gilbert 10) Jason Richardson- 11) Baron Davis Other notables and primarily big men they got rid of where Erick Dampier, Danny Fortson, Manute Bol, Tom Gugliotta Donyell Marshall, Crowd favortie Earl Boykins, Speedy Clak Clak Clak Claxton.... With regards to the notables: I dont believe they are all good, Im just saying they did have big bodies back in the day and probably why Warriors been playing small ball lately. But Fortson and Dampier were pretty solid as much as I hate to say it back in early 2000's now Dampier is soft like Diapers and Fortson is pretty solid backup. If their are more feel free to say:::Its just sad how Baron left womp womp.

The All-NBA Most Untradeable Team

Fri, 06 Jun 2008 16:43:13 -0500

Who are the most untradeable players in the NBA?

Top 30 NBA Centers

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 13:15:50 -0500

When it comes down to the best center in the NBA, there's no question that Dwight Howard is #1, with Yao Ming finishing second. Howard's averaging a 22 PPG and 18.2 RPG and 3.8 BPG in the playoffs, numbers that haven't been seen since Wilt Chamberlain. The other 4 positions will be posted over the week. Player (Current Team/Former Team) PPG, RPG, APG, SPG, BPG * = Best in Category (R) = Rookie Blocks 1.5+ Shown Blocks and Steals Shown if both are 1+ 1. Dwight Howard (ORL) 20.7, 14.2*, 1.3, 2.2 BPG 59.9% FG 2. Yao Ming (HOU) 22*, 10.8, 2.3, 2 BPG 3. Pau Gasol (LAL/MEM) 18.9, 8.4, 3.2, 1, 1.5, 58.9% FG (LAL) 4. Al Jefferson (MIN) 21, 11.1, 1.4, 1.5 BPG 5. Chris Kaman (LAC) 15.7, 12.7, 1.9, 2.8 BPG 6. Marcus Camby (DEN) 9.1, 13.1, 3.3, 1.1 , 3.6* 7. Andrew Bogut (MIL) 14.3, 9.8, 2.6, 1.7 BPG 8. Andrew Bynum 13.1, 10.2, 1.7, 2.1 BPG, 63.6% FG (35 games) 9. Zydrunas Ilgauskas (CLE) 14.1, 9.3, 1.4, 1.6 BPG 10. Tyson Chandler (NOH) 11.8, 11.7, 0.2 11. Samuel Dalembert (PHI) 10.5, 10.4, 0.5, 2.3 BPG 12. Brad Miller (SAC) 13.4, 9.5, 3.7*, 1, 1 13. Shaquille O'Neal (PHX/MIA) 13.6, 9.1, 1.7, 59.3% FG (Season) 14. Andris Biedrins (GSW) 10.5, 9.8, 1 15. (R) Al Horford (ATL) 10.2, 9.6, 1.5 16. Rasheed Wallace (DET) 12.7, 6.6, 1.8, 1.2, 1.7 17. Mehmet Okur (UTA) 14.5, 7.7, 2 18. Brendan Haywood (WAS) 10.6, 7.2, 0.9, 1.7 BPG 19. Troy Murphy (IND) 12.2, 7.2, 2.2 20. Kendrick Perkins (BOS) 7, 6.1, 1.1, 1.5 BPG, 61.6% FG* (Season) 21. Eddy Curry (NYK) 13.7, 4.2, 0.5 22. Josh Boone (NJN) 8.2, 7.3, 0.8 23. Andrea Bargnani (TOR) 10.2, 3.7, 1.1 24. Nazr Mohammed (CHA/DET) 7.6, 6, 0.9, 61.7% FG (CHA) 25. Darko Milicic (MEM) 7.2, 6.1, 0.8, 1.6 BPG 26. Erick Dampier (DAL) 6.1, 7.5, 0.9, 1.5 BPG 27. Joel Przybilla (POR) 4.8, 8.4, 0.4 28. (R) Joakim Noah (CHI) 6.1, 5.6, 1.1 29. Fabricio Oberto (SAS) 4.6, 5.2, 1.2, 60.8% FG 30. Mark Blount (MIA/MIN) 8.4, 3.8, 0.6 31. Johan Petro (SEA) 6, 5.1, 0.4

Fantasy Basketball Playoff Adds & Hired Guns - Quarterfinals Weekend

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 12:38:51 -0500

In the spirit of FSE's comprehensive Fantasy Basketball Playoff Cram Session piece, we introduce the Playoff Adds & Hired Guns series. Every Sunday and Friday the rest of the way, we will highlight the best long-term add options to use during your playoff run as well as some hired guns that can get you key crunch time stats.

Pickup of the Night: March 25

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 00:49:41 -0500

For tonight's pickup of the night, I put together a quick podcast with 5 potential pickups and 2 suggested drops for your fantasy team as we reach the midway point of Week 22. Some of the players that I discuss in the podcast are: * Jerry Stackhouse * Erick Dampier * Cuttino Mobley * Joakim Noah * Kirk Hinrich * Jared Dudley * Matt Caroll

Erick Dampier drops his skivvies

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 21:16:03 -0500

Seriously, locker rooms are overrated. Download: http://www.sendspace.com/file/p81d4u

Important Fantasy Lines: March 12

Thu, 13 Mar 2008 16:53:43 -0500

If each night one had the time, energy and will to look through every NBA stat line, one might be very successful at fantasy basketball. One would be able to pick up emerging studs, drop eventual duds and monitor those ify suds. Unfortunately, a manager rarely has the time to do this, but here at Fantasy Basketball Pros we care about you, so we look through all the lines and tell you in summary form what you really need to know. Here are the most telling fantasy lines from Wednesday.

Yardbarker: Erick Dampier

The 1990's Golden State Warriors: I challenge you to find a bigger waste of talent

Fantasy NBA Draft Kit: Dallas Mavericks Team Preview

Narratives (NBA Stadium Blog Day)