Dallas Pro Sports

Call it an upgrade. Call it a decent move. Call it whatever you want. Dallas waived DJ Mbenga in anticipation of resigning the recently waived Juwan Howard.

Howard has already played for the Mavs during two seasons, and is familiar with the overall approach of Avery Johnson.

Mbenga was always a project player, with a couple more years of development needed. He won’t be sorely missed, despite how nice a guy he seemed. Juwan is a good move, provided that Dallas continues to utilize Brandon Bass in the regular season.

I don’t know all the particulars here, but my only question is this: if Juan Howard is so great, why did we let him go in the first place? If it wasn’t some screwy contract deal, it makes no sense. Is he suddenly better than he was five years ago in his prime?

Sure, it was probably a safe move. Juwan Howard IS an upgrade from Mbenga. But just about ANY trade or free agency move outside of Kobe Bryant is just fluff. Some of you hardcore sports fans will argue that this makes more sense to win. Maybe. But I don’t just want to win. Call it whatever you want. I want to be entertained. Sports aren’t worth watching just because someone wins. Someone ALWAYS wins. But who wins with style? Who makes it worth seeing?

One answer: Dirk and Kobe.

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There is a lot of speculation that James Posey, PJ Brown, and Chris Webber are all possible candidates to be role players for the Dallas Mavericks. Although I don’t agree with the thought process, as a Mavericks fan, there is nothing else to do except hope for the best.

It’s obvious the Mavs are ripping a couple of pages out of the Spurs, Lakers , and Heat off season strategy – surround the core with some experienced playoff-proven players and hope they gel as a team. I still believe the way to go is to get a big two guard who can get 12-16 points a game, a couple of steals and boards, and make some hustle plays.

The guys that are available aren’t really Mavs material. In other words, too thuggish for the vision Avery is trying to instill into his players on and off the court. Probably the biggest factor why you will not see Ron Artest or Ruben Patterson in a Mavs uniform. This fad in signing ex-allstars to be bench players has not necessarily proven to be a successful strategy.

For example, Chris Webber and Michael Finley – both considered NBA top 20 players once upon a time. Both were all-stars in their own right. Both were the center of their offenses. This worked for Finley who signed with the Spurs a couple of years ago for the mid level exception, but did not work for Webber who signed with the Pistons last year for the veterans minimum.

Obviously, its not about the money for these guys. They make the decision for a chance at the title. The whole idea to me seems cheap and underhanded. Luckily, this is all a gamble for these NBA vets. It’s hit or miss. Ask Karl Malone.

The Mavericks coaching and management vision is clouded by the hype of thinking that signing the old all-stars will put them over the hump. This is the solution the Spurs did – it must work. Miami also did it. They must know what they are doing.

Primarily, it worked for them because their core is better than the core of the Mavericks. Take San Antonio: Duncan vs Nowitzki – Harris vs Parker – Howard vs Ginobli. Fundamentally, the Spurs would be better in at least 2 of the three positions; So, yeah, add some vets. It does work for the Spurs. I just don’t think it works effectively for the Mavs.

Across the board, the Mavs are better than most teams in the NBA. It is those five or six teams that on any given night or any given playoff series could be lights out for the Mavs because they camouflage the Mavs roster with a big name free agent who used to be all-star instead of addressing the problem with a younger, more permanent solution.

Although Donnie Nelson is the President of basketball operations, the decisions for player personnel is ultimately Avery’s. If he keeps operating in this manner, it will lead to his coaching demise. If they win a lot of games and get bounced again in the first round, Mark Cuban won’t be happy and Avery will be in the hot seat. These are the teams the Mavs will have trouble with this upcoming season.

San Antonio – coaching experience – Spurs point guard play is better. Duncan and Nowitzki – really depends on the night but I think Duncan still has the upper hand. Howard has to play well these games.
Phoenix – The Suns play at the pace they want which is fast – better point guard play. So if they are hot, look out! Their downfall is defense and bench depth.
Miami – coaching – Shooting guard production is drastically better on both sides of the ball than the Mavs. Center play – if they are healthy they will be a problem for the Mavs.
Boston – Shooting guard play will be better than the Mavs. Small forward will be more offensively productive than the Mavs. Garnett will probably be better than Dirk on his new team, but a good matchup.
Houston - Shooting guard play will be better than the Mavs if it’s Bonzi Wells, T-Mac or Bob Sura. They are deep at the point w/ Steve Francis, Mike James and Rafer Alston. Shane Batier is solid on both sides of the ball, and you will get better offensive center production with the Rockets.
Denver – They have a year and training camp to gel. They can match up well with the Mavs. They could be a dangerous team for the Mavs with AI, Melo, and K-mart.

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It’s a question worth asking. While Randy Galloway obviously won’t get his preferred player in the “thugged out” Zach Randolph, it seems the rumor mill puts the Mavs in reach of only two players: Chris Webber and Steve Francis.

As mentioned previously, both players would probably be a huge mistake for this Maverick team. We’ve maintained a certain teamwork mentality that these “superstars” certainly wouldn’t recognize.

Webber would be the lesser of two evils. Of the two players, he is likely to be the more impressionable, and consequently might have some teamwork attitude rub off on him.

Steve Francis is a lost cause. Houston seriously lucked out when they traded Francis away and got Tracy McGrady instead. This is proven true by the fact that McGrady is still with Houston, while Francis is floating out in limbo. He is a man without a team, which is fitting when you consider his showboat mentality.

Could we use players of their caliber? Sure, although I’d still sell both Francis and Webber down the river for a chance at Kevin Garnett.

But what move will Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and GM Donnie Nelson make, if any? Time will tell. Keep your fingers crossed.

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Now that Portland has bought out Steve Francis’ contract, the question remains: where will he play? And a better question: should the Mavs pursue him? The Pig Pen seems to think he’s worth another look, although they point out the obvious problem in that Francis is a near carbon copy of Jason Terry. Do we really need another Jason Terry?

The obvious answer, in case you couldn’t decide, is definitely NO. The Mavs don’t need his skill set. They don’t need his attitude. He brings nothing to the table that the Mavs don’t already have. Think power forward. Think offensive rebounds. Enough of this perimeter-only offense. Find a balance.

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