I offered up some thoughts about Dirk on Twitter yesterday, and decided the subject warrants more attention.

I have ALWAYS said that Dirk is a bad cornerstone for the team. He’s not a bad person. He’s a top 5 scorer in the league. But he creates more problems than he solves. That, my friends, is the issue. Donnie Nelson and Mark Cuban have been blinded to the truth because they’ve been so enamored with Dirk’s elite scoring status. But success is a team sport. And Dirk makes a team vulnerable.

Let’s take a look at some of the vulnerabilities Dirk creates:

1. Dirk Cannot Play Defense

Not even a little bit. Dirk is a scoring rebounder. That’s it. He doesn’t block shots. He doesn’t steal the ball. He doesn’t put pressure on the offense player forcing him to pass out. He’s got nothing. It’s not necessarily an issue of skill. It’s more an issue of effort. Dirk doesn’t give any. His lack of defensive effort makes it difficult to position him on the court.

2. Where Do You Play Dirk?

Is Dirk a 3, 4, or 5? He’s 7′ tall, people! Seven feet tall! But he has never played physical basketball, so posting up down low isn’t an option unless he were to shoot the fade away closer to the basket. He doesn’t drive to hole much these days, which makes him a sorry power forward. In truth, Dirk is a 2/3 shooting guard. That’s the position he plays on offense.

But in the NBA, you don’t always position a player by what they play on offense, but rather who they can defend on defense. And Dirk is definitely no match for the quickness, speed, and agility of a 6’6″ shooting guard. He can’t put a decent body on a center and he can’t bruise it out with a power forward. In other words, Dirk is practically useless on defense. You have to make up for his lack with your other four players. And you do so because he can put up 25-40 points and 7-12 rebounds on any given night.

3. Jason Kidd and Jason Terry

In a phone interview with 1310AM The Ticket yesterday, Donnie Nelso said they could “hide” Jason Kidd on defense by having him cover the 2 or 3 position on defense. While it’s true that Kidd has had some success against those positions, it opens up a bigger question: who is going to cover the point guard? Jason Terry? Hardly. Jason Terry is possibly the worst defender on the team. He’s not going to stop the elite point guards in the league like Chris Paul, Darren Williams, Steve Nash, or Tony Parker. And he definitely can’t keep up with Aaron Brooks or Russell Westbrook. There is no one to cover the point guard.

And God forbid you play Dirk, Kidd, and Terry at the same time. You have no defense against the point guard OR the power forward in that scenario. And that’s the positive view, assuming Kidd puts decent pressure on the shooting guard. And like they said on The Ticket’s morning show, it’s not like the other two players on the court are defensive superstars. Erick Dampier shows up on rare occasions and Josh Howard is spotty at best. Put them all together and you have one of the weakest defensive teams in the NBA. And it all begins with the mismatch caused by Dirk.

So what can the Mavericks do to right the ship? What untried approach would lead to greater success than we’ve seen thus far? I see two basic options:

1. Trade Dirk

2. Play Dirk at the 3 on offense AND defense

Let’s start with trading Dirk. Dirk is a big enough name that the Mavs could easily shop him around and end up with a younger, more aggressive power forward. What you need from a trade(s) involving Dirk is BOTH a shooting guard and a power forward. Dallas has never had a quality power forward during Dirk’s tenure because he wastes the spot on the court, which means fewer offensive rebounds, fewer points in the paint, and a much heavier reliance upon outside shooting (which is how they lose games when it counts).

Chris Bosh’s name has been tossed around a lot this season. Of course, everyone was hoping Dallas would acquire Bosh without giving up Dirk so we’d have a tandem. And that’s great, IF you can make it happen and follow my #2 suggestion. But even a player for player trade looks good when you consider that you get significantly younger (Bosh is 25) and more physical with Bosh.

If you play Bosh or other physical power forward instead of Dirk at the 4, you have more inside presence. You have more defense, more rebounds, and a more well-rounded offense. With Bosh AND Dirk, you move Dirk to the 3 like I suggested earlier and you let your true power forward pound it in on the inside while Dirk embarrasses his opponent from the top of the key.

To play Dirk at the 3 (small forward) position, Dallas would have to make certain concessions. Is Dirk quick enough to cover a 3? No. But name all the 3s in the league who point for point can measure up to Dirk. Exactly. Dirk outscores most any player in the league, making it a positive mismatch even with his lame duck defense. And the crucial point about moving Dirk to the 3 is that it frees up a REAL power forward to come in, provide offensive points and defensive stops. So you lessen the burden on the rest of the team by letting Dirk play the offensive position he already is but putting him on the same player for the other team. You take your lumps from the 3, but you let your 4 pound it out against their 4. And if you’ve picked your 4 wisely, you win that matchup as well.

Assuming the Mavericks have Dirk, Josh, and Bosh. Whether you move Josh or Dirk to the 2, you only have one defensive mismatch there in Dirk, who will outscore his opponent anyway. Now you have a solid nucleus for your team. You still need a point guard and a more dependable center (think Nene). But you can live with a slightly above average point guard if you still have Bass, Hollins, Singleton, and Wright-like players to come in off the bench.

Here’s what it boils down to: the Mavs will likely only make one major position change this off-season (if that). Using Bosh as the example, trade Terry and some contracts for Bosh. Re-sign Jason Kidd to a one year deal while you look for another point guard next season. Start Kidd, Dirk, Howard, Bosh, and Damp. OR you let Kidd go and acquire a decent point guard with excellent defensive skills. Then you start poing guard X, Dirk, Howard, Bosh, and Damp. With that lineup, you only have one mismatch that matters at center. Dirk outscores his opponent in that mismatch. The rest of the team is solid.

Of course, if there is ANY way to dump Damp and bring in another center, you do it. Dampier makes too much money and delivers next to nothing. And THAT, my friends, is how you turn this mess into a potential champion.

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