Posts Tagged ‘Jason Terry’

Is Mark Cuban Really A MFFL?

Friday, January 25th, 2013

by LeRoy McConnell III

 

 

 

 

 

For those who don’t know what “MFFL” means: Mavs Fan For Life.  It was Mark Cuban’s, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, way of saying jump on board and I will take you to the promised land.  Well, I did.  In fact he made me a big believer, as soon as he took over a dismal team that was far from relevancy back in 2000.  He orchestrated a squad, led by future Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki to two NBA Finals, winning one of them back in 2011.  2011 seems like a distant memory now, especially when Mark Cuban did the inevitable.
He dismantled an NBA championship team.  Not since Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls teams in the late ’90s have we seen a such thing.  Instead of challenging for a repeat, he decides to render the services of Tyson Chandler useless.  Chandler, who played one season with the Mavs, is the best center in Dallas Mavericks history.  Cuban had an opportunity to use the amnesty clause on Brendan Haywood in order to keep Chandler, instead he elected to watch Tyson leave for free agency without compensation.  Funny thing about it, he held onto Haywood the year after the championship, only to use the amnesty clause on him during this past offseason.  Other intriguing pieces to the championship were Caron Butler (who was injured but still valuable), J.J. Berea (who was the smallest Maverick but added valuable points off the bench), Deshawn Stevenson (who provided toughness and gritty defense), and Jason Terry (who was the heart and soul, a true Maverick, who walked and talked an NBA championship for the Dallas Mavericks).

Amnesty Clause: The NBA’s next collective bargaining agreement may include some form of “amnesty clause,” allowing teams to eliminate bad player contracts under certain conditions.

Is the sky falling?  MFFL, take a deep breath and ask yourself, “WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOING ON AROUND HERE?”  Has Cuban lost his mind?  YES!  Okay, deep breath taken.  What are you going to do MARK CUBAN?
Mark Cuban has been preaching that the most important thing today is financial flexibility; his plan was to be a central figure in the 2012 trade market.  Since he has owned the team, he has never had flexibility to land free agents because money is always tied up.  The team is getting old and it’s the first time the Mavericks can possibly add a superstar to play alongside Dirk.  “Okay, you have my attention”, intrigued Mavs fan.  On paper, it sounds like a slam dunk.  Grabbing Deron Williams who is from the Dallas area and  somehow luring Dwight Howard.  Now I understand why we would get rid of Tyson, to get Dwight, makes sense to me.  Jason Kidd already said he would sign back because of his relationship with Deron Williams.  The 2012 free agency period was to be an upbeat time for #MAVSNATION, as we were to start the season better than ever.  Only one thing; Cuban didn’t land that big fish, didn’t close the deal on a superstar free agent.

Excuse me, doesn’t Mark Cuban star on the ABC hit show, Shark Tank?  On his show he is an investor looking to capitalize on small business owners’ inventions.  He is pretty savvy and the show demonstrates why he is a shrewd business man.  Is Shark Tank  the reason why Mark Cuban couldn’t land a top free agent this summer?  Marcel Mutoni from Slamonline wrote an article about the top free agent Deron Williams being pursued by the Dallas Mavericks this offseason.

According to Deron Williams, one of the biggest reasons he’s not a Dallas Maverick today, is that Mark Cuban didn’t show up for a meeting.
Cuban was busy taping his TV show “Shark Tank” in California, and sent Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle and GM Donnie Nelson to meet with the free agent superstar point guard.
This did not sit well with D-Will, who felt that his questions about the direction Dallas was taking were left largely unanswered.

Deron Williams fell through and stayed with the Brooklyn Nets.  The Orlando Magic gave Dwight Howard up for a cup of coffee to the LA Lakers.  The Mavericks couldn’t even keep old man Kidd, who bolted to the Knicks to play with former teammate Tyson Chandler.  Flexibility; now that’s funny.  The Dallas Mavericks have all this flexibility in the world and can’t sign a single superstar to play with Dirk.  The only option for the 2012-13 season was to sign journeymen (Elton Brand, Chris Kaman, O.J Mayo, Dahntay Jones, and Darren Collison) to one year contracts.  As a MFFL, I am so ecstatic!  Watching a team with a record of 18-24 each night.  This is what the MFFL had envisioned for our big free agent season.  Just two years removed since the Dallas Mavericks’ fans witnessed their first NBA championship and now their beloved team can’t even compete for the 8th seed in the Western Conference.  So Mr. Cuban, why are you being so brass, and telling the basketball world you are ready to deal for players now?  According to Brad Townsend, a reporter for the Dallasnews.com, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban declared that there was a 100-percent chance that the Mavericks will try to make a trade before the Feb. 21 trade deadline.  Monday, Cuban practically stated his intentions in a Jimmy Johnson-esque three-inch headline, saying,

“We’re letting everybody know the Bank of Cuban’s open.  And if it’s the right deal, we don’t mind taking back money.  But we’re not going to do a trade just to do a trade.  It’s got to be worthwhile.”

Only one problem Mark Cuban… no one wants to come to Dallas.

 

LeRoy McConnell III of “A Fan’s Point of View”, for War Room Sports

 

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LeBron James: Performance Befitting a King?

Monday, June 13th, 2011

By Brandon Pemberton

A dejected LeBron approaches the podium after Game 6 of the NBA Finals

Last night as I watched the Dallas Mavericks win their third straight game and capture the first NBA title in franchise history, I still couldn’t believe how LeBron James wilted under the pressure in the biggest games of the season.  James left the Cleveland Cavaliers to “take his talents” to South Beach and join Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh in what was supposed to be a super power this season and for seasons to come.  I had no real problem with him joining the Heat. He had no shot of winning with the Cavs the way they were constructed and I thought it was big of him to go to a team where he wouldn’t be the sole guy.  It’s a known fact that it was Wade’s team and he had a proven track record of clutch play as he was the finals MVP in 2006. The only problem I had was with the whole “Decision Show”, and the WWE- like celebration the next day, like they had already won something.  He asked for all of the ridicule and verbal thrashing he received because of these things.

Everyone who has followed my sports blog knows that after LeBron’s performance against the Celtics and Bulls en route to the NBA Finals, I finally thought James had ascended to “that level” of a player.  I even went out and said he was now better than Kobe Bryant (http://warroomsports.com/blog/2011/05/12/lebron-scores-10-straight-to-close-out-the-celtics-is-that-clutch-enough-for-you/).
First of all, I would like to apologize to the “Black Mamba” for spewing that blasphemy from my mouth before LeBron even won a single title.  But I really thought I had seen him take it to another level.  He was closing out games down the stretch by hitting killer shots and after watching the way he defended Derrick Rose, I was sold.

But then came the NBA Finals and the unexplainable, passive play of the most physically talented athlete I’ve seen in my life.  It’s just a flat out choke job, no other way for me to explain it.  D-Wade said last night after the game that the phrase “choke job” is used too often in sports, and he might be right in some situations.  But in this case, his homie, his teammate, was a flat no show when the Heat needed him the most.  The Heat had a chance to take control of the series.  They were up by 15 points in the fourth quarter with seven minutes and change to play and coughed up the lead, being outscored 22-5 to end the game.  LeBron scored two points during the fourth period of the game, and didn’t make a single basket during the run Dallas went on to steal Game 2.

In six games, LeBron James scored 18 fourth quarter points.  He seemed to defer to Wade and even to his other teammate when he could have forced the issue.  He just seemed disinterested, passive, and scared to take over the game when he clearly was the most talented player on the court.  Last year in the playoffs, James clearly quit on his team in Games 5 and 6 against the Boston Celtics and I couldn’t believe it.  I can’t say he quit on his team this time around, but he wanted no part in making a difference in the outcome of this series.  Watching him drive and dump the ball off to the likes of Juwan Howard and Joel Anthony instead of taking the shot himself was frustrating to watch.

Scottie Pippen’s (who played with arguably the best basketball player of all time) unmitigated gall to say that LeBron James was (or could be) better than Michael Jordan was irresponsible.  I don’t know what personal vendetta he has with “His Airness”, but you see he later took those words back the next day. The lowest point outcome in an NBA Finals game by Jordan was 22 and I’ve seen him carry the Bulls to a victory and nearly pass out coming off the floor due to the flu. People also want to compare LeBron to Kobe Bryant, who might be the closest thing to MJ we will ever see, but Kobe never disappeared in the fourth quarters of games.  And one thing I can say about Jordan and Kobe, they never loss for lack of effort.  Yes, D-Wade made some costly mistakes in the 4th quarter of last night’s game, but he made those mistakes playing his game and going hard.

The bottom line is this: a player with his talent, the hype, the self-given nickname, the cocky attitude and arrogance, should expect to get ripped the way he is today and will continue to during this off-season and until he wins a title.  And his post-game comments aren’t going to help him either.  His whole “I’m better than you at the end of the day” attitude and the “my life is still better than yours” thing is just going to get him more” haters”.  He acts like the fans are the reason why he was out-played by Jason Terry in a Finals playoff series.  “Prince” James has no one to blame but himself for the lack of testicular fortitude it takes to win a title.  He had more talent than he had in Cleveland and he still couldn’t get the damn job done.  So until he wins a title, don’t dare compare this man to the likes of Jordan, Magic,Bird, Shaq, and Kobe.  He doesn’t deserve it.  You know what LeBron is?  He’s the equivalent of having a 12-inch penis (pause) that doesn’t get erect.  Ok, I’m done with this guy.  I’m looking forward to the NBA Draft and hopefully a full 16-game football season.

Brandon Pemberton of Brandon on Sports, Blogger for War Room Sports

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What Can Dallas Do To Win Game 2 and Tie The Series Up?

Thursday, June 2nd, 2011

By Brandon Pemberton

The Dallas Mavericks lost game one of the Finals on Tuesday and there were plenty of reasons why they did.  The question is: what can they do to avoid going down 2-0 and tie the series up?  Here are a few things I believe they can do to have a chance to win tonight.

1. Rebound the basketball: They were out-rebounded 46-36 in game one and allowed Miami to grab 16 offensive rebounds.  Dallas held the Heat to 39% shooting from the field but they allowed too many extra possessions.  Part of playing defense is securing the rebound and ending the team’s offensive possession.  Tyson Chandler’s four rebound performance is a flat out joke and he needs to play better in the paint.  Dwayne Wade and Lebron James are great rebounders for their positions and the Mavericks’ guards need to commit to rebounding and not leaking out.

2. Better production from the bench: The Mavericks bench scored 17 points in the last game, 12 of them by Jason Terry who didn’t score a point in the 2nd half.  The Heat put Lebron James on Terry and took him right out of the game.  J.J. Berea went 1-8 from the field and had two points and 3 assists in 18 minutes of play.  The Mavericks need better production from him running the second unit against the Heat’s second unit.  The bench averaged 40 points per game during the season and 39 points during the playoffs and they are a big reason the Mavs are even here.

3. Stop Chris Bosh: Lebron and D-Wade are going to get theirs either way you put it, but if Dallas can contain Bosh and hold him under the 19 points and 9 rebounds he had in game one, they will have a way better chance to win.  Bosh had 5 offensive rebounds in game one and Dallas needs to keep him off of the O-boards tonight.

Yes, it’s easier said than done, especially when you have Lebron and Wade taking turns down the stretch making plays.  But hey, Dallas has to win this game tonight or they can chalk it the hell up.

Prediction: Miami is a 4 1/2 point favorite tonight and I like the Heat as a straight up winner tonight over the Mavericks.

Brandon Pemberton of Brandon On Sports, Blogger for War Room Sports

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2011 NBA Finals Preview

Tuesday, May 31st, 2011

By Brandon Pemberton

Well the NBA Finals start on Tuesday night and Lebron James and the Miami Heat will face off against Dirk Nowitzki’s Dallas Mavericks for the NBA title.  I will break down the series from my point of view and give you who I think will win it all.  I know everyone likes the Heat and believes Dallas will be pushovers, but don’t count them out that easily.

Coaching

Miami: Erik Spoelstra came into this season with the heavy task of getting his new players to mesh together offensively while earning their respect. Miami going through early season struggles and learning from them has paid off and he has his team in the NBA Finals.  He is a very good coach, especially defensively and I look forward to seeing what schemes he hatches to stop Dirk Nowitzki.  He has also been quoted as saying Lebron James will see time guarding J.J. Berea when the Mavs go to their small lineup, where they play Dirk at the 5.

Dallas: Rick Carlisle has the Mavericks back in the NBA Finals 5 years after their last appearance, a series in which the Heat defeated them 4-2.  But this is a different team Dallas will put on the court in this series and Carlisle wasn’t the coach then as well.  He has the Mavs playing with discipline, toughness and they now put forth effort on the defensive end of the court as well.  This is clearly the best team Dallas has put on the floor in the time Dirk Nowitzki has played for the franchise and Carlisle is a big reason why.  I’m looking forward to seeing how he defends Lebron James and the Heat, and how he utilizes Dirk offensively.

Advantage: Push

 

Frontcourt

Miami: Lebron James is playing out of his mind right now and he has taken his game to another level by finally deciding to be the lockdown defender we all thought he could be.  His size, strength, speed, and agility is like no other we have seen in the NBA and that allows him to defend multiple positions effectively.  Look for him to check J.J. Berea at times as well as Dirk Nowitzki.  But now that Udonis Haslem is back in the mix and they have Chris Bosh as well, the Heat will try to use them more on Dirk to keep James out of foul trouble.  We know what Lebron brings offensively and that’s a given, but Bosh’s production as the team’s 3rd scorer could be the difference in the series.  He should have an advantage against Nowitzki and should look to be aggressive and get him in foul trouble.  Haslem and Joel Anthony will do the grunge, dirty work on the boards and defensively, and Haslem’s championship experience will be big for the Heat.

Dallas: Dirk Nowitzki is playing the best basketball of his hall of fame career and a championship would put him in the class with the all time greats.  The Mavericks need him to show up and carry this team if they have any chance of beating Miami in a seven game series.  Shawn Marion will most likely draw the assignment of Lebron James and Tyson Chandler’s shot blocking, ability to run the floor, and offensive rebounding will be key for the Mavericks.  Chandler brings a toughness in the paint that Dallas has never had in past seasons.

Advantage: Push

 

Backcourt

Miami: Dwayne Wade is a former NBA Finals MVP (2006) and is a stone killer down the stretch of games.  Yes, Lebron James is the better player, but Wade has a proven track record in the finals.  I expect Wade to play better than he did in the series against the Bulls.  The Heat needs him to play much better than the 18.8 ppg and 40% shooting from the field that he produced against Chicago.  Dallas is a way better team than the Bulls and they have the ability to put up points.  Mike Bibby is the starter at the point and the Heat could use a better shooting performance from him as well.  He will get plenty of open shots and he needs to make better than the 30% of his shots he made last series.

Dallas: Jason Kidd is at the end of his career, but is still a very effective point guard, playing off of guile and smarts as his physical tools aren’t what they used to be.  He sets the table for this team, gets the ball to the right players in the right spots, and has become sort of a dependable shooter from the three-point line as well.  DeShawn Stevenson is a good defender who will spend the majority of his time checking Wade.  He is the Mavericks best bet to slow Wade down if it’s possible.

Advantage: Heat

 

Bench Play

Miami: After getting virtually nothing from their bench during the season, the Heat has gotten some solid contributions off of the pine in the last series.  After missing most of the regular season with a foot injury, Udonis Haslem has brought back the toughness, leadership, rebounding, and hustle the Heat had been missing all season.  Mike Miller has woken up and had a great game four against the Bulls, scoring 12 points and grabbing 9 rebounds as well.  The more production and solid mistake-free minutes they give the Heat off the bench, the better.

Dallas: The Mavericks have firepower coming off the bench and knock-down shooters as well.  Jason Terry is one of the best 6th men the league has seen and can get you 20 plus points off of the bench on any given night.  J.J. Berea is very effective getting into the lane creating for himself and for others.  When Dallas goes to the small lineup with Dirk at the center position, Berea is the key to that lineup working as well as it does.  Peja Stojakovic has been coming off of the bench and hitting open three-point shots for the Mavs on a consistent basis.  Brendan Haywood could start for most teams at center and provides another big active body for Dallas to throw at the Heat.

Advantage: Mavericks

 

My Prediction: When Lebron James decided to join Wade and Bosh in Miami, this is what they envisioned, playing for an NBA title.  They are now four wins away from accomplishing this feat.  Yes, Dirk Nowitzki is balling right now, but I don’t think Dallas has enough star-power to win 4 of 7 against Miami.  People think Miami runs right through Dallas easily, but I don’t.  I like The Heat in 6 games and Lebron James takes home the Finals MVP award.

Brandon Pemberton of “Brandon on Sports”, Blogger for War Room Sports

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Mavericks’ Road Back to NBA Finals Reads Like a Hollywood Script

Thursday, May 26th, 2011

By Jason Parker

Mavericks vs Heat (2006 NBA Finals)

You can’t make this stuff up.  Death Wish, The Crow, Gladiator, Man on Fire, nothing gets a guys’ heart pumping like a good revenge flick.  Could Mavs vs. Heat 2011 join the list of great payback pictures?  

After five years of exile to a barren wasteland, a trio of men returns to avenge the loss of their collective manhood at the hands of the evil NBA Empire.  Sounds like the tagline for a movie, but it’s befitting the scenario that has unfolded in the last forty-eight hours of playoff basketball in The Association.   Make no mistake, Mark Cuban, Dirk Nowitzki, and Jason Terry have been in playoff purgatory for the past five years after being emasculated by the Miami Heat in the 2006 NBA Finals.  For those that have been stranded on a deserted island for half a decade or so, the Mavs were up two games to none over the Heat, and were well on their way to a three-game lead when Dwayne Wade (and maybe an official or two) went out of his mind and carried his team to four consecutive victories to steal the championship.  What followed was a downward spiral of epic proportions: four out of the next five seasons ending in first round flameouts, and the other ending in the second round.  Inevitably, Nowitzki and Terry were painted as good, but soft players that wilted under playoff pressure.   And now here we are, five seasons later, and the Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat (pending the formality of their inevitable close-out win over the Bulls), are preparing to cross swords for the right to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy.  It’s Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd leading their band of role players and refugees from the island of misfit hoopsters against the heavily-favored tropical triumvirate from South Beach.  It’s David vs. Goliath, Rocky vs. Apollo Creed, and Luke Skywalker vs. Darth Vader.   Most of those outside of Florida will be rooting against the Heat after Lebron’s unceremonious dumping of his hometown hoops bride, Cleveland, for better-looking trophy wife, Miami, last off-season.  Thus, we have our hero and our villain that everyone loves to hate.

Darth Vader vs. Luke

 

Rocky Vs. Apollo

You certainly won’t hear Nowitzki or Terry verbally acknowledge their thirst for retribution, but have no doubt, that fire burns within them.  It has forged them into a strong, polished blade with a keen edge that, in all honesty, was lacking in other deep playoff runs.  But will that edge be sharp enough to sever the grip Wade, James, and Bosh already seem to have on the NBA’s greatest prize?  Most will say no, but this Mavericks team has been proving us all wrong throughout the postseason;  first by beating the younger, more athletic Trailblazers in the first round, then sweeping the two-time defending champion Lakers in the second round, and finally by vanquishing the up-and-coming Thunder in five games.  Only time will tell if Dallas’ new-found mettle will prove strong enough to carry them to a championship, but we can all get our popcorn and soda,  and enjoy watching the underdog Mavericks try to defeat the villainous Heat in a good, old fashioned grudge match.  This writer can’t wait to see how the story ends.    

Will the Mavs win the next Trophy?

Jason Parker, Blogger for War Room Sports

Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry

Gladiator

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Mavericks Fans Still Carry Scars From The Past

Wednesday, May 25th, 2011

By Jason Parker

Dallas Mavericks (L-R) Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry, Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion, Tyson Chandler

Like a jilted lover, long-suffering MFFL’s (Mavs Fans For Life) still find it hard to put their trust in this team.  Count this writer, a native “Dallas-ite”, among the jaded.  Despite promising signs of change, the ghosts of the past still haunt those who back the “Boys in Blue”. 

Dirk shoots over LaMarcus Aldridge in Round 1 of the 2011 NBA Playoffs

After a colossal choke job in game four of the first round against Portland had us all thinking, here we go again; the same old Mavericks, Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry – the only holdovers from the 2006 team that spit the bit when a championship was imminent – assured their fans that this Dallas team was made of tougher stuff than those of the past.  This brought about a collective “surrrrre” from all within earshot of this seemingly hollow rhetoric.  We heard similar promises after the number-one-seeded Mavericks suffered a historic first-round flameout against the Warriors in ’07, and again in ’08 after being upset by the Hornets in the opening round of the playoffs.   So when Dallas closed out the Blazers, whom many prognosticators had picked to upset the aptly-named “One-and-Done Boys,” in one of the most difficult arenas to win in as a road team, most saw it as an anomaly. 

Mavs sweep the defending champion Lakers in Round 2

Next up were the two-time defending champion Lakers.  Needless to say, the Mavs were getting longer odds than Buster Douglas had against the indomitable Mike Tyson some twenty years ago.  After Dirk and his band of NBA castoffs (Chandler, Marion, Peja, Stevenson) miraculously left the champ bloodied and broken, scoring what amounts to a first-round knockout, everyone chalked it up to some sudden dysfunction within the Laker locker room.  It certainly couldn’t have been anything the “Two-and-Through-Crew” did to earn the victory. 

The Mavs are on the cusp of another trip to the NBA Finals with a 3-1 series lead over Kevin Durant and his Thunder

Now here we are on the cusp of another trip to the Finals after an improbable five-minute, fifteen-point comeback in probably the second-hardest arena to win in on the road, and the national perception of these Mavericks, who have been known to fold up like a cheap lawn chair in the face of adversity, is slowly beginning to change.  This is evident when you listen to the national media talk about this team and its much-maligned, future hall-of-fame-leader, Dirk Nowitzki.  The “S” word (Soft) is only uttered in the past tense these days.  When discussing the sweet-shooting German, you are more likely to hear “all-time great,” or “man on a mission” than that four-letter epithet.  But let me be frank.  It will take nothing less than a championship to truly change how we as fans view our hometown hoops team.  We’ve been here before.  We all thought this team had turned the corner after vanquishing the Spurs in the loaded Western Conference during the ’06 playoffs; and we all know how that season ended.  So until David Stern begrudgingly hands Mark Cuban the Larry O’Brien trophy, I and every other realistic “MFFL” will stop just short of giving our hearts completely to this team for fear of having it ripped out again.

Will the Mavs fly out of Miami or Chicago as NBA Champions this year?

Jason Parker, Blogger for War Room Sports

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