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Post by DarthVegito on Jan 14, 2014 22:25:19 GMT -6
Good evening everyone! Thanks on advance to all of you who made it out tonight. It's very much appreciated.
So where do we start. This off season has been a tumultuous one indeed. We'll start with our utter disappointment of a postseason. We put together what we thought was one of the most balanced teams in the league. After making the finals two years ago with little to no defense we decided to upgrade that area last year. We did just that with a top 5 defense. It proved to be all futile. Our balance was no match for the one man Kemp show in San Francisco. Much respect to those guys. So there we were, bounced in the first round after making the finals the year before. Disgusted, I searched for our next move. What was the right direction? Should we sell our entire team and go after a super ultra over powered player like the guy who won the western conference. Much respect to those guys of course.
So after weeks and weeks of much deep thought we decided that as our team was aging, we'd make one more run at it. But what was missing? What did we need to do to improve our results? We decided that a defensive center was what we needed. So that was our main priority come free agency. We had one target to fill that need. No other free agent fit what we wanted. So we brought Elden Campbell in and wooed him as much as we possibly could. We think he would eventually become a max player yet we couldn't convince ourselves to give him a max deal. We offered him the largest contract behind the two max offers he received. He's a young guy, he went for the money like most young punks do. But nothing but respect for that guy no doubt.
So we swung and we missed. That was our shot. That's what we felt we needed. What we did know is that we needed some change. So there came the decision to retool, or rebuild, or whatever you would like to call it. We sent Stockton to Chicago for a rookie SG in Anthony Peeler with great potential and a few 1sts. And then sent Grant and Harper to Orlando for a guy whom we've secretly coveted for some time now. And that's Mookie Blaylock. He'll finally get to play the point where he belongs. And we pulled a couple of 1sts from that deal as well. We were able to get Jerry Reynolds during free agency. He'll be starting at the 3. Add the guys we drafted, Popeye and Geiger, and we've already started this rebuild off right.
We're reasonably looking at a two year rebuild plan where we should be contending in two seasons. Now with that being said, that doesn't mean we won't be competitive and push for a playoff spot. I mean...have you seen the talent in the Midwest? Or should I say lack thereof. Let's see, who do we have, Larry "The Legend" Bird...He's like 63 right. Then there's a guy who is in a rock band yet he named the band after..himself...laughable. Then we have my favorite, the GOAT. Mr Michael Jordan, the guy who hasn't sniffed a championship yet. Tons of respect to those guys though.
So with that being said, we are more than happy with our rebuild thus far. We will now open up the floor for some questions.
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Post by Nick Malone 77 on Jan 15, 2014 0:04:19 GMT -6
Nick Melon: Charlotte Observer: with this much change in Dallas and the youth on your squad now, with how young your team is, if your team doesn't happen to catch fire in the first few weeks of the season, is there a thought that with how young this team is that Dallas will compete for a chance at a high lottery pick this season?
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Post by NOLa. on Jan 15, 2014 4:00:38 GMT -6
lmao so much spite. Weird though since Cuban doesn't own the Mavs in 1992.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Jan 15, 2014 8:23:54 GMT -6
Jack Philson here from the L.A. Times. With your wholesale makeover of your team the taboo topic of tanking has come up again. We have seen teams like your own go out and acquire picks and future stars for your best players while we've seen other players sell the farm and not get much in return. With all of the bad teams failing to make a splash in free agency what, in your opinion do you consider tanking?
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Post by DarthVegito on Jan 15, 2014 9:17:05 GMT -6
Nick Melon: Charlotte Observer: with this much change in Dallas and the youth on your squad now, with how young your team is, if your team doesn't happen to catch fire in the first few weeks of the season, is there a thought that with how young this team is that Dallas will compete for a chance at a high lottery pick this season? We would never call it "competing" for a high lottery spot. That would insinuate that we are working towards and want a high lottery pick. Do we have high expectations for this team as currently constructed? No, of course not. We'll very possibly be starting 3 rookies. We have no expectations. But we're hoping we can make a play for the 7-8 seed. We don't think that is far fetched either. The Kings won the west last year. Have you seen the talent on that team!!?? I bet you didn't, because it's not there. It's almost as if Karl Malone ate everyone else's talent. So if that team can make it to the finals we can make it to the playoffs with this squad. Nothing but respect to that team of course. |
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Post by DarthVegito on Jan 15, 2014 9:28:10 GMT -6
Jack Philson here from the L.A. Times. With your wholesale makeover of your team the taboo topic of tanking has come up again. We have seen teams like your own go out and acquire picks and future stars for your best players while we've seen other players sell the farm and not get much in return. With all of the bad teams failing to make a splash in free agency what, in your opinion do you consider tanking? The opinion and views on this will always be all over the place. Do I consider what the Mavericks are doing, tanking? No of course not. We are rebuilding. You give me the perfect formula to rebuild and we'll do it. Fact is there is no formula to rebuilding. If we don't feel like we have a team to contend for a title then we aren't where we want to be. We were on the older side and we took a step backwards last year. After our failure in free agency we decided it was time to start that process. We feel like we got great value for the players we traded. We have a total of six 1st round picks over the next three years. Of course every rebuild needs a little luck but we think were well on our way. Tanking in our opinion is all about effort. Effort is easy to see. If you your team has a few top five draft picks and your still not putting out effort to improve your team, then your tanking. If your losing and your coach isn't changing up the gameplan, then your tanking. If your hoping to get a high lotto pick and striving for it, then your tanking. That's just the opinion of the Dallas front office of course. |
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Post by Conroy on Jan 15, 2014 10:11:37 GMT -6
Sports Guy Bill Simmons here, what are some realistic expectations for the rookies this year? Will all 3 start?
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Post by WigNosy on Jan 15, 2014 14:04:35 GMT -6
It's pretty clear that Public Enemy No. 1 in Dallas is Shawn Kemp after the way he abused the Mavericks in the playoffs last season. You have a lot of big, young bodies with Duane Schnitzius, Matt Geiger, Isaac Austin, and Popeye Jones, but none of them approach Kemp's skill at the moment. Are you hoping that at least one of these guys eventually ups his game to approach Kemp - and if so, who among them do you think has the best chance to do that - or are you hoping that quantity is able to wear down quality?
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PaulyP
Junior Member
Posts: 605 
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Post by PaulyP on Jan 15, 2014 15:02:38 GMT -6
Jon Snow, WSN, just a quick question. You've been very outspoken about the overpowered stars in this league, do you think those teams that rely on one star so heavily bring down the league or does it just increase the parity in the association?
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Post by bowtothebill23 on Jan 15, 2014 15:48:14 GMT -6
Jack Markson, Golden Take. You've been very upfront about expecting a bad team, even if you're actively trying to win. Which teams would it still make you sick to your stomach to lose to despite having a less-talented team than the Stockton-led teams of the past?
Also, Shawn Kemp requests that you "tell him how his ass tastes". He means that will all due respect of course.
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Post by TrayWithAnA on Jan 15, 2014 17:15:42 GMT -6
Lots of rumors circled the league on a big move of Stockton before the draft. Are you pleased with the moves you ultimately made during the draft or do you have a grudge against the teams that failed to hold up their end in trade talks?
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Post by DarthVegito on Jan 15, 2014 17:24:22 GMT -6
Sports Guy Bill Simmons here, what are some realistic expectations for the rookies this year? Will all 3 start? Well the one definite starter will be Peeler. He will be our 2 guard and clock some big minutes. We have big hopes to this young man. I foresee Popeye and Geiger being in and out of the starting lineup in the beginning of the year, just so we can see who excels where. But if they earn it, then they absolutely could see a starting spot most of the year. Peeler is the guy who has the biggest expectations. We know he's a project guy but he has a very strong work ethic, so we have no doubt he'll achieve his maximum potential. The other two rookies were late first round picks, so the pressure won't be there. But, we did get into the first round specifically for these guys. We like their potential and hope they'll at some point be important cogs when making our championship run. |
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Post by DarthVegito on Jan 15, 2014 17:29:20 GMT -6
It's pretty clear that Public Enemy No. 1 in Dallas is Shawn Kemp after the way he abused the Mavericks in the playoffs last season. You have a lot of big, young bodies with Duane Schnitzius, Matt Geiger, Isaac Austin, and Popeye Jones, but none of them approach Kemp's skill at the moment. Are you hoping that at least one of these guys eventually ups his game to approach Kemp - and if so, who among them do you think has the best chance to do that - or are you hoping that quantity is able to wear down quality? Thanks for the question! Although Kemp made us his "bitch" we would never build just to beat one guy. As you said we did bring in lots of bigs in the offseason. The reason being is that if it wasn't Kemp it probably would have been one of the other (OP)bigs. This division and conference is full of dominant bigs and we will no matter what have to find a way to stop them at some point. Now we have Shaq in our division as well. So yes a defensive minded big is definitely an important piece in building this team. Is that guy on this team yet? Probably not. We have a lot of bigs who will be great role players. But before this rebuild is over, trust me we will address that glaring problem. |
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Post by DarthVegito on Jan 15, 2014 17:47:06 GMT -6
Jon Snow, WSN, just a quick question. You've been very outspoken about the overpowered stars in this league, do you think those teams that rely on one star so heavily bring down the league or does it just increase the parity in the association? Thanks for the question Jon. You've asked a question to which the answer may rub some the wrong way. But as you know we're always honest here in Big D. We feel that without a doubt it brings down the league. We are VERY VERY much against the OP players in this league. The owners of the OP players will argue and say that it isn't a problem but we simply do not agree. There is roughly 4-5 OP players in this league. 3 of those are on a whole other level. Am I saying these players should not be great? Of course not. They should be great and the best, BUT they aren't great they are inhuman. 3 out of the 4 teams in the Final Four last season contained an OP player. It's not rocket science. It's very easy to see. Some were quick to say that Stockton was one of those OP players. They were right, he does have some OP ratings. But we will go on record and state that the Dallas Mavericks front office was in fact willing to give John Stockton a special injection which was called "NERF" if and only if the rest of the OP owners would as well. The rest of the franchises vehemently turned this offer down. So here we are Mr. Snow. Does it disgust me to lose in the first round of the playoffs to ONE man. Your damn right it does. BUT it is what it is. We now go forward and deal with the monsters of our past. Those teams haven't won a ship yet, have they? Karma maybe? Sim league Gods not happy? We can all speculate. No need though. We won't worry about what we can't control. We're going to focus on our rebuild and the future in Dallas and that future is going to be a damn bright one! |
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Post by 78 on Jan 15, 2014 21:30:02 GMT -6
What is the state of the Midwest division at this time? Not many big moves were made in FA and quite a few teams still have plenty of roster spots available. Do you feel having an apathetic division can affect the entire league or do you see the division improving in time?
Also, have you thought about incorporating different types of zone/trapping defenses against the OP types?
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Post by IamQuailman on Jan 16, 2014 8:30:52 GMT -6
Your build approach seems very similar to that of the Rockets circa 1991: Start as many rookies and let them learn on the floor basketball. If your fortune follows his and you win the lotto this upcoming draft, do you envision your rebuild to continue over the next couple seasons? Or do you plan to make a splash in a very talented FA pool next offseason, similar to the rebuild being undertaken by the Celtics? What is your rebuild model?
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Post by DarthVegito on Jan 16, 2014 8:54:03 GMT -6
Jack Markson, Golden Take. You've been very upfront about expecting a bad team, even if you're actively trying to win. Which teams would it still make you sick to your stomach to lose to despite having a less-talented team than the Stockton-led teams of the past? Also, Shawn Kemp requests that you "tell him how his ass tastes". He means that will all due respect of course. We'd love to beat all of our rivals in the west, buy we know that probably won't happen. As long as our guys play with passion, heart, and leave all on the floor, we'll be happy. We'll still probably sweep the kings though. Have you seen their team!?? Thanks for the question! Oh and you can tell Kemp to go fuck himself. |
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Post by DarthVegito on Jan 16, 2014 9:09:54 GMT -6
Lots of rumors circled the league on a big move of Stockton before the draft. Are you pleased with the moves you ultimately made during the draft or do you have a grudge against the teams that failed to hold up their end in trade talks? Yes we did have some pretty big blockbuster type trade discussions pre-draft and during the draft. Those fell through, and we went in a different direction. We don't like to look to the past when it comes to personnel moves. Every franchise can look back and say at some point, "damn I wish we'd have not traded that guy" or "wow was that a stupid move". We don't feel that way about any of our moves thus far this season and are happy with where we are. As far as holding grudges go, unless a trade was actually agreed to and then the other party backed out, we wouldn't hold grudges toward any team. And that didn't happen. Some trade talks went further than others and some were almost a done deal but they never got to that point. No harm no foul. Every franchise must always do what they think is in their team's best interest. Thanks for the question! |
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J2
Junior Member
Washington Wizards
Posts: 955
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Post by J2 on Jan 16, 2014 17:23:05 GMT -6
Johnny Junior,The Washington Post, with three questions:
1. What is the focus of this rebuild? Is it going to be focused primarily on smart drafting or savvy free-agency moves?
2. What are you expecting from Mookie this season on a team where he's possibly the only high-level talent on the roster? Do you expect him to shoulder most of the scoring or distribution responsibilities?
3. As an addition to the previous question, who else are you looking at to fill the scoring void, if not Mookie?
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Post by DarthVegito on Jan 16, 2014 17:53:49 GMT -6
What is the state of the Midwest division at this time? Not many big moves were made in FA and quite a few teams still have plenty of roster spots available. Do you feel having an apathetic division can affect the entire league or do you see the division improving in time? Also, have you thought about incorporating different types of zone/trapping defenses against the OP types? Honestly the Midwest is complete shit right now. I've just started a rebuild. Nuggets GM completely missed the entire off-season. Rockets GM has been awful for 2 seasons. Now they have Shaq so hopefully they get some interest and we can get that Texas rivalry going again. Grizzlies have been solid. They'll make the playoffs again. The Wolves had a little run at the beginning of last season and then fell off. They appear to be on the brink of rebuilding as well. The Jazz....well..they're the Jazz. And the Spurs decided to go on vacation instead of sign Free Agents. So yeah the division is pretty piss-poor. But that's good for us. When we're done with the rebuild we expect to dominate the division for a long time. As for as the different types of defenses for those OP guys, we will be testing out different defenses from time to time when we play these guys during the regular season. We don't feel there is any one way to defeat these guys. You can't really. You can only hope to slow them down. And we will find a way to do that, no doubt. |
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Post by DarthVegito on Jan 16, 2014 20:31:42 GMT -6
Your build approach seems very similar to that of the Rockets circa 1991: Start as many rookies and let them learn on the floor basketball. If your fortune follows his and you win the lotto this upcoming draft, do you envision your rebuild to continue over the next couple seasons? Or do you plan to make a splash in a very talented FA pool next offseason, similar to the rebuild being undertaken by the Celtics? What is your rebuild model? First of all, no it won't be like the rockets. I can't promise I'll turn it around in one year completely like the Lakers did but we aren't going to be bad for long. We have no rebuild model. But we plan on building through the draft and free agency. The lottery is just that, a huge chance and we will never rely on chance. We will look at ANYTHING as long as it helps this rebuild. We won't rush the rebuild, we will do it right. But contrary to some teams who are taking 3+ years to rebuild, the Mavs will be back in the playoffs soon of not this year. Like we said, our division is weak. Maybe we'll hang another division banner at the end of the season... |
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Soundwave
Full Member
Toronto Raptors
Winter is coming
Posts: 2,465
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Post by Soundwave on Jan 17, 2014 12:46:19 GMT -6
CLARK KENT, Daily Planet. As one of the teams that had owned an OPP, how difficult was the decision to trade him? It seemed almost like an easy choice for you. Also, how many teams were you in discussions with during trade talks? Do you think you could have gotten more?
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Post by IamQuailman on Jan 20, 2014 12:44:25 GMT -6
AWARDED 5 POINTS! THANKS FOR YOUR CONTRIBUTION!
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Soundwave
Full Member
Toronto Raptors
Winter is coming
Posts: 2,465
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Post by Soundwave on Jan 20, 2014 12:46:58 GMT -6
Clark Kent, Daily Planet:
Sorry to bother you again, but just wanted to get your reaction on the CPU projecting you to have the league's worst record.
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credit loco for photoshop
