Official Dallas Mavericks Offseason Speculation Thread

[fitzgerald]

I worry that Dirk might be getting Brad Lidged this series. Don't know if he'll ever be the same if the Mavs lose. That's why it may be time to sell high and trade him while he still holds superstar value.

Got to do it. If you wait too long then you will not get superstar value in return. Cuban has to to do it now. If we keep this same team next year, why should Mav fans follow them? Nothing will change. They will win many games in regular season and fail in clutch again. They have to get a superstar with a stronger no quit at ude.

[Mr. Body]

Late in the game last night, I was thinking getting Dirk a jumpshot was among the best options for the Golden State defense. There was just no way those were going down.

[monosylab1k]

the DUMP DIRK! campaign has officially kicked off....it won't gain steam until this team starts packing for vacation at around 8:30 Tuesday night, but DUMP DIRK! has started and it's time for MAVS FANS to unite and DEMAND that KEVIN GARNETT come into town to replace the German Pussy.

[mardigan]

Trade Dirk for the 2nd pick. Pick up Durant, then rule the West with a burnt orange fist for 10-12 years

[monosylab1k]

Trade Dirk for the 2nd pick. Pick up Durant, then rule the West with a burnt orange fist for 10-12 years

I'd do that in a heartbeat but I just don't think Dirk has enough value to trade him for Durant. I think Dirk for KG is alot more realistic, although after this abortion of a series, Dirk may not even have enough value to get that deal done.

[jrod1986]

What I don't get about Dirk is I saw him do an awesome spin move in the 3rd quarter-- in the post--(forget who was guarding him) but anyways he just laid it right in. It was the first real post move I've seen Dirk pull of in a long time. And when it was a one point game I kept wondering why Dirk didn't demand the ball and just...score.

Ah well, I still think the Mavs have a great shot in this series if they'll just relax and play like they did 67 times this year.

[monosylab1k]

How about -

Dirk/Harris/1st rounder to Minnesota for Garnett/1st rounder. We can use this 1st rounder to take Mike Conley so that we finally have a true distributor at PG.

re-sign Stackhouse only if he'll take less money to stay here...if bidding gets too high then him.

sign Desmond Mason. re-sign George....he may be sucking now but overall he was a good signing. re-sign Diop. get Buckner the out of here. don't give up so soon on Ager, Pops, and Barea like we give up on every young guy that doesn't play spectacular from day 1. I think Ager, Pops, and Barea have potential to be really solid backups if given the opportunity to play a little more.

PG - Conley
SG - Terry
SF - Howard
PF - Garnett
C - Diop

bench - Mason, Stackhouse, Dampier, George, Ager, Barea, Pops, Mbenga

this is what I'd like to happen anyways. of course if Dirk grows a pair and leads this team out of this hole and on to a le (or at the very least a WCF loss to San Antonio), then I'd consider keeping him because only then would he be showing the heart of a champion.

[Findog]

http://www.hoopshype.com/salaries/dallas.htm

I Know Finley doesn't count against the cap but what about Bradley's dead money? Because if I read this right, Diop is not a FA this summer, like I thought, but we have him through next year. And if we don't count Bradley, our current salary commitments that count against the cap are approximately 57 million.

If you're going to trade Dirk, this is the summer to do it. He's probably peaked, and even with this horrible performance against Golden State, he would instantly make a Leastern team a contender in that conference. His cap figure is only going to get worse while his production starts to decline. Dampier and Terry have pretty bad contracts going forward as well.

If we're going to make minor roster tweaks, we need a low-post back to the basket scoring threat...Zach Randolph without the max money and off-court headcase issues, or a Boozer type, etc. Don't know how we could get Gasol here without paying too much of a price. Otherwise, if we're going to just blow it all up, Dirk, Damp and Terry should go because of their contracts.

[monosylab1k]

according to ESPN, Diop has a team option for next year. Either way, he's gotta be in their future plans. He's got the potential to be alot better than he is right now. He could be the post player we need. He's still young and has decent offensive skills, he just seems to be too scared to use them in a game.

[pad300]

I wouldn't rule out Dirk for KG. I'm not sure the Wolves could do better than that, and I actually think Dirk might be a pretty good fit for that team if they can get a banger/rebounder in the draft.

The problem with Dirk, as much as I like him and as cool a guy as he seems to be, is that he isn't the kind of leader that inspires his teammates.... at least, not these teammates. When I watch the Mavs I get the feeling that his teammates are very reluctantly conceding that this is his team, and I keep waiting for them to just say " it" and decide they can do it better themselves. It's like when you have a boss who you know isn't as good at his job as his le suggests... you defer to him in meetings and such, but you end up getting frustrated and the whole group underperforms.

I think players like Terry and Howard and Harris would respond a lot better to a player like KG. At the same time, I think Avery would really help KG hone his game and focus on being a dominant post presence rather than the do-everything player he's been in Minnesota.

Meanwhile, it's very possible that the Wolves would respond better, at least in the short term, to a player like Dirk who isn't overbearing.

If I was Minnesota, I would want nothing to do with that trade. They need a full rebuild (ie. 2 or 3 new starters), and KG is there only trading chip. Dirk will just keep them at the edge of the playoffs/late lottery spot, which is a lousy place to be.

However, somebody speculated about Dirk for Gasol earlier. That might work - assuming that Memphis gets Greg Oden to hold down the post, a GO - Dirk front line might work pretty well. I'm not sure if they would try and hold you up for Harris or a pick as well. I'm not sure it's so good from your end - it makes it much easier for teams to play conventional defensive ball on you.

As I have said before, I am not sure that I trade Dirk, even with his lack of crunch time clutchness and leadership issues. I just think you need a C beside him who can be used as a primary scoring option when playing against a team going small/micro ball. I would look to trade Dampier. Again, my personal suggestion is Zach Randolph. Whatever else be said about him, he can score in the post...

[Findog]

If I was Minnesota, I would want nothing to do with that trade. They need a full rebuild (ie. 2 or 3 new starters), and KG is there only trading chip. Dirk will just keep them at the edge of the playoffs/late lottery spot, which is a lousy place to be.

However, somebody speculated about Dirk for Gasol earlier. That might work - assuming that Memphis gets Greg Oden to hold down the post, a GO - Dirk front line might work pretty well. I'm not sure if they would try and hold you up for Harris or a pick as well. I'm not sure it's so good from your end - it makes it much easier for teams to play conventional defensive ball on you.

As I have said before, I am not sure that I trade Dirk, even with his lack of crunch time clutchness and leadership issues. I just think you need a C beside him who can be used as a primary scoring option when playing against a team going small/micro ball. I would look to trade Dampier. Again, my personal suggestion is Zach Randolph. Whatever else be said about him, he can score in the post...

Randolph is the perfect complementary piece, except he's got a max deal and he's trouble waiting to happen off the court.

[picnroll]

I agree with pad300. Pups should be looking for young talent and high picks for KG. Dirk is no answer for them, less so than for the Mavs. Of course the Mavs have McHale's decision making going for them.

[pad300]

Randolph is the perfect complementary piece, except he's got a max deal and he's trouble waiting to happen off the court.

Dampier isn't cheap himself. Dampier for Randolph straight up works by the CBA. The deals are the same length (4 years after this one). You'll pay some extra luxury tax, but that doesn't seem to bother Cubes much. It should be practical to make a workable deal.

Yeah, Randolph is trouble waiting to happen off-court. But a team (with a strong coach) can handle one knucklehead (see S-Jax on the Spurs). Stackhouse makes a second knucklehead, but his contract expires this year, so don't bring Stackhouse back. I'd say it's worth a shot, because I don't really see the Dirk era ending with rings without some sort of a kick in the ass.

[Findog]

I've thought about that -- but if Nate McMillan can't keep Randolph in line, how could Avery? And why would the Trailblazers be willing to take Dampier off our hands? Looking at how much money we've committed to Dirk, Terry and Dampier over the next 3-4 years, last year might've been our best shot. Until we can get a back to the basket low-post scorer, we're a long way from a le.

Stackhouse has been nothing but a model citizen and has brought a needed dose of toughness to this team. I want him on my side in a knifefight.

I don't know if Bradley's dead money counts against the cap next year or not, but we currently have $57 million in cap obligations for 07-08. Dampier has a terrible deal, Dirk has a max deal, Terry is owed 48 million over the next five seasons, and we gave Buck a five year midlevel contract. Finley's salary next year doesn't count towards the cap.

[Spurminator]

I agree with pad300. Pups should be looking for young talent and high picks for KG. Dirk is no answer for them, less so than for the Mavs. Of course the Mavs have McHale's decision making going for them.

But can Minnesota get Dirk-level talent with any of those picks? In this scenario, you're getting a guaranteed superstar who is by no means old. And you've still got your 2007 Lottery pick.

[picnroll]

But can Minnesota get Dirk-level talent with any of those picks? In this scenario, you're getting a guaranteed superstar who is by no means old. And you've still got your 2007 Lottery pick.

Dirk-level on Minnessota will keep them right where they are, in the lottery. If KG can't do it how will Dirk as his replacement? They can probably get some very good talent from Chicago, say the NY pick if it isn't top two or three, Thomas and maybe throw in Thefalosa. Tank a year with a top three lottery pick in '08 and Pups have built enough for hope for the future with that talent plus the young players they have already. If I was McHale that's what I'd be shooting for.

[ElNono]

Dirk-level on Minnessota will keep them right where they are, in the lottery. If KG can't do it how will Dirk as his replacement? They can probably get some very good talent from Chicago, say the NY pick if it isn't top two or three, Thomas and maybe throw in Thefalosa. Tank a year with a top three lottery pick in '08 and Pups have built enough for hope for the future with that talent plus the young players they have already. If I was McHale that's what I'd be shooting for.

Everything you said made sense until you tried to equate yourself to McHale. You seem to actually have a brain. The only reason a trade like KG for Dirk would work is *because* McHale is an idiot.

[confined]

i think dirk for jermain o'neill would help us tremendously...hes a great post player...good mid-range shoot, and is an excelant post defender...and if desmund mason wants to be a maverick(like the rumors say) then we'd have an awesome defensive team...and a sick small ball line-up...and we could def. let croshere go and maybe resign stack if he desides to return

Damp/diop,mbenga
O'neill/george
howard/stack,buckner
mason,terry, ager
harris,terry, barera

pretty decent team if you ask me

[Findog]

The luxury tax threshold for next year is $68 million. Finley's 07-08 salary doesn't count against the cap but the Mavs will be paying Bradley 5 million. Does that dead money count against the cap? Because I thought he retired. Otherwise, without the $5 million owed to Bradley, Dallas has $57 million in cap obligations for next year.

[monosylab1k]

so any new theories on what the Mavs have to do to be winners?

[confined]

dont sign trash like buckner and george

[ponky]

so any new theories on what the Mavs have to do to be winners?

stay together...i'm over the whole cliff-jumping let's break the team apart b.s. from our ass-kicking by the warriors. mavs are the only team that has been able to bump the spurs before the finals since 2001 (lakers don't count, they are disbanded in their former form) so i'd put my cards on the spurs to be right there next season in the wcf, can't cross your fingers and say this is their last one just because they're a year older next year. oh yeah, it would help if we could avoid the warriors next season or grow some balls and kick their ass during the regular season to gain confidence. oh, and put harris at pg for a full 40, he needs to play starter minutes and assume responsibility if we ever expect to realize anything from him. we'll never know if he's going to have what it takes until he gets starter minutes. if he fails then bump him, but at least give him a chance at starting position because jet's not the guy to get it done. big changes, i'm not crazy about, look where it's gotten us in the past....smaller ones involving guys like george, buckner, mbenga, yeah whatever.

[gaKNOW!blee]

hope Duncan retires soon.

[ponky]

hope Duncan retires soon.

he doesn't play for the warriors or heat

[ShoogarBear]

so any new theories on what the Mavs have to do to be winners?

Keep Kobe happy after the trade?