Taking the D out of Dallas
As the old joke goes, the Dallas Mavericks ought to be called "allas" since they have no "D." Of course, the Mavs did win 60 games and almost made the NBA Finals last season. They were unstoppable offensively, had great chemistry and built momentum that carried them to Game 6 of the Western Conference finals.
But this year, Dallas appears to lack the offensive cohesion and swagger of a season ago, and as a result their defense – or lack thereof – is especially exposed.
The Mavericks still are pretty good, but it's very difficult to picture them beating any of the top four or five teams in the West in the playoffs. Unless they get it going and secure a better playoff seed – they're No. 5 right now – they could be in for a first-round exit.
Despite his team's success last season Don Nelson decided that, in order to take the next step and get to the Finals, he had to upgrade the Mavericks' rebounding and inside play. Hence the two offseason deals that brought Antoine Walker and Antawn Jamison at the expense of Nick Van Exel and Raef LaFrentz.
It's tough to fault Dallas for its bold offseason trades. Nellie, Mark Cuban and the gang didn't feel their team was good enough as constituted to win a championship, and they probably were right.
Still, it's apparent that this team has taken a step backward.
The result has been a better rebounding team – the Mavs are the best offensive board team in the NBA – but a worse-shooting club that has a glut of players who play the same position.
Walker in particular is frustrated, and he ranted to the press last week about his reduced playing time. He was used to playing 40 minutes a night in Boston, where he and Paul Pierce were the only two options offensively. Walker recently called himself a "volume shooter" who needs to have the ball a lot.
The problem is that, on a team with Steve Nash, Michael Finley, Dirk Nowitzki and Jamison, Walker isn't going to get the ball as often as he'd like. He frequently looks lost without the ball on offense, and he hasn't fit in as well as Nellie had hoped.
Jamison, on the other hand, has been good. He's shooting 51 percent from the floor and scoring 14 points a game as a potent sixth man, and he has added a nice interior scoring threat to a perimeter-oriented team.
Still, he doesn't strike fear into the hearts of defenses like Van Exel did. Nick the Quick carried a swagger onto the floor that was contagious with his teammates, and his absence is conspicuous. Dallas went 27-14 on the road the past two seasons, but the Mavs are just 11-20 away from home this year.
The Mavericks used to dare teams to outscore them, and Van Exel frequently was the difference with his fourth-quarter heroics. This year's squad is not as proficient from the perimeter, shooting just 33 percent on the year from the three-point line, and it has had a more difficult time outscoring teams.
And with their utter disregard for defense, especially in transition, the Mavericks can't overcome deficits against good teams. On Thursday night Dallas trailed the Kings most of the game, and each time the Mavs made a run Sacramento simply scored at will, stretching its lead again.
It's tough to win in the NBA without the ability to stop people, and although Dallas did it the past two seasons, it doesn't appear they'll be able to when it counts this year.
