Mavs Notes: Williams, Mejri, Anderson, Nowitzki
Point guard Deron Williams is expected to be sidelined through the rest of the Mavericks’ playoff run, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com. “I think he’s done for the year,” coach Rick Carlisle said after Saturday’s Game 4 loss to the Thunder. “… I don’t expect him to play in Game 5.” Williams appeared in 65 games this season after signing with the Mavericks last summer following a buyout with the Nets. He averaged 14.1 points and a team-leading 5.8 assists per game. Williams can opt out of his contract and become a free agent again this offseason.
There’s more news out of Dallas:
- The Mavericks should start preparing for their future by giving Salah Mejri and Justin Anderson more playoff minutes, argues Rick Gosselin of The Dallas Morning News. Gosselin says Dallas needs to focus on more players in their 20s rather than those over 30. He adds that Mejri gives the team its best chance to match the Thunder in rebounding. Both players are still on rookie deals, with Mejri, 29, signed through 2017/18, and Anderson, 22, under contract through 2018/19.
- Dirk Nowitzki likely would be looking to leave Dallas if he hadn’t won a title in 2011, Gosselin contends in the same piece. The 18-year veteran has a player option for next season at $8,692,184 and could probably get much more to join a contender. But Gosselin thinks the idea of spending his entire career with one franchise is more appealing to Nowitzki than chasing a second ring.
- Chandler Parsons expressed a desire to remain in Dallas during a Facebook chat earlier this week, The Dallas Morning News relays. Parsons has a player option worth a little more than $16MM next season. He is sitting out the series with the Thunder and may be done for the year after undergoing knee surgery in late March. “I love it here,” Parsons said. “My focus right now is to be healthy. The city has been great. I can see myself staying here and playing for a long time.”
Mavs May Be Best Fit For Dwight Howard
- The best free agent fit for Dwight Howard is likely to be the Mavericks, who can offer the center the more focal role he craves as well as provide an owner in Mark Cuban who can deflect negative attention, Jonny Auping of RealGM opines. The big man would in turn give the franchise the athletic center it has been seeking, Auping adds. Howard is expected to opt out of his contract this summer and become an unrestricted free agent.
Mavericks Almost Signed Jeremy Lin
Jeremy Lin was convinced he would sign with the Mavericks for the room exception this past summer, as he told Dan Feldman of ProBasketballTalk, but Dallas turned away when DeAndre Jordan reneged on his commitment to the Mavs, leading the point guard to turn to the Hornets instead. “Charlotte came out of nowhere,” Lin said. “Had I known it was going to go down the way it went down, I would’ve definitely planned things a little differently.”
Western Notes: Morey, McHale, Howard, Mavericks
Early losses to nonplayoff teams doomed coach Kevin McHale in Houston, Rockets GM Daryl Morey explained in a Quora post. Morey said lopsided defeats at home influenced the decision to get rid of McHale. The GM didn’t cite the exact games, but he is probably referring to a 20-point loss to the Nuggets on opening night and an eight-point loss to the Nets on November 11th, both at the Toyota Center. “I believed that if we waited until what would be considered a normal timetable to make a change that it would likely be too late,” Morey wrote. “Our only focus is on winning and I felt a material change was necessary.” McHale led the Rockets to a division title and a spot in the Western Conference finals last season, but was dismissed on November 18th with a 4-7 record.
There’s more tonight from the Western Conference:
- Rockets center Dwight Howard doesn’t plan to demand the ball more in Game 2 of the series with the Warriors, writes Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com. Frustration over his declining role in the offense is one of the reasons that Howard is expected to opt out of his contract this summer. Howard had 14 points on 10 shots in the Game 1 loss, and Watkins notes that he hasn’t registered double-digit shot attempts in back-to-back games since early March. “As a competitor, I’m going to get the job done, no matter what it takes,” Howard said. “If I get the ball, if I don’t get the ball, if I score two points or I score 30 points. I got to go out there and play as hard as I can as long as I’m on the floor. That’s all that really matters.”
- The Mavericks have problems that reach far beyond their Game 1 embarrassment against the Thunder, contends Tim Cowlishaw of The Dallas Morning News. He says the team is looking at a “dismal future” that includes no first-round pick this June, hardly any young talent to build around and a desire to commit $96MM over four years to Chandler Parsons, who has finished the last two seasons needing knee surgery.
- Thunder coach Billy Donovan noticed the difference in intensity during his first playoff game, relays Erik Horne of The Oklahoman. Donovan won two NCAA titles at Florida but is in his first NBA season. “There was a different vibe when you walked in there in terms of the enthusiasm, the excitement and energy,” he said. “I really thought our environment was terrific last night.”
Crowder Wanted To Leave Dallas
- Jae Crowder, who has emerged as a star in Boston, couldn’t wait to get out of Dallas, writes Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. Before being included in the 2014 trade that brought Rajon Rondo to the Mavericks, Crowder was frustrated by a lack of playing time, two trips to the D-League and Dallas’ signings of Al-Farouq Aminu, Chandler Parsons and Richard Jefferson.
Rick Carlisle Is One Constant For Mavs
- Rick Carlisle, who is in his eighth season as Mavericks coach, has given the organization an uncommon stability during his tenure, Colin McGowan of RealGM writes. Carlisle deserves credit for making the most out of the talent he has been afforded, and the organization also deserves praise for sticking with the coach despite a few rocky seasons, McGowan adds.
Barea: Carlisle Makes Me Better
- Mavericks point guard J.J. Barea credited coach Rick Carlisle with making him a better player in Dallas than he was in Minnesota during an interview with ESPN Radio 103.3 KESN-FM (hat tip to The Dallas Morning News). Barea, the reigning Western Conference Player of the Week, signed a four-year, $16MM deal with the Mavs last summer. “There’s nobody who uses me better than [Carlisle],” Barea said. “He knows when to put me in and when to not put me in. I have a great relationship with Dirk [Nowitzki] out there so that always helps me.”
Chandler Parsons Open To Rockets Return
- Chandler Parsons reiterated that he would love to remain with the Mavericks, but he expressed openness to going back to the Rockets, his original NBA team, as he spoke with reporters Wednesday, notes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. Parsons, who’s expected to opt out and hit free agency this summer, has indicated he plans to speak with Dwight Howard about the possibility of teaming up, and Howard reportedly prefers to stick with the Rockets as he considers free agency this year. “I wouldn’t count [Houston] out,” Parsons said. “Obviously, playing there three years, I had a great time there. We had a lot of success. It will be interesting to see what they do with the head coaching job. I would love J.B. [Bickerstaff] to get that job. I wouldn’t count out that option.”
Jason Terry Open To Returning To Dallas
Terry also noted that he would be open to a return to the Mavericks, but added that his first priority would be finding a team that has a legitimate shot at winning an NBA crown, Sefko writes. “If the opportunity presents itself, it’s something I’ll look at it,” Terry said of a potential return to Dallas. “But obviously, over the last month or two, I’ve been getting approached in all facets of the sports world and so, I’m just keeping my options open, understanding that I’m getting toward the end. I would like to win another championship and then go into coaching. That’s my passion.”
Parsons To Discuss Teaming Up With Dwight
Chandler Parsons answered affirmatively when Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com asked whether he and Dwight Howard would have conversations this summer about teaming up again. Parsons and Howard, who played together on the Rockets during the 2013/14 season, are both expected to turn down their respective player options for next season and hit free agency this summer.
The Mavericks are the front-runners to retain Parsons, as MacMahon previously reported, and while the Mavs have interest in Howard, they wouldn’t approach the maximum salary of nearly $30MM in a contract offer to him, MacMahon hears (ESPN Now link). Parsons, in his interview with MacMahon, expressed his affection for Dallas, the Mavs organization, coach Rick Carlisle and Dirk Nowitzki. Parsons called Mark Cuban the best owner in the NBA and said he wouldn’t want to play for anyone else, but he stopped short of committing to stay with the Mavericks. The versatile forward has played a key recruting role for the Mavericks as they’ve pursued free agents in the past, but he indicated that’s on hold until his own contractual situation is resolved.
“It’s tricky, because if I’m going out and I’m recruiting a free agent right in the beginning of free agency, and they obviously know that I’ve opted out of my contract and I’m still not signed with the Mavs, it’s difficult for them to get an understanding of what the foundation of the Mavs is going to be going forward when the main guy recruiting them still isn’t signed,” Parsons told MacMahon. “That’s something that [agent Dan] Fegan and Mark and [president of basketball operations] Donnie [Nelson] and everybody, they have to talk early on to maybe get something done. Obviously, Dan will be talking to every team in the league with there being so much cap space everywhere, but that’s a tricky thing. I can’t really recruit anybody to Dallas until I know that I’m coming back to Dallas.”
The Magic are reportedly Parsons’ second choice, and Howard apparently has interest in returning to Orlando if he can’t re-sign with the Rockets. Parsons also detailed the close relationship he still has with other former teammates still with Houston as part of his chat with MacMahon.