Anderson Makes Impression With Hustle Plays
- Mavs rookie small forward Justin Anderson has made an impact with his shot-blocking and rebounding since he was inserted into the lineup four games ago, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News writes. Dallas coach Rick Carlisle has also been impressed by Anderson’s hustle, as he told Sefko and the gathered media. “He’s a guy that just goes hard and he never gives up on a play,” Carlisle said. “In a transition situation, he sees it as an opportunity and a challenge and not something like, oh well, I guess he’s going to score. You love that fighting sort of spirit and that’s what we need right now.”
J.J. Barea, Justin Anderson Paying Dividends
Two moves the Mavericks made last summer are paying off in the stretch run, with free agent signee J.J. Barea and Justin Anderson, the 21st pick in the 2015 draft, delivering in prominent roles of late, as Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com examines. The NBA just named Barea the Western Conference Player of the Week. “Barea’s been here before,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “He’s been heavily relied upon, and he’s had to fill in in big situations. So he knows what this is about. Anderson has learned gradually, and his teammates have been a big part of his development. He’s been an attentive learner, and he’s a really big part of what we’re doing right now.”
Carlisle Impressed By Wolves Rookie
Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle views Wolves rookie Karl-Anthony Towns as a “next generation” type of player with his combination of size and ability, according to The Associated Press. “There are going to be guys like him,” Carlisle said, “that have the great size and length and still can play the ‘4’ [power forward], those super athletes with super length that now are still damn quick and can do anything on the basketball court. He’s an unbelievable weapon for them.” Towns is a heavy favorite to give Minnesota its second straight Rookie of the Year winner, following Andrew Wiggins last season.
Mark Cuban Has Failed Dirk Nowitzki?
- Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has failed Dirk Nowitzki and has not rewarded the power forward’s willingness to accept a below-market deal by surrounding him with championship-caliber players, Tim Cowlishaw of The Dallas Morning News writes. The scribe also opines that Nowitzki couldn’t be faulted if he declined his player option worth $8,692,184 for 2016/17 in order to latch on with a contending team this summer.
Center Position Becomes Game-by-Game Proposition
Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle is juggling his big-man rotation on a game-by-game basis, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon reports. Dwight Powell, Zaza Pachulia, Salah Mejri and Dirk Nowitzki are taking turns at center, depending upon the opponent, though it’s tougher to play Nowitzki there in smaller lineups with forward Chandler Parsons out for the season, MacMahon adds. Pachulia and Mejri shared the load on Friday when the team faced Detroit and its All-Star center, Andre Drummond. “We need everybody,” Carlisle told MacMahon and other members of the gathered media. “Going forward, we’re a walking adjustment. We’re going to have to adjust to whatever situation we’re up against.”
Cuban: Terry Has Bright Coaching Future
- Mavericks owner Mark Cuban believes Rockets guard Jason Terry has the personality to succeed as a college coach, according to Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. Terry interviewed Thursday to be the next head coach at Alabama-Birmingham. “I could see Jet being a coach,” Cuban said. “He knows the game, he’s intense, he communicates well. And guys would relate to him.” Cuban added that the former Maverick can have a job with Dallas whenever he wants one.
Parsons Isn't Committing To Dallas
- Chandler Parsons, who appears poised to opt out of his current contract, isn’t guaranteeing a return to the Mavericks, as he said during the television broadcast of Wednesday’s Mavs game, according to The Dallas Morning News. “We’ll see what happens this summer with the option and whatnot, but right now we’re just focused on the team and anything I can do to help them,” he said. “We’ll worry about free agency when we get there.” Parsons is likely out for the season after undergoing knee surgery, but a report this morning suggested he may be available if Dallas reaches the second round of the playoffs.
Cuban Says Chandler Parsons Has Outside Chance Of Playing Again This Season
It’s a long shot, but it’s possible that Chandler Parsons returns to play this season, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban revealed Wednesday, according to Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News. “If we make a run and get to the second round [of the playoffs], there’s a chance,” Cuban said. The team’s press release that followed the right knee surgery Parsons had last week referred to the procedure as a season-ender, but Chandler shared Cuban’s optimism Wednesday, saying on the team’s television broadcast of Wednesday’s victory over the Knicks that rehab will be a “piece of cake,” as Townsend also relays. Parsons said he’d be in a brace for two or three weeks and made reference to a four-to-six week timetable for his recovery. Still, he laughed when told of Cuban’s remark and said he wouldn’t count on his return at any point in the playoffs, Townsend tweets.
Knicks, David Lee Spoke About Potential Deal
The Knicks and David Lee had talks about a would-be reunion while Lee was in the midst of a buyout with the Celtics earlier this season, as Lee said today to reporters, including Marc Berman of the New York Post and Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News (Twitter links). Lee instead wound up signing with the Mavericks on a deal that gave him more than $2MM for the rest of this season. The Knicks, who are limited to the prorated minimum salary, couldn’t have paid him that much. Still, the veteran big man is poised to become a free agent this summer, when he’ll ostensibly have another chance to join the Knicks, the team for which he played his first five NBA seasons.
Lee was one of the players in an apparent trade proposal involving Carmelo Anthony that would have sent Lee from the Celtics to the Knicks last month. The Celtics and Lee’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, cooperated to try to find a new home for the two-time All-Star, but the buyout path proved more lucrative than a trade would have been. Lee gave up just $458,575 in the buyout, much less than Dallas is paying him on his new contract.
The thought of returning to the Warriors has crossed Lee’s mind, but he was ineligible to sign with Golden State during the buyout period because the team traded him to Boston just this past summer. He’ll be able to rejoin the Warriors as soon as July if he wants, but he recently told Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com that he’d moved past any thought of returning to the Bay Area, and he’s spoken on multiple occasions about his contentment with Dallas.
The Mavs will have only Non-Bird rights on Lee, sharply limiting their ability to go over the cap to re-sign him, though Dallas, like the Knicks, will have the chance to open plenty of cap room in the summer ahead. The same isn’t true of the Warriors, who already have $73MM in guaranteed salary commitments with Harrison Barnes and Festus Ezeli headed for restricted free agency.
Mavs Look To Youth To Improve Defense
- The Mavericks have been struggling on the defensive end and coach Rick Carlisle plans on using Dwight Powell and Justin Anderson, the team’s youngest players, as starters the rest of the way to help provide a spark, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com writes. “Well, if you’re having an energy problem and you’re having a problem defending, then you need to get more energetic and better defenders in the game,” Carlisle said. “You’ve got to make the point, and I felt right now we’ve got to make the point that anything other than your best effort and your best energy is unacceptable. These two guys are going to go hard unconditionally, and they delivered tonight. … You know, you’re going to see some of these guys going forward. There’s no question about it.”