LOL. Ok, put your shoes in JVG's shoe, what other options did you have? Are you going to have Rafer jack up more shots? Chuch Hayes? Juwon Howard? Please enlighten me. Our team last year lived and died by our two superstars. PERIOD.
I'm in utter disbelief that some here think that the Mavs would actually be weakened after this trade. Wow. If Cuban gets the best player in the NBA and essentially only loses one rotation player, I will be convinced that the mafia is involved behind the scenes. This makes all of those former Cuban ass rapings (Van Excel + LaFrenz for NOTHING, Jamison for NOTHING) look like the magnitude of a Tyron Lue for Jon Barry steal, in comparison.
BTW - it's amusing that some here knock the Mavs on the strength of some weak argument centering around Dirk's perceived lack of manhood. Right. This coming from the same crowd that thinks a team anchored by two guys who have never gotten out of the first round (one of which most likely has a vagina) is the favorite to win the title this year. Dirk has his warts and he's not Larry Byrd by any stretch of the imagination, but he's a damn good player, beat the Spurs in Game 7 by himself two years ago, and a team of he, Kobe, and Harris would be absolutely lethal. And you better believe Cuban will find a way to add a few more guys to the mix. Thank God Morey is running the show now because we wouldn't have stood a chance.
all this money betting is for nill think how freaking ridiculous that team would be in the playoffs...
I've ragged on Dirk's failures but I'm not above admitting that he's a damn good player. People think that me comparing him to Odom's performance two years ago against Phoenix is weak but is it really? The guy played the best basketball of his life in that series..and that's still only gets him to about the same production Dirk has in the playoffs. My question is: What happens when teams decide, "Hey you know what, let Kobe get his 40. That's his for the taking every night. As long as Dirk is held at or below 20, we have a pretty good chance of winning"? Because that's what's going to happen. If the GS-Dal series proved anything at all, is that Dirk can be contained on the offensive end. If that happens, his liability on defense is magnified even more. But hey, I'm the idiot here. If Dallas gets Kobe, I'll keep my word on the bet. I'm just that confident that there's a very slim chance the Mavericks will win even as many games as last year much less eclipsing it.
Since when do I say Dallas would win more games? Read my reply to your post. I messed up with the quoting. Its a few post above this one.
Please forget last year. Without getting Kobe, the Mavs still won't win 67 games so your win total comparison is irrelevant. But getting Kobe for Josh Howard and an over the hill Terry would make the Mavs a much better team. Dirk is a perfect 2nd fiddle and with Kobe on his team, he would be right in his comfort zone. He might even learn some toughness and nastiness from Kobe's example. Comparing Odom to Dirk is complete nonsense. I watch the Lakers on a regular basis and the guy is one of the most mentally weak players in the NBA. Comparing his playoff average for one series vs. Dirk's doesn't mean a thing. Defenses don't pay nearly as much attention to him as Dirk because they don't need to. With someone like Dirk on the floor, NBA defenses would be at Kobe's mercy. On the other hand, when teams get tired of being torched by Kobe, Dirk could score some of the easiest points of his life. If teams guarded Dirk like they do Odom, he would average 35-40 points/game. Odom's mental lapses and disappearing acts have worn out Kobe and PJ which is why they want him traded along with Bynum. As thacabbage said, anyone who thinks the Mavs aren't better off with this proposed trade is dead wrong. Even with almost the same exact players returning, this year's Mavs are NOT the same as last year's team and won't win as many games.
And you have people here saying nonsense about wanting Bryant on the Mavs so we can play them in the same division. Give me a break. Personally, I don't think he'll be moved, but if he is, Chicago makes the most sense. The Lakers could get more for the guy, Chicago is deep enough to trade more for the guy and still have some depth, and Bryant gets to wear the same uniform of the fellow he believes himself to be the reincarnation of.
You are just afraid to have Kobe on the Mavs team go against the Rockets. It will make the rivalry even more intense.
Correct me if I am wrong, but when the Rockets played the Spurs in the conference finals in 95, on paper the Spurs were a better team. So many analyst were saying the Rockets had no chance of beating the Spurs. Now I am not saying we will beat the Mavs if we meet in the playoffs, but I am not worried to see them go head to head.
I just don't want to see such an unfair trade go down. I think the Mavs are getting a STEAL if they only have to give up JET, JH, and a couple of low first rounders.
How do you know that the Mavs will trade JET, JH, and draft picks for Kobe? I would think the Lakers would want more than that, especially since the draft picks will almost like 2nd rounders.
LOL! What rivalry? The Houston Rockets have been irrelevant in the NBA discussion for over a decade now. The Dallas Mavericks have been a juggernaut for 3 years and simply ran into a bad matchup last summer. The only rivalry that exists is in the imaginations of delusional Rockets fans that think that their team is suddenly a favorite after adding three thirty year old's with mental issues and an unproven rookie. Do I like our additions? Hell yes. Do I think we will be better this year? Probably, but some of you need to get real with the foregone conclusions. As far as the trade, if Buss makes this deal, he must suffer from borderline mental r****dation. This trade is worse than Shaq for Odom+Butler. Much worse, and that was already the second worst trade in NBA history (Glen Rice and a #1 for Jon Ameechi). You are going to trade the best player in the NBA, the second greatest shooting guard in NBA history, the most lethal offensive weapon of his generation in his prime, within the same conference and AGAIN not get the best player on the other time? Hell, Terry is over 30 too! The mob has to be involved if this goes down. Hinrich+Gordon+and whatever atleast makes SOME sense, but Howard and Terry is unfathomable. Their individual success is demonstrative of the reality that the Mavs' sum is better than the individual parts - don't fool yourselves into thinking these guys are even All-Stars otherwise.
The Dallas Mavericks in actuality have been irrelevant historically. Well, the one choke job and that severe loss to an eight seed notwithstanding...("bad matchup" LOL!) On the other hand, one might argue that a 67 win team not getting past the first round...is relevant in the "NBA discussion." A new season always brings something different. The Mavs will be weaker while the Rockets are stronger. That's just a fact. And I don't recall the Rockets ever choking like the Mavs. The Rockets on the other hand have done great things like pulling off tremendous upsets against the Showtime Lakers TWICE during their prime, beating the Spurs in the post season every time they've met, making FOUR NBA Finals appearances in a 15 year span, not to mention taking a couple of titles...the Rockets have had a decently successful existence that spans different eras. Let's get real, the Mavs' fans complex that we see regarding their hatred of the Spurs (and Rockets)...reveals some high throne in their minds that doesn't exist. So for a Mavs fan to say the Rockets with lesser talent as "irrelevant" after taking Dallas to SEVEN games in 2005...that's pretty funny.
what rivalry? isn't it a natural in-state rivalry? and a western conference rivaly? and a division rivalry? it may not have been a competitive rivalry because the rocket's have sucked for a while, but don't the fans get fired up and want the rockets to kicked their butts, more than any other teams? yeah, it is a rivalry. duh!
