I disagree. The Mav's basic defensive set is a 2-3 matchup zone. Everything they do defensively is out of this set. The big "defensive change" that Avery brought about has to do with his emphasis on effort and team defense. He's forced them to really play harder at the defensive end of the court. But old habits are hard to break which is why you see them (Mavs) let up and allow teams back into the game. Sunday it was the dogmeat Lakers who came back on them. Tonight, Seattle ran off 14 straight points to start the 3rd period before the Mavs were able to right their ship. Outside of Howard, Terry & Dampier, they are very poor man on man defenders which is why they rely on the zone so much. Folks are "impressed" with KVH because he's a "scorer" and they revere scorers up here but that is not what they (Mavs) needed. They needed another player to back up Dampier cause Bradley is not the answer - especially after Dampier got hurt. That's why Dirk was playing so much at the 5 spot at the beginning of the season. To their credit, the Mavs were quick to realize that this is what hurt them and Dirk last season so they made the move at the trading deadline. But Mark Cuban goes out and gets Van Horne who is a soft player with questionable defensive skills. He's also a player who I expect to disappear when the going gets tough because that's his history (he sort of vanished tonight again). Now they have KVH sliding to the 5 when both he and Nowitzski are both on the floor thereby freeing up Dirk to play his face the basket type of game. Since they have such total disdain for the Rockets PFs, you can be certain to see both KVH & Dirk on the floor together a lot in order to create/exploit a perceived mismatch. Bear in mind that over the past 16 games, the Mavs have been impressive against lesser teams while the Rockets have beaten much better competition. The Mavs looked unbeatable again a Spurs team that played without Duncan. And they do have more offensive talent than most other teams. But these Rockets know how to play also. The Denver game was a great example. Denver came in on a HUGE roll and started off like a house on fire, building up a 20 point lead in the 1st period. If this was last year's Rockets, that would have been all she wrote. Instead, this Rockets team clamped down on defense and turned the game around. What was most impressive was that it was their BENCH that turned things around for the Rockets and ultimately helped win that game in a blowout. I feel that the Rockets at this stage are mentally tougher and better suited for the grind of the playoffs because they have had to overcome a lot more adversity this season and it has melded them into a more cohesive unit as a result. In short, Dallas may be more talented but they can be beaten and these Rockets have a legitimate chance of taking them in a 7 game series.
Hillboy, you don't have a clue what you're talking about. The Dallas Mavericks do NOT primarily use a 2-3 zone. I've watched EVERY single Mavericks game the last 8 years. That includes this year. Out of an entire game, I'd say the TOTAL amount of time spent using a zone is dependent upon Bradley. If Bradley is in, the Mavs almost ALWAYS are playing zone. They also play zone SOMETIMES when Dirk is in at the 5. Now Avery is saying that Dirk won't play the 5 any more. That means that the only time Dallas is going to play zone is when Bradley is in the game. Also, something I'd like to point out. Don Nelson isn't gone. He's still a part of the Dallas organization. If there's a need for it, you can bet Avery, Nellie, and Del Harris will have a few pow-wows. Anyway, should be a GREAT series. I definitely didn't want Houston to scoot up to the 5th seed. Some of my fellow Mavs fans don't seem to care who we played, some preferred Sacramento, some preferred Houston. All I know is that anyone who preferred Houston doesn't have NBA League Pass. Deep down, sure, I think the Mavs will win. I'm a Mavs fan. Of COURSE I think they'll win . However, I sure as hell don't think it will be easy. The keys for Dallas are pretty evident. Finley REALLY needs to have a good series if Dallas wants to finish the Rocks. Fin's struggled all season, very erratic. The Mavs bench needs to dominate the Rocket's bench, as they should. How on EARTH anyone could rate Houston's bench above Dallas' is beyond me. You guys already know about Stackhouse, KVH, Daniels, Bradley, and Henderson. The guy who has really flourished since Avery took over as coach is Devin Harris. DH is the mavs most capable, PURE PG. He does a great job defensively and is lightning quick. I can see him being very effective in this series. I don't expect anything out of Henderson, Armstrong, or Daniels. Daniels has played well this last week of the season, but he's really been slowed down by injuries this year. Stackhouse can win games for you, but he can also shoot you out of a lead. If he's on, wow. If he's off, yuck. KVH - I was one of those Mavs fans who was VERY against that trade. I didn't want a jumpshooter. I didn't want a softie. Now, KVH definitely takes his fare share of jumpers, and he's no Ben Wallace; however, he DEFINITELY opens up the offense when he's out there. He penetrates relentlessly and does a good job getting to the free throw line. Don't forget, either, that he has been to an NBA Finals. I don't expect KVH to decide the series. I do think he's VERY capable of spelling Nowitzki for 10-12 minutes a night which is VERY important. Defensively, I'd say he's been a pleasant suprise. He's much better playing post defense than I ever expected. Out on the perimeter, though, he's not good at all. I see the Mavs rotation looking something like this: Terry (30), Harris (12), Daniels (6) Finley (32), Stackhouse (20) Howard (38), Daniels (6), Stackhouse (4) Nowitzki (38), KVH (10) Dampier (32), Bradley (12), Henderson (4) Certain players' (Henderson, Daniels) minutes could go up if Dampier/Bradley or Howard/Stackhouse get into foul trouble. If they don't get into foul trouble, Henderson probably won't play much at all.
Dont expect to see Weatherspoon on the court much this series. He will start, but Padgett and Bowen will get the bulk of the minutes. Dirk will have to guard Padgett because hes a shooting threat. Dirk will roam when Weatherspoon or Bowen are in the game. We must make Dirk work on defense. I hope Padgett gets hot! Regarding the bandwagoner statement I read earlier and the history of these respected franchises, I have as many rings as the Mavs...ZERO! Rockets in 6 Rockets win games 1, 3, 5 & 6 The anticipation is really building up. Whats a few good sports bars to watch the games at, where rocket fans are aplenty?
I think a threat that we are really going to need to clamp down on aside from the obvious in Nowitski is Stackhouse. If anyone remembers from the last game he was posting up Wesley (he's got like 5 inches on him!) and we were having difficulty helping with that matchup. That was before we had Mike James though, who is a bit bigger. We may want to consider putting T-mac on Stackhouse on the defensive end and rotating Wesley to stop Terry/Harris and shift Sura to Josh Howard. Overall I think its going to be a GREAT series. I would rather see a damn good first series and have the Rockets trial by fire rather than getting to the second round against Seattle scared of the Mavs. We shouldn't be scared of any team and I think we have the type of team and system that will flourish in the playoffs. Aside from the Matchups, we have lock-down defensive players and interior meat (Yao/Mutombo) to stop teams dead. We have a half court offense and now run one of the best fast breaks in the league. We have smart, heady ball handlers in McGrady, Barry, James and Wesley. We have tested veterans like Barry, Wesley and James that have experience. Damn! I can't wait!
Two Words: Transition Defense! Our offense will be there on most of the nights, probably average 90+ points in this series. Dallas has been playing better defense, but you cannot turn an offensive team into a defensive team within a few games. Ultimately, they will show their true color when it gets tough. The key for us is to be patient, move the ball around. The Mavs are only capable of playing 10 seconds defense for a single possesion, so moving the ball around will confuse them, get us better shots. Now on defense, we have to stop their transition game, which is where they score most of their points from. First, we have to minimize quick shots on offense, which will limit they fast break opportunites; second, we need to crash the offensive board to keep them honest; third, our guards have to be alert to stop Terry from running wild on open court. If we can hold them under 90pt, we have a great chance to beat the Mavs; if we can hold them under 95+, we'll have a good shot. If we give up 100+, then we'll probably be in for a long fight.
Hillboy, you are so wrong. Have you seen the Mavericks play this year? I guess you will just have to wait until the games start to see it for yourself.
The only thing I would have to comment on this is that as good as the Mavs organization has done putting the right players on the roster, their payroll is almost twice as much as ours. If we had their payroll I`m sure We`d have the Stackhouses and KVH`s of the NBA.
Not really sure if you're stuck in a time warp and have been watching the 2002-2003 or last years Mavs, but the Mavs play a 2-3 roughly 10-15% of the time. And 90% of the time its with Bradley in the game. The other times since AJ has taken over Damp has been manning the paint, but even then they choose to play it man to man and trip the primary offensive option with a hard double from the blind side. You may have their zone confused with a trapping, press defense that the PG's employ. While the indictment of last year's Mavs about the lack of strong defenders was accurate, this year Dirk, Stack, Howard, Terry, Dampier, Van Horn (Yes, the Pilsbury Dough Boy b/c he's so soft) and Harris have been more than average playing D. Dirk especially has AJ lobbying for him to get all defensive and MVP votes. Muhammed is a spare. We don't need another one. We already have Bradley and Henderson. If we wanted another limited big man with below average athletic ability, we would have kept Calvin Booth. Couple of notes here. KVH has averaged 14 and 5 in 24 minutes off the bench for the Mavs. Doing a cursory glance of the Rockets entire roster, I really don't see any active player you guys have at the PF spot that could produce those kinds of numbers in that kind of limited action. Spare me the combined stats of your three headed monster Rylence Padgettspoon. Bradley ... Well, he is what he is. He is maddeningly frustrating and prone to bone headed plays. At other times, he can make such spectacular defensive plays you just wonder why he can't do that on a consistent basis. Bradley is a white, tall, uncoordinated version of Steve Francis. All these additions that you admire have been made possible by Cuban's wallet. Granted, he's done and said some stupid things, but we are now a team that has won 50+ games in 5 consecutive seasons. Pretty impressive. Not much argument here. Agreed. I think the Rockets in a best case scenario take the Mavs to 7 games. Worst case the Rox get beat in 5 games.
any team with a high payroll will have a very deep talented team (except the knicks). that doesn't win in the playoffs. It will get you 55-60 regular season wins but in the playoffs i would take tmac and yao over a team like the grizz or sonics hands down. the mavs have dirk, so they aren't just deep they have a superstar to rely on aswell. thats what makes them so tough.
Guys, it's a matchup zone. It just doesn't look like one unless Shawn Bradley is on the floor because he's so slow. Again, it WORKS! They won 58 games so that's smart coaching. BTW, I live in Dallas and I have seen ALL of their games. Compared to last year, they are actually making a sincere effort at playing D but because this is such a novel concept for the Mavericks, there has been an incredible overreaction on the part of virtually everyone up here. It still remains to be seen whether they keep it up when things get dicey in the playoffs. I just feel that deep down, they are still an offensive team first and foremost.
It isn't a matchup zone. It is man to man. Ask any Mavs fan who has seen them play this year. You won't find anyone to agree with you.
It is a matchup zone, thats why it looks like man to man. dallas is in trouble this series because you cant zone the rockets this year. we are too good of a passing and shooting team. if you want to go man to man then watch yao and tmac kill you.
