Interesting thought...
Knowing what we know now, what deal SHOULD Cuban have done last year?
1)Trade Nash to make money for Damp?
2)Trade Dirk straight up for Amare? (and do you think Pheonix would have done this?)
Also, what part did Finley play...(Finley's contract is really what caused us not to have $ to keep Nash--could we have, should we have traded finley--if so, who for?) If Finley was gone, we could have had Nash and a center.
Nash for Damp OR Dirk for Amare
QUESTION 2
-From ESPN radio, Who is worse?
1)Star Wars geeks
2)Fantasy sports geeks
5 comments:
Good question indeed. I believe Nash for Damp is better than Dirk for Amare (even though Amare might be a better investment because of his age). But if we focus on the next 1-3 years, then Damp is not a bad investment (regardless of his absence this season--he is not the next best center behind Shaq).
Nash obviously could take the Mavs only so far. I believe he hit the plateau with his old team. If Cuban were to re-sign and keep him with the Mavs, he would not be holding that MVP trophy. Only in the Suns system and 4 highly athletic, young studs was Nash able to put up 16+ points and 10+ assists per game. He's proven his MVP even in the playoffs, but I would not keep him with the Mavs. Were Nash still with the Mavs, they would never advance beyond the Western Conference Final.
If the Mavs were to take Amare, they would give up the face of their franchise -- Dirk Nowitski. Aside from age, Dirk is a more complete player (he can create, stick 3s, his defense has improved over the seasons). Amare is a mini-Shaq who can hit free throws and has a little more range. As sweet as that might be to think of Nash-Amare alley oops in Mavs unis, you cannot give up the Dirkster.
In hindsight, it would have been nice for the Mavs to receive something in return for Nash. But he would not be the MVP if he were in a Mavs uni. Damp is not the only missing piece to the Mavs championship, but they are on the right track. Jason Terry is not a bad fill-in and Devin Harris has promise.
I still believe the Mavs are one player away (as cliche as that sounds) from a championship. They need another strong power forward.
Nash can have his run and gun style in Phoenix, but look at what he has around him - dunkers and shooters (and only 4 of them). The Mavs are a more complete team, have an awesome bench, and hopefully Dirk can develop that "killer mentality" in the Playoffs. Even Nash doesn't have this mindset, but Dirk would be more likely to have this.
Very good question, but too bad we will not know the full answer.
In response to your other question, definitely Star Wars fanatics. A sports fan might dress up for his team, but you won't find him in a Chewbacca outfit or dressed up as Storm Trooper. And a fantasy sports fan doesn't pack a light sabre. Maybe I'm biased (I play football, basketball, baseball online), but it doesn't compare to Star Wars geeks. They take it way to extreme.
Sorry for the long post. Good day.
1. The Suns offer was not really one that could be matched. It sucks that it happened, but it happened.
I couldn't imagine a scenario in which I'd say "trade Dirk." Amare might be better in the long run, and is pretty close to being better right now, but you don't just trade Dirk. He's been loyal to the Mavs, and that should count for something, even in the business of sports. The same thing applies to Fin.
That being said, Damp is going to have to put together a heck of a season next year to win me (and many other fans) over. You don't say things like "I'm the best in the West" and then play like that. He had flashes of good play, but man, he is inconsistent. Add that to the fact that he did, for all intents and purposes, replace Nash, who was a fan favorite, and he's got his work cut out for him.
In short, Nash for Damp was still the right move, but it didn't pay off too well.
2. Being a little bit of a fantasy sports geek, I'll say Star Wars geeks are worse.
If the point is to play good basketball and build a family (and have some fun) then I agree, you never ever trade Dirk...(I really like Dirk and Finley). But on that note, you should never have traded Nash. (I loved the Big Three).
If the point is to play good basketball and win a championship (and have some fun) then you build your team to win. That may mean getting rid of some people that you love.
I have gone back and forth as a fan. @ times, it is all about a team winning, other times, it is about favorite players winning. Right now, I just want to see the Mavs go all the way.
It's kind of like this season - every time the mavs played the suns, I really wanted Nash to have a great game...but I wanted the Mavs to win (even though I like Steve Nash better than any single Mav).
If Cuban's point is to win a Championship (and I really think that's his intention, over being the most popular kid in the familly)...he's gotta be willing to give up anybody to better his team...even if that is Dirk for Amare (when we still had Nash).
But Nash wasn't traded, was he? He was a free agent, and the Suns offered him a ridiculous salary that I don't think even the Mavs could have beaten (and definitely wouldn't have had the money to sign Damp or any big man).
Besides, his playoff performance aside, Dirk is an MVP caliber player. His defense was even pretty good this year. I'm not convinced that Amare on a Dirkless Mavs team would be as dominant as he is for the Suns. Take Shawn Marion out of the picture, and Amare becomes a little more human.
Plus, who's to say that the Suns would trade Amare? I don't think it would have been all that possible.
Anyway, I think the Mavs had the pieces this year, they just couldn't get them all on the same page. The only question mark in my mind was point guard, but after JET's playoff debut, my concerns were answered. The problems were Damp and Dirk, who are both capable of tons more than they showed in this year's playoffs.
Nash was a FA...essentially though, his presence was traded for damp. I love Dirk...I don't know if I love JT and Dirk...maybe I'll get there...I do love Nash and Amare...I would hate to lose Dirk...ahh...back and forth, I am.
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