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Originally Posted by Day1MavsFan
Are you sure about that? I seem to remember him guarding Dirk in prior years. Who was guarding him then? They only had McDyess for half a season, I think. Bo Outlaw? He probably didn't play more than 20 minutes. There wasn't anybody else I can think of.
It's not all about PPG. Efficiency wins championships, which I realize you are referencing here by bringing up TS%. Except, that you are quoting this regular season. What was Dirk's TS% in last year's playoffs? After all, this whole discussion is about getting it done in the playoffs. So, that's what you should have quoted.
Boy, is that an understatement! Gradual, as in glacial. This is his eighth season. So, he'll finally be an accomplished post player when he's retired?
Again, you say "right now". What does that mean? This regular season, I suppose. Well, again, that's not germain to this discussion. I would be the first to admit that he's having a great year. The question is, is he the type of superstar that can carry a team to a championship? That's what this discussion is about.
We all know that the Mavs of of recent years were an unbelievably explosive offensive team. But were they the kind that could win the whole thing? That's a different question and most people would say, no. With Dirk, the question is similar. Is he built for the playoffs? Can he consistently score inside when the jumpshot isn't falling? When defenses smother you, as they do in the post-season, can he score efficiently then? You can't answer that by quoting regular season stats.
I'm not saying that Dirk isn't a very good, perhaps great player. But is he the type of player that can carry the team on his back to the promised land? I don't think anyone can answer that.
Dirk is just STARTING to do that. Yes, that's what Avery is talking about. And right now, he says Dirk is a 6.5. So, again, the coach agrees with me. He aint quite there yet.
Yes, I saw what he did. I also saw what he did the prior S.A. game, and what he did in last year's playoffs, etc. He's getting better, but he hasn't arrived by any means.
Yes, I realize that. I still prefer him to take it to Duncan and challenge him or pass it to the man he's left unguarded, at least a fair percent of the time, instead of off-balance or fadaway jumpers at the elbow. If he stops in the lane and pulls up sometimes, without fading, that's okay too.
The bottom line is that I'm not sure that we can win it all when our superstar doesn't ever play with his back to the basket or get many easy baskets for himself or teamates. I would think that you would agree that to do so would go against the grain, with perhaps the exception of the Pistons two years ago. We've seen what happens when the Mavs get deep in the playoffs against good defensive teams. In the past, the inability to get inside has hurt them, and Dirk's been a big part of that. Things are changing, I agree. But have they enough to win it this year? I'm not sure this regular season has shown me enough to believe it can happen. I'd like to see Dirk learn to play well in the post. So would Avery. He's been talking about it since he got the job. If what Dirk does now is enough, then why would Avery say these things?
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