Dallas-Mavs.com Forums - View Single Post

kriD · 11-30-2006, 11:39 AM

Double-digit win streaks like Mavs' will be rare

12:34 AM CST on Thursday, November 30, 2006
[By Eddie Sefko / The Dallas Morning News]

At least one of us doing this newsletter likes to go out on limbs. And I'll beat D-Moore to the punch line about how it had better be a real big limb to support me long enough to get a risky prediction out of my mouth.

But there's something about a long-shot proposition that gets the blood boiling, so here it is.

The Mavericks will be one of only two teams this season that string together a double-digit winning streak.

They just beat the Toronto Raptors for their 11th victory in a row, and nobody else has gotten past eight wins so far this season.

Racking up 10 consecutive wins this season is going to be tough for anybody. In the Western Conference, there are too many good teams to bank on a bunch of wins in a row. There's always a San Antonio, Dallas, Houston, Phoenix or even Utah, Golden State, Clippers or Lakers waiting in the wings with a big-time effort.

And in the Eastern Conference, there just aren't any teams good enough to win that many in a row.

So the Mavericks have already done it. And the guess is that either San Antonio or Phoenix will hit a hot spell and make it to 10 wins. But that's it.

And if I'm wrong, I'm sure the other author of these newsletters will let me know about it.

Eddie Sefko

MAVS Q&A

Q: How come I'm seeing D-Moore on the telecasts on FSN and not you? Since when did you become the Garfunkel to his Simon?

Ronnie, Rockwall

Sefko: Hey, Art Garfunkel did some quality solo stuff. It's just that nobody ever heard it.

It's true. Some of you may have seen D-Moore on the Fox Sports Southwest pregame and postgame shows for Mavericks games.

To you, I would say: get a life.

But there's good news about Moore's TV gig. I don't know how much dough he's getting for it, but whatever it is, maybe it'll help him buy the rest of his new car. Those two seats are tough whenever three of us have to get from practice to Dickey's for lunch.

And, by the way, some of us actually have to work for the newspaper before and after games, which is a key reason why D-Moore is able to throw out his witticisms on television and I'm not. Besides, I don't look near as good in pancake makeup.

•••

Q: Where do you see this win streak ending?

Esther, Dallas

Sefko: Well, now that they've gotten past Toronto to make it 11 straight, the Mavericks will be sitting on 12 in a row after the Sacramento game Friday. That puts them at Washington and New Jersey early next week. They will lose one of those games.

But if they don't, they would return home with 14 wins in a row and a chance to break the franchise record set at the start of the 2002-03 season.

I'll make the bold prediction, however, that the Chicago Bulls' 71-win record for season victories is safe.

•••

Q: Ein Frage (that's German for "a question.") All right, guys, the 2007 draft will be one of the deepest in recent history. What kind of value can the Mavericks get for three second-rounders? Currently, we have our own, Denver's and the Lakers' second-rounders, with no first-round choice. I know it's early, but with the depth of this draft, could they find a steal in the second round?

Jay, Irving

Sefko: Man, I'd like to help you, but I'm just now getting to know Moe Ager, whom the Mavericks got in the last draft.

But I'll take a stab at it anyway. If all the guys like Greg Oden and Kevin Durant that couldn't come out after high school last year decide to enter the draft after their freshman seasons, you are correct, this will be an attractive draft.

But no matter how good a draft is, if you're picking late in the first round or in the second round, you are throwing darts. No guarantees. Maybe you get lucky with a Josh Howard. But maybe you end up with a bust.

I wish I had some names for you, but my best guess is that the Mavericks will try to package one or more of those picks and either move up or move out of the draft.

That said, they will have three free agents next summer – Austin Croshere, DeSagana Diop and Jerry Stackhouse. Not all of them will be back. So there will be some room for incoming talent.

•••

Q: Great to see the Mavericks have righted the ship. My question is: What is Shawn Bradley up to in retirement? Does he attend any games? He was my favorite player. Any plans to honor his career with a Shawn Bradley night?

Kevin

Sefko: It's disturbing on many fronts that Bradley was your favorite player. But to each his own.

Shawn is enjoying retirement and still getting paid by the Mavericks ($4.8 million this year). Bradley was a good dude and a terrific family man. He's enjoying the home life, and there may come a time when he rejoins the Mavericks in some capacity.

As for a Shawn Bradley night, I wouldn't hold your breath. If you start honoring former players who were not stars, you open yourself for all sorts of criticism. Why one player and not another? So it's better just to keep your memories of him.

•••

Q: When are the Mavericks and their superstar going to start showing a ton of swagger? Dirk Nowitzki recently said that ultimately, you have to go through the Spurs to win the West. The Mavs are the defending West champs. They should take a page from Kobe Bryant and show a little arrogance. Make it change.

Craig H.

Sefko: Just because the Mavericks don't beat their chests and announce to the world that they are the team to beat doesn't mean they don't feel that way.

There's an old saying in the NBA that applies only to really good teams: Stay humble and hungry. Outwardly, you should show respect and make sure you are the picture of humility.

But behind the scenes, the killer instinct, that "to heck with them" mentality, has to be evident for teams to be really good. The Mavericks have that. They just don't advertise it all the time.

And by the way, that's the only page I'd take out of any book about Kobe Bryant.

•••

Q: Up until the win over San Antonio, I didn't think the Mavs had been impressive all season. The wins since then have reversed that trend, though. One worry: The Mavs seem to have reverted to relying on the jump shot too much. Those shots fell against the Spurs and Hornets. But history tells us they won't over the long haul. Am I off base?

Rick M.

Sefko: You couldn't be on base any more unless you were Michael Young. And the Mavericks know it, too.

They know they can't rely on their perimeter shooting to get them through difficult times. Rest assured that Avery Johnson has addressed it. It was no coincidence that in the game against Minnesota, the Mavs only had six 3-pointers through three quarters and were winning handily. Then they jacked up seven of them in the final period, missed them all and almost lost the game.

Those messages sink in quickly.

•••

Q: Is DeSagana Diop OK with being the backup center? It seemed like he did a decent job starting last year.

Doug, Garland

Sefko: Remember, Diop was stuck in Cleveland for four years where he never played. So any playing time for him is a blessing.

And let's face it, Erick Dampier is a better player, when he's giving the game its proper attention. Diop can come off the bench and give this team terrific production in the rebounding and shot-blocking departments. Any scoring he does is a bonus.

Just be thankful the Mavericks finally appear to have something other than a black hole in the center position.

•••

Q: I noticed you had the Mavericks winning 57 games this season in your preseason evaluation. I'm wondering after the first month if that prediction has changed.

Sefko: If you also noticed in that prediction, I had the Mavericks going 11-4 in November. I'd say I nailed that one pretty good, even though I didn't expect them to be 0-4 after the first week.

I'll stick with 57 wins as the total. It's going to be hard to avoid the occasional 6-4 stretch over 10 games in the Western Conference. There's just too many talented teams and too many potholes to navigate.

But I'll also say that 57 wins will win the Southwest Division.

11-30-2006, 11:39 AM	#5
kriD Platinum Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Germany Posts: 2,039	Double-digit win streaks like Mavs' will be rare 12:34 AM CST on Thursday, November 30, 2006 [By Eddie Sefko / The Dallas Morning News] At least one of us doing this newsletter likes to go out on limbs. And I'll beat D-Moore to the punch line about how it had better be a real big limb to support me long enough to get a risky prediction out of my mouth. But there's something about a long-shot proposition that gets the blood boiling, so here it is. The Mavericks will be one of only two teams this season that string together a double-digit winning streak. They just beat the Toronto Raptors for their 11th victory in a row, and nobody else has gotten past eight wins so far this season. Racking up 10 consecutive wins this season is going to be tough for anybody. In the Western Conference, there are too many good teams to bank on a bunch of wins in a row. There's always a San Antonio, Dallas, Houston, Phoenix or even Utah, Golden State, Clippers or Lakers waiting in the wings with a big-time effort. And in the Eastern Conference, there just aren't any teams good enough to win that many in a row. So the Mavericks have already done it. And the guess is that either San Antonio or Phoenix will hit a hot spell and make it to 10 wins. But that's it. And if I'm wrong, I'm sure the other author of these newsletters will let me know about it. Eddie Sefko MAVS Q&A Q: How come I'm seeing D-Moore on the telecasts on FSN and not you? Since when did you become the Garfunkel to his Simon? Ronnie, Rockwall Sefko: Hey, Art Garfunkel did some quality solo stuff. It's just that nobody ever heard it. It's true. Some of you may have seen D-Moore on the Fox Sports Southwest pregame and postgame shows for Mavericks games. To you, I would say: get a life. But there's good news about Moore's TV gig. I don't know how much dough he's getting for it, but whatever it is, maybe it'll help him buy the rest of his new car. Those two seats are tough whenever three of us have to get from practice to Dickey's for lunch. And, by the way, some of us actually have to work for the newspaper before and after games, which is a key reason why D-Moore is able to throw out his witticisms on television and I'm not. Besides, I don't look near as good in pancake makeup. ••• Q: Where do you see this win streak ending? Esther, Dallas Sefko: Well, now that they've gotten past Toronto to make it 11 straight, the Mavericks will be sitting on 12 in a row after the Sacramento game Friday. That puts them at Washington and New Jersey early next week. They will lose one of those games. But if they don't, they would return home with 14 wins in a row and a chance to break the franchise record set at the start of the 2002-03 season. I'll make the bold prediction, however, that the Chicago Bulls' 71-win record for season victories is safe. ••• Q: Ein Frage (that's German for "a question.") All right, guys, the 2007 draft will be one of the deepest in recent history. What kind of value can the Mavericks get for three second-rounders? Currently, we have our own, Denver's and the Lakers' second-rounders, with no first-round choice. I know it's early, but with the depth of this draft, could they find a steal in the second round? Jay, Irving Sefko: Man, I'd like to help you, but I'm just now getting to know Moe Ager, whom the Mavericks got in the last draft. But I'll take a stab at it anyway. If all the guys like Greg Oden and Kevin Durant that couldn't come out after high school last year decide to enter the draft after their freshman seasons, you are correct, this will be an attractive draft. But no matter how good a draft is, if you're picking late in the first round or in the second round, you are throwing darts. No guarantees. Maybe you get lucky with a Josh Howard. But maybe you end up with a bust. I wish I had some names for you, but my best guess is that the Mavericks will try to package one or more of those picks and either move up or move out of the draft. That said, they will have three free agents next summer – Austin Croshere, DeSagana Diop and Jerry Stackhouse. Not all of them will be back. So there will be some room for incoming talent. ••• Q: Great to see the Mavericks have righted the ship. My question is: What is Shawn Bradley up to in retirement? Does he attend any games? He was my favorite player. Any plans to honor his career with a Shawn Bradley night? Kevin Sefko: It's disturbing on many fronts that Bradley was your favorite player. But to each his own. Shawn is enjoying retirement and still getting paid by the Mavericks ($4.8 million this year). Bradley was a good dude and a terrific family man. He's enjoying the home life, and there may come a time when he rejoins the Mavericks in some capacity. As for a Shawn Bradley night, I wouldn't hold your breath. If you start honoring former players who were not stars, you open yourself for all sorts of criticism. Why one player and not another? So it's better just to keep your memories of him. ••• Q: When are the Mavericks and their superstar going to start showing a ton of swagger? Dirk Nowitzki recently said that ultimately, you have to go through the Spurs to win the West. The Mavs are the defending West champs. They should take a page from Kobe Bryant and show a little arrogance. Make it change. Craig H. Sefko: Just because the Mavericks don't beat their chests and announce to the world that they are the team to beat doesn't mean they don't feel that way. There's an old saying in the NBA that applies only to really good teams: Stay humble and hungry. Outwardly, you should show respect and make sure you are the picture of humility. But behind the scenes, the killer instinct, that "to heck with them" mentality, has to be evident for teams to be really good. The Mavericks have that. They just don't advertise it all the time. And by the way, that's the only page I'd take out of any book about Kobe Bryant. ••• Q: Up until the win over San Antonio, I didn't think the Mavs had been impressive all season. The wins since then have reversed that trend, though. One worry: The Mavs seem to have reverted to relying on the jump shot too much. Those shots fell against the Spurs and Hornets. But history tells us they won't over the long haul. Am I off base? Rick M. Sefko: You couldn't be on base any more unless you were Michael Young. And the Mavericks know it, too. They know they can't rely on their perimeter shooting to get them through difficult times. Rest assured that Avery Johnson has addressed it. It was no coincidence that in the game against Minnesota, the Mavs only had six 3-pointers through three quarters and were winning handily. Then they jacked up seven of them in the final period, missed them all and almost lost the game. Those messages sink in quickly. ••• Q: Is DeSagana Diop OK with being the backup center? It seemed like he did a decent job starting last year. Doug, Garland Sefko: Remember, Diop was stuck in Cleveland for four years where he never played. So any playing time for him is a blessing. And let's face it, Erick Dampier is a better player, when he's giving the game its proper attention. Diop can come off the bench and give this team terrific production in the rebounding and shot-blocking departments. Any scoring he does is a bonus. Just be thankful the Mavericks finally appear to have something other than a black hole in the center position. ••• Q: I noticed you had the Mavericks winning 57 games this season in your preseason evaluation. I'm wondering after the first month if that prediction has changed. Sefko: If you also noticed in that prediction, I had the Mavericks going 11-4 in November. I'd say I nailed that one pretty good, even though I didn't expect them to be 0-4 after the first week. I'll stick with 57 wins as the total. It's going to be hard to avoid the occasional 6-4 stretch over 10 games in the Western Conference. There's just too many talented teams and too many potholes to navigate. But I'll also say that 57 wins will win the Southwest Division.