Dallas-Mavs.com Forums - View Single Post - Who wants to dogpile Nelson after a rare loss?

David · 01-05-2003, 09:30 AM

<< Well my hypothetical was in response to a healthy Mavericks team. I'm talking about full strength or relatively full strength.... TwoDeep, should the Mavs win in the 2nd round at full strength? That is not a hard question and don't make it harder than what it really is. I'm not talking about Maverick injuries etc. If the Mavs meet SA, Sacramento or the Lakers in the second round and are at full or near full strength, should they win?

I firmly believe they should. David, you keep saying that the Mavericks are 2_-5. Well with that record comes expectations. If the Mavericks finish with the 1st or 2nd best record in the league then they **should** make the WCFs. After all, their record says that they are the 1st or 2nd best team in their conference. Or are you telling me that their regular season doesn't mean much in the playoffs? Hmmm.... interesting. >>

Well Bayliss, I'll say it again, it depends on who they meet. Sacramento, in my view, has better overall talent. I don't "expect" them to beat the Kings. The Mavs in the last few years haven't matched up with LA or SA, so I don't "expect" them to win. I expect them to play well right to the end, however. I don't have the power to hire and fire but I would be extremely disappointed WHEN they lose.

Then there is the Indiana scenario. In the first Indiana game this year, the Mavs got all their usual shots but they hit the front of the rim or were just off. The Mavs simply got beat. Everything seemed to be normal except the shots weren't falling.

In the 2nd Indiana game, the opposite was true. The Mavs were "on" and the Pacers were "off". Should Nelson be held "accountable" for the loss in the first game? After all, the Mavs lost.

What happens if the Mavs play their usual game in a series and all the shots they get are contested and they don't shoot their usual percentage? What happens if the other team simply outplays the Mavs? Does the other team get credit for playing well or does Nelson only get negative credit for Mavs losses?

I guess the question I have is, if the Mavs lose, is it automatically a Nelson failure? Is there such a thing as the Mavs getting beat in a series by a team that suddenly plays up to their potential and have it be all glory to that team? Or is the only viewpoint to have, Mavs lose = Nelson failure? Other team wins = Nelson failure? Nothing else? Are there any circumstances where, all things being equal, that should the Mavs lose, that Nelson DOESN'T get the blame?

If a team has the best record, or second best record, in the regular season, are they the 1st or 2nd best team or did their coach do an excellent job getting them to play well enough to achieve that record?

At the end of the regular season, no team is awarded the NBA championship. All the regular season really does is decides whether or not a team is IN the playoffs, who plays who in the playoff games and where they play the games.

Some teams hold back, somewhat, and then play at a different level in the playoffs. That is one reason I wonder about "expectations". I don't really know what expectations to have. I think, to win the championship, if a team is virtually assured of a playoff spot, that it might be better to use the regular season for making sure the team is healthy and hitting on all cylinders for the playoffs. That would mean losing a few regular season games that they wouldn't ordinarily lose while resting injuries or simply reducing minutes of stars. Or course with losses there would be "blame" for not winning games.

01-05-2003, 09:30 AM	#66
David Golden Member Join Date: Feb 2001 Posts: 1,864	<< Well my hypothetical was in response to a healthy Mavericks team. I'm talking about full strength or relatively full strength.... TwoDeep, should the Mavs win in the 2nd round at full strength? That is not a hard question and don't make it harder than what it really is. I'm not talking about Maverick injuries etc. If the Mavs meet SA, Sacramento or the Lakers in the second round and are at full or near full strength, should they win? I firmly believe they should. David, you keep saying that the Mavericks are 2_-5. Well with that record comes expectations. If the Mavericks finish with the 1st or 2nd best record in the league then they should make the WCFs. After all, their record says that they are the 1st or 2nd best team in their conference. Or are you telling me that their regular season doesn't mean much in the playoffs? Hmmm.... interesting. >> Well Bayliss, I'll say it again, it depends on who they meet. Sacramento, in my view, has better overall talent. I don't "expect" them to beat the Kings. The Mavs in the last few years haven't matched up with LA or SA, so I don't "expect" them to win. I expect them to play well right to the end, however. I don't have the power to hire and fire but I would be extremely disappointed WHEN they lose. Then there is the Indiana scenario. In the first Indiana game this year, the Mavs got all their usual shots but they hit the front of the rim or were just off. The Mavs simply got beat. Everything seemed to be normal except the shots weren't falling. In the 2nd Indiana game, the opposite was true. The Mavs were "on" and the Pacers were "off". Should Nelson be held "accountable" for the loss in the first game? After all, the Mavs lost. What happens if the Mavs play their usual game in a series and all the shots they get are contested and they don't shoot their usual percentage? What happens if the other team simply outplays the Mavs? Does the other team get credit for playing well or does Nelson only get negative credit for Mavs losses? I guess the question I have is, if the Mavs lose, is it automatically a Nelson failure? Is there such a thing as the Mavs getting beat in a series by a team that suddenly plays up to their potential and have it be all glory to that team? Or is the only viewpoint to have, Mavs lose = Nelson failure? Other team wins = Nelson failure? Nothing else? Are there any circumstances where, all things being equal, that should the Mavs lose, that Nelson DOESN'T get the blame? If a team has the best record, or second best record, in the regular season, are they the 1st or 2nd best team or did their coach do an excellent job getting them to play well enough to achieve that record? At the end of the regular season, no team is awarded the NBA championship. All the regular season really does is decides whether or not a team is IN the playoffs, who plays who in the playoff games and where they play the games. Some teams hold back, somewhat, and then play at a different level in the playoffs. That is one reason I wonder about "expectations". I don't really know what expectations to have. I think, to win the championship, if a team is virtually assured of a playoff spot, that it might be better to use the regular season for making sure the team is healthy and hitting on all cylinders for the playoffs. That would mean losing a few regular season games that they wouldn't ordinarily lose while resting injuries or simply reducing minutes of stars. Or course with losses there would be "blame" for not winning games.