Mavs firing air balls in free agency

[ZueriMav]

I don't know whether it's already been posted. Taken from DFW.com I especially love the quotes of Nelly at the end of the article where he again points to the Dirk's draft. Again and again for the next thousand years.........

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Posted on Fri, Jul. 18, 2003 story[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-tongue.gif[/img]UB_DESC
Mavs firing air balls in free agency
By Jim Reeves
Star-Telegram Staff Writer

It has become apparent that while NBA free agents might truly enjoy all those comforts of home that Mark Cuban has installed in the Mavs' locker room -- the personal TV sets, the top-of-the-line sound systems, the gourmet postgame buffets -- two things still take precedence when it's time to decide where they'll play: money and winning.

The Mavs have struck out on both counts this summer.

Because of salary-cap restrictions -- hello, Raef LaFrentz and Shawn Bradley -- they're short on cash, and they have yet to prove they can win an NBA title.

Thus, for the second straight summer, their free-agent bag is empty and may very well stay that way.

While president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson and owner Mark Cuban have tried to downplay it, the Lakers changed the landscape in the West early in this free-agency season when they added two Hall of Famers for a grand total of $6.4 million. That may have affected Jason Kidd's decision to spurn San Antonio and stay in New Jersey, which in turn had a domino effect on Alonzo Mourning, who signed with the Nets.

"It's been our priority to add some bulk and physicality to the frontline," said Nelson, who spent Thursday making and fielding phone calls. "At this point, I'd say the realistic prognosis is that that would be addressed through a trade versus anything else.

"Most of the quality guys are off the board for understandable reasons. There are still some real good names out there, but to get someone of quality, it's probably going to take something a little bit more."

Just as they did last summer, when they fiddled around waiting on a decision from Seattle's Rashard Lewis for two months, the Mavs found themselves with all their eggs in Mourning's basket. Whether Cuban's complaints that he was misled by Mourning's agent are valid or not, the bottom line is the same. Once again, they failed to get their man.

The Lakers, if they can juggle all the egos, are improved. San Antonio has replaced David Robinson with Minnesota's Rasho Nesterovic and could be even better for it. The Timberwolves signed former Clippers No. 1 pick Michael Olowokandi, a player the Mavs would have been happy to land. The Kings kept Keon Clark and, with a healthy Chris Webber, will be a championship contender again next season.

The Mavs, by doing nothing, have gone backward in the West.

The fact is, Cuban signed his 7-foot, $70 million center last summer. His name is LaFrentz, but he's clearly not the answer to the Mavs' deficiencies in interior defense and rebounding.

Indiana's All-Star center Brad Miller? The Mavs are still in the hunt, but this is a difficult sell. This is Miller's chance at a huge payday, and he's not going to settle for the Mavs' $4.9 million mid-level exception when he might command $9 million a year on the open market.

A sign-and-trade might be possible, but with Denver or Utah prepared to write a check somewhere between $8 million and $11 million a year, it's a long shot at best.

Robert Horry? Sure, just what the Mavs need, a 3-point shooter who can't find the basket anymore. Forget it.

Scottie Pippen would be a nice addition, but he's not going to sign for the veteran's exception ($1.5 million), and he doesn't address the rebounding or inside defense issues either.

The fact is, the Mavs keep coming in second. Players keep saying it came down to the Mavs or Somebody Else, and they're choosing to sign with Somebody Else.

Maybe the national bashing the Mavs took during the playoffs has had a negative effect. Maybe their "soft boys" national image -- deserved or not -- is working against them. More likely it's even more basic than that.

Players understand that they can come to Dallas, win a lot of games and be comfortable, but they may not be convinced that they can come here and win a championship until they see it happen. They've seen the Lakers do it. They've seen the Spurs do it.

"If we did things around here for perceptual reasons, there wouldn't be a No. 41 named [Dirk] Nowitzki on the team," Nelson pointed out defensively, but accurately. "I'll tell you what we're not going to do. We're not going to do something that in two or three years we're going to regret and strap ourselves with an albatross situation.

"We're not going to get forced or pressured into making a bad move because of perception."

No need to do that again. Unfortunately, those albatrosses are already here and play center for the Mavericks.


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