Official Mavericks vs. Hornets game thread.

[Mavs414]

i know we didnt play alot of players im really happy with stackhouse he did good with his 20 points i hope jason terry does better next game

[ames7]

I was kinda expecting a bit of a letdown game, just b/c the reports from camp were a little down the last couple of days after the scrimmage. I can take the good stuff, especially Stack, & pretty much let the rest go. For now. Is stuff like he showed tonight that makes me feel better about these "Stack accepting his role is CRUCIAL to our success" statements from Nellie.

[EricaLubarsky]

I dont think I could learn Nellie's system if I tried. I'm not surprised or concerned that Terry looked bad out there. Even NVE took about 3-4 months to learn to fit in.

If the shots were falling, I'm sure we could have shot 50% and looked a lot better. I don't expect Terry to look great before the season begins, but I do think we will shake off some of the rust on the scoring end

[MavsFanFinley]

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Rookie J.R. Smith scored 19 points -- including four 3-pointers -- to lead the New Orleans Hornets to a 94-87 victory over the Dallas Mavericks in the preseason opener for both Wednesday night.

Smith, picked 18th overall and barely a month removed from his 19th birthday, started against Michael Finley in his pro debut because David Wesley had a strained right hamstring. Smith shot 6-of-9 and used his 44-inch vertical leap to break up an alley-oop pass meant for Josh Howard and later block Jason Terry's 3-point attempt.

Smith also stole the ball from Devin Harris -- the No. 5 overall pick -- and forced Harris to foul him on a breakaway. Later, Smith slipped by Jerry Stackhouse and forced him to foul as Smith went up for an alley-oop attempt.

Stackhouse, acquired by Dallas in a trade that sent Antawn Jamison to Washington, scored 20 points for the Mavericks. Stackhouse has said he'll be comfortable with a sixth-man role in which he'd play either the forward or shooting guard position. He wasn't that sharp from the field (5-for-15) but made 10 of 11 free throws.

He was far more productive than Howard, who started and played more minutes but finished with 9 points. Dirk Nowitzki and Finley scored 17 points apiece for Dallas, and Erick Dampier added 10. Harris scored 3 points in 20 minutes in his professional debut.

Baron Davis had 14 points and Jamaal Magloire 11 for New Orleans. Lee Nailon, a late offseason pickup who was waved by the Hornets two years ago, scored 13 points.

Hornets free-agent acquisition Rodney Rogers, expected to compete with George Lynch for a starting spot at forward, sat out with a strained right hamstring.

The Hornets led 23-10, but the reserves struggled to score in the second quarter when Dallas used a 16-2 run to take a 39-33 lead. The Mavericks led 41-37 at halftime.

[sike]

lots of rust and that is fine for now.

[EricaLubarsky]

a few Ex-mavs had a chance to play tonight

Nash sat out with a groin pull
Fortson went 4-10 for ten points, 6 rebounds and four fouls in 25 minutes.

Yesterday Jamison scored 16 points on 40% with 3 rebounds.

[sike]

Nash sat out with a groin pull

and to think that pulled groin could have been ours....*fake sigh*

[EricaLubarsky]

apparently the Suns were doing something kinky because Steve Nash, Leandro Barbosa, Jake Voskuhl and Paul Shirley all had groin pulls

[MavsFanFinley]

Beginning is bumpy for new-look Mavs

By EDDIE SEFKO / The Dallas Morning News

NEW ORLEANS – The first play of the Mavericks' preseason was a post-up for new center Erick Dampier. After their first basket, they pressed full court.

Clearly, these aren't the same Mavericks. They trotted out their new look Wednesday night, complete with understandable flaws, in a 94-87 loss to the New Orleans Hornets in the exhibition opener for both teams.

It looked a lot different without Steve Nash. The Mavericks were faster and more physical. They were more disjointed and shot worse.

Some of the problems were to be expected. Only four players from last season's team saw action. The Mavericks are trying to meld an army of new faces into a new system. So this will not be an overnight sensation.

"It's going to take awhile," Dampier said. "It's not going to be perfect at first."

Certainly not on offense. The Mavericks committed 23 turnovers, which stuck in coach Don Nelson's craw more than the 36-percent shooting they allowed.

"I knew our defense was ahead of our offense, but neither was good enough," Nelson said. "We did hold them under 40-percent shooting, which is a step in the right direction. But I'm pretty disappointed in most of our guys."

The usage of Dampier is going to be one of the biggest issues of the preseason. The 6-11 center has to find a comfort zone. And his new teammates have to remember to look for him when he has position.

"Sometimes we forget that," said Dirk Nowitzki, who had 17 points and 12 rebounds, but missed 11 of 16 shots. "We're not used to having a guy getting position down low."

Dampier had 10 points on 3 of 5 shooting.

One bright spot was Jerry Stackhouse, who looked right at home as the sixth man, collecting 20 points in 31 minutes.

Other than that, the word that kept coming out of Nelson's mouth was "poor." He used it to describe the point guards, Jason Terry and Devin Harris, who were at the root of many of the turnovers.

"I don't expect my team to turn the ball over," he said. "That's the biggest disappointment. It's just sloppy."

Abdul-Wahad's status to be clearer Friday

The Mavericks expect to find out Friday if Tariq Abdul-Wahad will be declared physically able to perform this season.

Paco Belassen, the agent for Abdul-Wahad, said Wednesday that he could not comment about his client until Friday, when results of the exam taken Sept. 28 by an independent doctor are expected to be released.

While Abdul-Wahad is a bit player at best, his situation is important to the Mavericks and could have a ripple effect on the roster.

The Mavericks believe Abdul-Wahad's left knee is unfit to play basketball at the NBA level. The 6-5 swingman believes otherwise. If he is deemed unfit, that could open the door for the Mavericks to buy out the remainder of Abdul-Wahad's contract, which is worth $6.75 million this season and is partially guaranteed for two more seasons.

On his Web site, Abdul-Wahad has written a diary that is critical of the Mavericks. He said the team will have to pay him "every last dollar" due him under the terms of his contract. He also said that coach Don Nelson told him last year that he would never play for him again.

"I would never say that," Nelson said Wednesday. "I may have said that I wouldn't play him that year, for the rest of that year. I probably said that, if he's talking about last year."

Nelson was asked if Abdul-Wahad is still part of the team.

"He's not in training camp, so the answer is no," he said. "I'd say we're a little overloaded at that position."

Owner Mark Cuban said the team is treating the situation as a non-issue.

[sike]

"I don't expect my team to turn the ball over," he said. "That's the biggest disappointment. It's just sloppy."

one preseason and Nelson is in Mid-season gripe form.

[EricaLubarsky]

funny!

all I can say is that I'm glad we have AJ as a leader and veteran point guard. If Terry and Harris are serious, they'll work with AJ between now and Sunday.

[EricaLubarsky]

definitely a new sight to see at the point

[EricaLubarsky]

Give me freethrows. Me want freethrows!!

Funny pic. It looks like Tom Waits running into a brick wall.

looking intense.

nice picture of Harris. Grant Hill is giving him a standing ovation

[EricaLubarsky]

excuse all the post-padding but we got 37% of out points tonight from freethrows.

Last year we averaged 17% of our points from freethrows.

Just so you dont think the percentage is higher because we scored less...

Last year/////tonight's game
18.1 FTM------32 FTM
22.6 FTA------41 FTA

[Poindexter Einstein]

Important note: THE CENTERS PLAYED 45 MINUTES COMBINED.

Most Excellent.

[mavsman55]

I can't think of anything severely wrong with last night's game other than turnovers. The FG% can be fixed. But I don't want to see us turning into Houston last year.

[SaintofKillers]

How was our team defensively? I know we held them down to 34% fg shooting but that's probably fuzzy math.

[FilthyFinMavs]

Harris is #34? I guess there isn't anything wrong with that but usually pg's are from 1-10.

[Murphy3]

Magic did a decent job with a number not in the 1-10 range.

[endtroducing]

Originally posted by: FilthyFinMavs
Harris is #34? I guess there isn't anything wrong with that but usually pg's are from 1-10.

Nash, Terry, Van Exel, Miller...

[sike]

Stockton should never be forgotten.

[MavsFanFinley]

Mavs fall to Hornets

By Art Garcia
Star-Telegram Staff Writer

NEW ORLEANS -- The 94-87 preseason-opening loss to the New Orleans Hornets was littered with errors. The Mavs committed 23 turnovers, shot 36.1 percent and played shoddy defense with the game in the balance.

"I knew our defense was ahead of our offense," coach Don Nelson said. "That's all we've been working on, but neither was good enough."

The Mavs rebounded from a 13-point first quarter deficit and took a 70-67 lead into the fourth quarter. Nelson kept his main-rotation players on the floor down the stretch, but the Hornets still managed to pull away. New Orleans, led by rookie J.R. Smith's 19 points, shot 39.5 percent.

"We've got to take care of the ball and stay smart on defense," said Dirk Nowitzki, who had 17 points and 12 rebounds.

Sixth man Jerry Stackhouse led the Mavs with 20 points, half coming from the free-throw line. Michael Finley added 17 and seven boards. Centers Erick Dampier, Calvin Booth and Shawn Bradley combined for 15 points and nine rebounds in 44 minutes.

"All of our [centers] played poor," Nelson said.

The turnovers `really got under Nelson's skin. Starting point Jason Terry and Dampier each had four, while Josh Howard, Nowitzki and Stackhouse each had three.

"I can take shooting poorly and not executing," Nelson said, "but to turn the ball over like we did is just sloppy."

New wrinkle

Don Nelson has Avery Johnson sitting to his right and Del Harris to his left on the bench. Harris has long been Nelson's top assistant, and having Johnson on the other side illustrates Nelson's trust in the newest member of his staff. It's obvious both have Nelson's ear.

Quote of the Day

"There are so many powerful teams. Get your hard hats on."

-- Coach Don Nelson on the new Southwest Division. All five teams made the playoffs last season.

[FilthyFinMavs]

Originally posted by: Murphy3
Magic did a decent job with a number not in the 1-10 range.

Magic also played 4 positions on the court. Only reason I said it just doesn't seem right is because of the height of Harris. Magic was 6'9 so 32 didn't really look odd. I have no problem with the number I just thought he was gonna be a single digit.

[FilthyFinMavs]

Originally posted by: endtroducing

Nash, Terry, Van Exel, Miller...

Forget I ever said anything.

[sike]

does anyone know where to find some highlight video from last night's game?

[Usually Lurkin]

Originally posted by: MavsFanFinley
Mavs fall to Hornets

"All of our [centers] played poor," Nelson said.

Translation:
"In 2 months we will have the tallest cheerleading section in the NBA. Small ball rules!"

[sike]

Howard (39) 4-5, 1-1, 9pts, 9rbs, 2as, 3tos, 2stls, 1blk

continual signs from JHo.

[madape]

Stackhouse is going to be an assasin. Teams can't guard him one-on-one when he's been the focal point of the team. What are they going to do when he comes of the bench?

I'm beginning to think that Devin Harris could be our starting point guard by the end of the year. He sounds great. And is Terry really that much better so to force Harris out of the game? If he is, he needs to prove it. It's great to have two good point guards, but I want to see more of Harris.

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally posted by: endtroducing

Nash, Terry, Van Exel, Miller...

Kenny Anderson, Marcus Banks, Mark Blount, Brevin Knight, Chris Duhon, Kirk Hinrich, Jannero Pargo, Frank Williams, Eric Snow, Dan Dickau, Earl Boykins, Mark Jackson, Charlie Ward, Jamaal Tinsley, Marko Jaric, Shaun Livingston, Earl Watson, Damon Jones, T.J. Ford, Mike James, Erick Strickland, Sam Cassell, Troy Hudson, Jacque Vaughn, Alex Garcia, Jamal Crawford, Moochie Norris, Jameer Nelson, Kevin Ollie, Howard Eisley, Sebastian Telfair, Bobby Jackson, Brent Barry, Mateen Cleaves, Antonio Daniels, Rafer Alston, Carlos Arroyo, Gilbert Arenas....

sorry....

[dalmations202]

Originally posted by: madape
Stackhouse is going to be an assasin. Teams can't guard him one-on-one when he's been the focal point of the team. What are they going to do when he comes of the bench?

I'm beginning to think that Devin Harris could be our starting point guard by the end of the year. He sounds great. And is Terry really that much better so to force Harris out of the game? If he is, he needs to prove it. It's great to have two good point guards, but I want to see more of Harris.

Look for a lineup of Harris, Finley, Stackhouse, Howard, and Nowitzki getting lots of playing time before the end of the year.

[Big Boy Laroux]

um, also, basketball uniforms are SUPPOSED to only include digits between 1 and 5, a la 34, 55 3, 23, etc.

of course, the nba does not enforce this, but there has NEVER been any kind of rule, unwritten or otherwise, that PGs have a number between 1 and 10.

this isn't the NFL.

[Windmill360]

I think it's stupid when players wear 00 (i.e. Evan Eschmeyer, Greg Ostertag, Tony Delk)

[Bayliss]

When Walker was with the team, he should've issued him the number: -10

Cuban: What number do you want Walker?
Walker: I was thinking of 33
Cuban: Can't do it. You'll be -10.
Walker: Why?
Cuban: Your effect on the team.

[Evilmav2]

Originally posted by: madape
Stackhouse is going to be an assasin. Teams can't guard him one-on-one when he's been the focal point of the team. What are they going to do when he comes of the bench?

By the time the playoffs roll around, Stack may end up looking like our best aquisition of the offseason (at least for the short term). The 9 year vet is still just 30 years old, he's three seasons removed from a 29 ppg season, one removed from a 21 ppg year, and I just don't see how any of our Western conference foes are going to have a chance of stopping him as he comes off the bench for us this year. I will not at all be surprised if he ends up being our second leading scorer this year (with a scoring average hovering around his career average of 20.9 ppg), and my gut tells me that he might well end up being the kind of key, clutch playoff weapon for us that we haven't seen since Nick the Quick was shipped out of town...