Four free agents to compete for mav's final roster spot

[#1MavsFan]

I say bring in Ebi after reading what he did in Hakeems camp. If Hakeem thinks the kid can play, why not give him a shot? And he spent the offseason doing the same workouts that THE DREAM used to do.

[FINtastic]

I saw Ebi play for the Fort Worth Flyers, and I left thoroughly unimpressed by what I saw. I don't really see him being the one that gets this last spot if this Barea kid is as good as some are saying.

[chumdawg]

Please. To keep Jose Juan Barea off this team would be like cutting Tony Romo from the Cowboys. It ain't gonna happen! JJB is a point guard's point guard. He runs an offense like no one east of Phoenix and west of New Jersey. I'd go ahead and pencil him in as the Mavs starting point in 2010.

[snoop]

well the great thing is we get sll of them in the same gym to compete. who ever is the best in camp and preseason gets my vote for the last spot. No matter their position or size or pedigree. Just let who ever proforms the best have the spot. I think we invited 4 realyy intresting guys in.

[dude1394]

Originally Posted by chumdawg

Please. To keep Jose Juan Barea off this team would be like cutting Tony Romo from the Cowboys. It ain't gonna happen! JJB is a point guard's point guard. He runs an offense like no one east of Phoenix and west of New Jersey. I'd go ahead and pencil him in as the Mavs starting point in 2010.

We can always cut ager for him.

[nashtymavsfan13]

Originally Posted by chumdawg

Please. To keep Jose Juan Barea off this team would be like cutting Tony Romo from the Cowboys. It ain't gonna happen! JJB is a point guard's point guard. He runs an offense like no one east of Phoenix and west of New Jersey. I'd go ahead and pencil him in as the Mavs starting point in 2010.

Devin?

[johndacs]

Jose Juan Barea
Birthdate: 5/23/86
NBA Position: Point Guard
College: Northeastern
Class: Senior
Ht: 5-11
Wt: 173
Hometown: Mayaguez, Puerto Rico
High School: Miami Christian
Team Site Profile 2005 Stats

NBA Comparison: Carlos Arroyo ( smaller version)

Strengths: Barea is a tough point guard with excellent all around skills. More importantly, Barea plays at a higher level when facing quality opposition. Barea is a true point guard that can penetrate at will against any player. He has the ability of controlling the tempo of a game at halfcourt or in the fastbreak. Even though he doesn't have prototipical size for a point guard he is a terrific rebounder. He can shoot the ball from outside the 3 point college line. A proven winner at every level, Barea was named the best point guard at the junior World Championships in Greece. He followed that performance earning MVP honors at the 2004 21 and under Centrobasket tournament. Also, was the leading scorer in the Global Games and the Tournament of the Americas outplaying players from Serbia Montenegro, USA and Argentina. Very good court vision.

Weaknesses: Without being a freak athlete, he'll have a tough time at 5-11. Barea's outside shot doesn't look very good but he gets the job done. A little bit streaky from the outside. At times seems to get out of control especially when the opposition plays physical defense. Barea is more of a scorer than a high percentage offensive player. Because of this he tends to shoot at a high volume, therefore avoiding a cohesive team game. This area could be corrected with experience. His size will hurt him at the NBA level, but his hard nosed style will certainly help him.

-Herminio Nieves

[johndacs]

Jose Juan Barea
Name:Jose Juan Barea
Height:5' 11"
Weight:173 pounds
Previous Team: Northeastern , Senior
Drafted: Undrafted in 2006 Draft
NBA Position:PG
Date of Birth:6/26/1984 (22 Years Old)
High School:Miami Christian School
Hometown:Mayaguez, Puerto Rico
Earliest Draft Class:2005
Current Position:PG
Possible Positions:PG
Best Case Scenario:Jameer Nelson
Worst Case Scenario:Lynn Greer
Profile Written By:Jonathan Givony
Last Updated:4/9/2006

Strengths:
One of the most fiery competitors in the college game, Jose Juan Barea is a rare point guard who shows excellent ability to both score and get his teammates involved.

Physically, Barea makes up for his smallish stature to a certain extent with his excellent quickness as well as his outstanding basketball instincts. If needed, Barea can surprisingly go to the hoop and dunk the ball with authority as he has extremely strong legs and a very nice vertical leap. It would not be a huge surprise to see him do his in the NBA, as he has a Pitbull’s mentality, and is constantly in attack mode.

As a point guard, Barea is very much adept at finding the open man, as his outstanding 8.4 assists per game will attest. He’s your consummate modern day floor general who can score as well as run his team effectively, showing very good court vision finding his teammates unselfishly, particularly on the drive and dish. Barea is a quick thinker who sees plays as they happen, and will feed his man instaneously with a lob or backdoor bounce pass for an easy layup, showing very good timing in the process. It’s the tougher and flashier passes that he actually excels the most in.

Playing alongside better teammates than he had at Northeastern, for example at Portsmouth or with the Puerto Rican national team, Barea showed to be an even better point guard than anyone could have predicted based on what was seen in college.

In these settings Barea showed the ability to push the tempo of the game intelligently while still staying under control, making numerous pin-point accurate full court passes to a wide open man or getting in the paint himself. Barea looks out of control at times with the way he plays, but this might be due more to how fast he thinks, acts and improvises-- rather than because of a lack of poise. He shows an incredibly wide variety of passes in his arsenal, whether with a beautiful bounce pass from the perimeter or from 50 feet away, moving left or right from outside and slinging a perfect one-handed pass to a cutter, driving and dishing no-look passes with incredible creativity, or with an assortment of underhanded or over-handed alleyoop lobs. Most of his assists are for easy dunks, layups or wide open looks from behind the arc, as he makes the game extremely easy for his teammates, passing the ball equally well to everyone to make sure they all stay happy and knowing exactly where to place it to ensure that it finds it's way into the opponent's basket.

Barea's perimeter game is extremely advanced and shows most of the moves you would expect from a player with years of experience creating shots for himself. He’s a terrific ball-handler, going left or right equally well. Barea has an excellent crossover, as well as a wide array of other hesitation moves to keep his man off balance and constantly guessing. He improvises extremely well and is very adept at creating something out of nothing when the offense bogs down.

Barea sees small openings in the defense and will react immediately to exploit them, splitting the double team right down the middle to shred apart the defense if needed. His body control is excellent and he really knows how to sell his moves to create space for himself. He’ll act like he’s about to take his man right, but will instead make a sharp ball-fake left and then blow right by his man when he has him on his heels. If he feels the urge, he has a nice in-between game he can go to at this point, being able to pull-up off the dribble and knock down the mid-range shot, or spin his way into the paint and finish creatively off the glass.

Once he’s in the lane, he’s strong enough to finish at the basket with contact as his 620+ career free throw attempts will attest. He likes to keep his man on his hip and ride him all the way to the basket, drawing the foul only when he decides the time is right. He is small, but extremely strong and stocky, which makes him tough to rattle and get off-balance. He maintains his focus very well and will get the unconventional 3-point opportunity a few times a game at the mid-major level. If the lane is too crowded for him to make his way all the way to the basket, Barea has some floaters/runners/tear-drops in his arsenal that he can go to to finish over bigger and more athletic opponents.

His shot-fakes are equally as effective, and he uses them to perfection to get himself into the lane. If he can find a way to become a more consistent outside shooter, his credibility in this area will only get much better. As it is, it’s not rare to see him get his man in the air a couple of times per game with just how herky-jerky and unpredictable he is.

Barea’s outside shot is extremely streaky, but he can knock it down in a variety of ways. The type of defenses that are usually thrown at him has made him adapt his game accordingly, as Barea can square his shoulders in an instant and get his shot off even while on the move going left or right. His mechanics are not pretty, but he gets his shot off quickly, which is what’s most important. Barea has range that extends well beyond the NBA 3-point line, but he abuses it, which hurts his percentages.

Barea already possesses all the wily veteran moves needed to make up for his size and create an advantage for himself. Little tricks like pushing off coming off a screen, tugging his man’s shirt to slow him down or giving him a little business by sticking his elbows out when setting screens are certainly not beneath him. His play borders on dirty at times, but he does it well enough to usually not get caught by the refs.

Defensively, Barea is capable of playing very aggressive pressure defense, getting right in his man’s grill and pestering him without mercy. His exhausting offensive role and the fact that he must stay out of foul trouble means that he isn’t always able to show this, though. Considering his size, he’s an excellent rebounder, averaging 4.4 per game, often snatching rebounds away from players a foot taller than him. This is largely due to his toughness, also not being afraid of stepping in to take a charge.

Despite playing for just a decent team in an average conference by national standards over the past four years, he has plenty of experience to fall back on from his play with the Puerto Rican national teams. He's held his own or even outplayed present or future NBA players like Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Rajon Rondo and many others in international play.

In terms of intangibles, you won't find many players with stronger ones than his. He comes from an academic family and clearly has a great head on his shoulders, being a pleasure to be around both on and off the court according to every report we've received. He has a rare combination of brains, a huge heart and plenty of cojones, and just refuses to be denied success. His leadership skills are outstanding, and he appears to have the perfect mentality needed for a basketall player to succeed.

Weaknesses:
Barea’s main weakness is a big one, as he's very short for an NBA point guard at just 5-10 or possibly 5-11. His apparently poor wingspan does not make up for that at all. As an athlete, Barea is not quite as explosive as most sub-6 footers we’ve seen make it over the past few years. His footspeed is good, not amazing, but his initial first step and style of play mask this very effectively.

Barea is a volume scorer, and will likely never be very efficient in this area considering his career percentages in college and international play. In college he relied too much on the 3-point shot, which is as streaky as can be. His mechanics are not very good, making his shot highly inconsistent as he appears to release it in different fashion every time he shoots it. One possession he will nail a 30 foot jumpshot with the greatest of ease, and he’ll then will proceed to miss 3 wide open stand-still looks from 20 feet out for no apparent reason.

Barea is a bit of a freelancer on the offensive end, and its unclear how many NBA coaches will stand for his completely unstructured and unconservative style of play. He is a bit headstrong, not being the type of player that really likes to have plays called for him from the sidelines, although doesn't look to be uncoachable at all.

One of Northeastern’s biggest problems this season (at least from the tapes I saw), beyond the obvious lack of talent, is that their offense often had little rhythm to it with him at the helm. His herky-jerky aggressive style of play is a weakness as much as it is a strength. You rarely see a calm possession out of them with Barea in the game. Everything always comes in chaotic fashion with the ball in JJB’s hands for 90% of the possession or more.

He has a tendency to dribble and dribble and dribble the ball and then dribble some more, being extremely dominant offensively, needing the ball in his hands at all times and not really trusting his teammates to give it up unless they are in a position to score immediately. At some point his teammates will just stand around and watch him pound the ball frantically all over the court as the offense gets stagnant and the shot-clock runs down, only to see it end with an off the dribble fadeaway jumper from 25 feet out that might just go in.

Barea’s decision making can be very questionable at times, as he is either making a spectacular play or a terrible one, with very little in between. He is very turnover prone (4.7 per game), and tends to force the issue excessively even when things clearly aren’t there, particularly with taking shots at inopportune times too early in possessions.

Despite having the attitude and mentality of a natural born winner, Barea actually hasn’t won much at all in his career. In fact, he never reached the NCAA tournament in his four years in college. Although a large part of that has to do with the fact that his teammates weren’t very good.

His size will be an issue defensively as well, as taller opponents will be able to just shoot over him. His lateral quickness is not off the charts either.

Competition:
Barea plays in the Colonial Athletic Association, one of the best mid-major conferences in the NCAA, likely to receive 3 bids in this year’s NCAA tournament. His team had a nice run this season, finishing with a 19-11 record (12-6 in CAA) before bowing out in the semifinals of the CAA tournament. Barea finished the year scoring 21 points per game with 8.4 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 4.7 turnovers per game. His shooting percentages are fairly appalling, at 40% from the field and 29% from behind the arc (on a huge number of attempts). He was named conference player of the year for his efforts.

In his three previous seasons in the NCAA, Barea’s team Northeastern played in the America East, considered a run of the mill mid-major conference until Taylor Coppenrath and Vermont briefly made people think otherwise last year by knocking Syracuse out of the NCAA tournament. His numbers were pretty similar, except his assists have drastically risen since his freshman year.

Internationally is where Barea really made his mark as a basketball player in the junior categories. He was one of the top player in the 2003 U-19 World Championship along with Linas Kleiza and Andrew Bogut, as well as extremely dominant in the 2004 U-21 World Championship Qualifiers in Halifax, where he outplayed Chris Paul in the finals against Team USA, with 27 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds. He led the tournament in points (24.8 per game) was 2nd in (7.2), while pulling down 6.8 rebounds and 3 steals per game. Other notable players at this tournament besides Chris Paul were Charlie Villanueva, Adam Morrison and PJ Tucker.

In the 2005 U-21 World Championships he was not quite as good leading a disappointing Puerto Rican team that finished 7th overall, but saved his best for his American counterparts once again with a 21 points, 9 rebounds, and 14 assists in their first matchup and 23 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists in the 2nd, both losses. This team featured college stars such as Rudy Gay, Rajon Rondo, J.J. Redick and many others. He led the tournament in assists once again with 7.3 per game and finished fourth in scoring with 17.6. He is expected to be invited to the senior team this summer for the Men’s World Championship in Japan. In the 2004 Global Games in Dallas, Barea led the tournament once again in scoring with 28.5 ppg.

Outlook:
Barea is clearly a beauty in the eye of the holder type prospect. He has fantastic strengths and glaring weaknesses, and there are many unanswered questions revolving around how effective he will be with more talented teammates around him, which he answered to a certain extent starting at Portsmouth. He clearly has very good passing skills and a terrific feel for the game, but at the same time needs the ball in his hands at all times and shows absolutely no conscious jacking up dozens of shots a game. This was playing for a terrible team that probably wouldn't have won 5 games all season long without him. Can he make his already good teammates better? At Portsmouth it looked like that's all he wanted to do.

Then again, it’s quite possible that as a backup he'll be fine. There are few backup point guards in the NBA today that possess the combination of passing, scoring and feel for the game that he does, and it goes without saying that if he was 6-2 he'd easily be a top 10 pick in this draft. With the lack of legit PGs in this draft and the astounding success of little PGs in the NBA lately, it's quite possible that someone will see a perfect backup for the next 10 years in Barea and decide to lock him up at the end of the 1st round or early 2nd.

If things don’t work out for him in the NBA, he will make NBA money overseas regardless because of his Spanish passport and the fact that he can play like a 6-3 NBA PG would overseas despite his size.

[johndacs]

draftexpress.com

Darius Washington
Namearius Washington
Height:6' 1"
Weight:195 pounds
Previous Team: Memphis , Sophomore
Drafted: Undrafted in 2006 Draft
NBA Position:PG
Date of Birth:12/7/1985 (20 Years Old)
High School:Edgewater
Hometown:Orlando, FL
Earliest Draft Class:2005
Current Position:PG
Possible Positions:PG
Best Case Scenario:Chauncey Billups
Worst Case Scenario:Early Rafer Alston
Profile Written By:Jeremy Osborne
Last Updated:3/29/2005

Strengths:
He is a terrific ball handler at the PG position. Knows how to use the spin move to his advantage and uses it well on the break to free himself up, create space, get to the basket and use his strength to finish strong. Simply put, he knows how to get to the rim and put the ball in the cup. Washington is definitely a scoring guard first and foremost, he is very dangerous in the open court and is extremely fast with the ball in his hands.

Washington has a great first step, and can break people down off the dribble at any moment. He is very good at changing directions, and loves to push the ball up the floor. He always has his head up in traffic, and knows how to find spaces to attack the defense, draw them in and kick it out to the open man. He has good foot-speed both with and without the ball.

Washington has good strength for such a young player, and is very good at finishing plays in traffic. He is not a hesitant player at all, and will attack the basket no matter who is in the paint on defense. He is very advanced for his age at drawing fouls with his ability to get to the rim. He has exceptional quickness and ball handling ability and gets to a line often for a player his size.

Washington is a gifted one on one offensive player, and seems to move effortlessly on the basketball court, possessing the natural scoring instincts that just can't be taught. He is very fluid and is a very good athlete for a guard. Washington has proven to be an effective outside shooter at times, but he is at his best around the hoop, where he is very good at getting his shot off and can make nimble moves while in the air off penetration.

Throughout his freshman year, Washington has become an increasingly productive outside shooter; he is not the type of guard that can only penetrate to create on offense. He has learned how to use pump fakes and jab steps to free himself up, and if he gets an open shot, he will knock it down. In his first season at Memphis, he almost shot 40% from the three-point line, and showed better and better shot selection as the season progressed.

He's shown to be a fiery competitor who does not back down from challenges and is not afraid to take a team on his back, which is great to see from a player his age and surely a good sign for the future.

Weaknesses:
Washington is not a pure PG at this point in time; he is a scoring guard first and foremost. He turns the ball over just as often as he gets an assist. To be a better NBA prospect he will have to improve his decision-making, shot selection and take better care of the basketball. I doubt he will ever be a true PG because that's just not his game, but he definitely can get better at controlling the tempo of the game, making better decisions with the ball in his hands, and creating for others as much as he creates for himself. Becoming a more consistent outside shooter, especially off the dribble, should also be a priority. Most NBA PG's have a pull-up jumper in their arsenal to compliment their slashing ability. Washington would be well served to work on this area of his game to make himself a more versatile player.

On defense, Washington has the quickness and athletic ability to be a fine defender at the PG position, but he hasn't shown much of that yet. He has the potential to do that, but right now that's an area of weakness in his game. He is not very good at putting pressure the ball, and it's not rare to see his man blow right by him for an easy layup. He'll have to work hard on this area.

Since Washington handles the basketball so often, some might say he cannot be effective without the ball in his hands. Sometimes he tends to over-dribble and force shots going to the basket. During some games, he puts up very good assist numbers, but other games he does not. For his stock to rise he will have to become a better passer, even though I do not think he is a typical true PG because that is not his game. He'll be playing in the NBA with players that are just as good as him, though, so he must show the ability to get everyone around him involved. Consistency and decision making is also something that he needs to work on, but that will hopefully come with time.

Competition:
Washington started out slow this year as a freshman, looking overwhelmed by having the huge role of being a starting PG on a Top25 ranked team as a freshman, without an adequate backup. As the season went on he has become a lot better and his production greatly increased on the court. His team did not make the tournament, though, and had a pretty disappointing year overall. His breakout game was at Louisville where he scored 25 points, had 5 rebounds and 5 assists. He also had a big game against Charlotte on the road where he had 29. However, against a very good defensive player in Carl Krauser early on in the year, Washington only had 7 points at Madison Square Garden. Later against Gilchrist at Maryland he had 9 points. His best game early on in his career came at Texas, where he had he had 23 points and 6 rebounds. Conference USA does not have many outstanding PG's that can match up with Washington athletically, but overall Washington has had some good games against good competition. When he comes back next year, there is no reason he shouldn't dominant on the offensive and even the defensive end at times.

Outlook:
Washington is a very talented basketball player from what he has shown so far as a freshman and certainly looks like a great prospect for the NBA as he continues to mature. He is extremely quick with the dribble and has a great first step. If he improves his passing and decision making on the court as well as overall shooting consistency, he will be a very good offensive weapon. In addition, if he picks up his intensity on defense, he will be even more of a complete player.

Washington would be best served to come back to Memphis next year and help his team win games, the best measure of a successful PG. If he has a quality sophomore year he could play possibly work himself into the lottery, or at least the 1st round. The only thing with his game that is a major question is his PG skills, and while that's a huge one at his height, his quickness and ability to penetrate along with an unselfish demeanor should help him develop into a player that can really make his teammates better.

Comments:
Athletically, he is one of the most talented PG's in the nation without question. Currently I believe he is the best PG prospect in this year's freshman class. When he is being aggressive, he is as good as getting to the rim as any PG in the NCAA. The challenge for Washington is to work on rounding out his game and become an even more complete player next year.



nbadraft.net

Darius Washington
Birthdate: 12/6/85
NBA Position: Point Guard
College: Memphis
Class: Sophomore
Ht: 6-1
Wt: 195
Hometown: Winter Park, FL
High School: Edgewater
Team Site Profile 2005
Stats

NBA Comparison: Rod Strickland

Strengths: Tough nosed lead guard with excellent speed and quickness ... Gets a step on his man and he's gone ... Tough to contain due to his ability to get by defenders and into the paint ... Tremendous finisher, very good at scoring around the basket ... Steps up in clutch situations, doesn't cave under pressure ... Good ball handler, strong one on one skills ... Feisty competitor, plays with a chip on his shoulder ... Plays with a lot of attitude ... Very passionate, as witnessed by his reaction after he missed the two free throws keeping the Tigers out of the 2005 NCAA tournament ... Gets to the line well and shoots at a solid clip (just under 80%) ... Has good body strength ... Decent vision and passing skills ... Has explosiveness, but rarely shows it in game situations ...

Weaknesses: Still not the all around floor general that he needs to be for success on the next level ... Decision making can be questionable at times ... Lacks great range on his shot ... Struggled shooting the ball in his sophomore season, his overall statistics dropped from his freshman year ... Must improve his shot selection ... Assist to turnover ratio is very concerning at below 1-1 ... Must get a lot better at protecting the ball ... Defensive intensity and effort can improve ... Developed a reputation as being a bit of a hot head in high school ... Not much of a rebounder ...

-Aran Smith 5/7/06

[dude1394]

Chum....I'm afraid you are going to be dissappointed. I think they'll be keeping Ebi.

[nashtymavsfan13]

Originally Posted by dude1394

Chum....I'm afraid you are going to be dissappointed. I think they'll be keeping Ebi.

Are you guessing, or have you seen that somewhere?

[EricaLubarsky]

"I think"

[chumdawg]

Originally Posted by dude1394

Chum....I'm afraid you are going to be dissappointed. I think they'll be keeping Ebi.

Doubt it. But...I may still be disappointed.

[kriD]

4 On The Floor

Mavs Exec Offers FA Scouting Report

By Mike Fisher -- DallasBasketball.com

"Regardless of position, we're trying to find a player,'' says Mavs assistant GM Keith Grant of the four peach-fuzz-faced kids who have signed on to compete for a 15th-and-final roster spot. "We're trying to find somebody we can develop into an asset. We like all these kids.''

In addition to the 14 higher-profile Mavs who seem penciled for the first 14 jobs, these four on the floor once Mavs training camp commences on Oct. 3 are: former first-rounder Ndudi Ebi, shooting guard Pat Carroll, combo guard Darius Washington and point guard Juan Jose Barea.

"Maybe,'' Grant says, "one of these kids turns into the next Marquis Daniels (who came to the Dallas roster after being undrafted). Rawle Marshall, Josh Powell, same thing. Maybe they don't end up making contributions on the court here, but at the end of the day, they become an asset. Marshall and Powell have appeal (to the Pacers, who accepted them as part of the Anthony Johnson trade) because we developed them. They became assets.''

There is another way for the Mavs to go, of course: They could use a roster spot to chase someone who represents an asset now. But, in the case of, say, free agent Bonzi Wells, there is a reason he's still free. I've always thought him to be a complete nut who last year put on a happy face in Sacto because he was on a contract run. Now, as San Antonio flirts with him, I have two thoughts: 1) On paper, he helps. 2) In reality, he hurts.

Either way, I don't think the Mavs fear Bonzi (except for when he tries to trip their people running up court, or when he approaches Dirk from behind and uses his fingernails to bloody Nowitzki's back). And I'm quite sure they don't want him -- or most of the other vets-with-baggage still seeking employment.

So they believe the top levels of the roster are stacked. And they cross their fingers that one of these young fellas can be "an asset.''

With help from Keith Grant, quickie scouting report on the foursome:

Juan Jose Barea -- "He's a tough little point guard, is what he is,'' Grant says. "He's played a lot. Played internationally with Puerto Rico, played well in Portsmouth, lots of experience for a young guy.'' .... Barea is 22. ... The Mavs know him well from his Dallas appearances at the Global Games, a project Dallas exec Donnie Nelson has been deeply involved in. ... Barea played at Northeastern and scored 2,290 career points. ... He is listed at 6-0, but Grant doesn't try to perpetuate that myth. "He might be 5-10, and proportional, at maybe 165. But I'm telling you, he's a good little player. He gets the ball distributed to people.''

Pat Carroll -- "He's not a bad athlete,'' says Grant, uttering a phrase that isn't the same as saying "he's a good athlete.'' But Carroll can shoot, Grant confirms (he was a shooter at St. Joseph's and averaged 16 ppg in summer-league games for a Houston team) and "he has decent size (6-5) for a shooting guard. ... Pat is the younger brother of Matt Carroll of the Bobcats. ... His strength at the college level was as a 3-point ace.

Ndudi Ebi -- Pronounced EN-dee EE-bee. ... I asked Grant if the Ebi signing is the result of the Mavs having some African connection. "Africa? Nah, our connection was in Houston. He's a Texan,'' Grant laughs. ... Actually, Ebi is of Nigerian heritage but was born in London. ... Ebi is 6-9 and did make the jump to the NBA from Houston Westbury Christian. He was taken 26th by Minnesota that year (three spots ahead of Josh Howard). "We were certainly aware of him then, but once it became apparent that we'd have a shot at Josh, that was our focus,'' Grant recalls. "But we've been intrigued by him for awhile.'' ... After playing in just 19 NBA games, Ebi was released by Minnesota and played for Fort Worth in the D-League last year. He now has no D-League eligibility left, but Grant said that would not factor into Dallas' evaluation of him. ... Ebi, 22, was described by Hakeem Olajuwon (who recently tutored him in a Big Man camp) as previously being "too young, too unprepared for the NBA. "Now I see stronger, more confident moves. I think he's ready.'' ... Ebi's moves may be stronger, but Grant cautions that Ebi remains "long but thin."

Darius Washington -- Washington is thought by many to be a 1 but Grant says the Mavs see him as a "combo'' guard. "A tweener, maybe,'' says Grant, who did not personally look at Washington but still reports that Dallas view is that "he succeeded with our summer-league team, he had a good college career as a tweener guard, and he probably still is that -- but that's what they said about Jason Terry.'' ... Washington, 20, was in college a 6-2 shooter-first point guard who went undrafted after two starting seasons at Memphis.

"Remember, we're not talking about guys who fill needs or anything,'' Grant says. "We are talking mostly prospects. But this is where it starts.''

[mqywaaah]

So... who are we keeping then?

[jthig32]

The fact that Ebi is even a candidate makes me think that they consider PPod a complete bust. Why else would you get rid of a 7'5" project that can't play in the DLeague and then think about bringing in a SF project that can't play in the DLeague?

BTW, put me in the camp with Chum. Gimme Barea.

[nashtymavsfan13]

Yeah, anyone but Ebi. Just get someone that has promise that we can send to the DLeague. Give me JJB.

[dude1394]

I'm too stupid to poll it however my reasoning is that ebi is the only guy who was drafted imo with first round talent. He jumped from high school obviously too early and lost his way. He now seems to have at least found a decent support structure.

All the rest of the guys seem to have athletic issues with them, JB so small, Carroll "not a bad athelete" and washington..don't know..seems like he may be a pick in that he can spend two years in the dleague He does look sort of intriguing however but I think tweeners really do need something special to make it.

[Dirkenstien]

Barea looks like the best pick to me.

[nashtymavsfan13]

Originally Posted by dude1394

I'm too stupid to poll it however my reasoning is that ebi is the only guy who was drafted imo with first round talent. He jumped from high school obviously too early and lost his way. He now seems to have at least found a decent support structure.

All the rest of the guys seem to have athletic issues with them, JB so small, Carroll "not a bad athelete" and washington..don't know..seems like he may be a pick in that he can spend two years in the dleague He does look sort of intriguing however but I think tweeners really do need something special to make it.

That's true, but I think he's a bust. We should get someone that we can send to the DLeague, because they won't be getting PT. That's why Ebi doesn't make sense, cuz we can't send him to the DLeague.

[nashtymavsfan13]

Just say no to the six-fingered man:

[nashtymavsfan13]

Btw, that's a real basketball card, not photoshopped. No, he doesn't really have six fingers, Topps made a mistake and somehow made his picture with him having six fingers. True story.

[dude1394]

Too bad he's not more popular, that's be worth some bucks I would think.

[dude1394]

Okay...I think i'm ready to call the last roster spot after the first pre-season game. Assumption is that Pops has made the team although for some strange reason he didn't get any playing time. Of course there will be mixing and matching a little bit. The starting 12 seem to be (some order implied in the list, but not a lot from the guards).

Damp, Diop, DJ
Dirk, Cro
Josh, George
Jason, Stack, Buckner
Devin, Anthony
---------------
13th - Ager
14th - Pops
15th - ??????
---------------
A little comment on what I see happening.

Ager will get some time, there continues to be no true shooter on the team except for dirk/jason. They are better, but no one who's an actual shooting guard. Also I still see us a little slim in the guard/small forward situation as I'm assuming stackhouse will be limited and it appears devin will continue to get nicks. Hope I'm wrong there, but so far not.
----------------
Of the last left, washington, barrera, ebi, carroll. None are that impressive. Of those left however I think we keep ebi. Mainly because he seems to have the most upside for our 15th spot. I easily see him going straight to FW if possible, if he won't consider that then I'm wrong and he'll be cut. If he can't go there for some reason they'll keep him still.

Mainly what I thought I saw was a pretty big guy (still skinny) trying to figure out how to play. He is still 2 years out of high school and he has pretty interesting passing instincts as well as pretty good ballhandling skills I thought. I'm not sure he will ever be a shooter which is his downfall and he will have to get that under control. However...he puts it on the floor well and when he takes it to the basket he has a good eye for the assist and was pretty creative around the basket.

My money's on him.

[mqywaaah]

How here's the big question... Who do you think are the Mavs getting?

I saw only one pre-season outing and that was with the Kings. (why are the kings playing everybody so early this time of the pre-season? Ow yeah I forgot, they dont have Bonzy, who was probably one of the most injury plagued guy on their roster. Anyway BTTTC) and Man have I got to say this Barea guy has got something. I regret to say that I wasnt able to see the other "GREATNESS" that the rest beholds. How good is Caroll? And this Washington guy, did he play? And how good was he?
Barea IS small. I couldn't believe that the other refs were taller than him. Here in the P.I. some consider that height already falls under the category of tall. I mean, Bibby is taller than him. What's his height again?

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by dude1394

Assumption is that Pops has made the team although for some strange reason he didn't get any playing time.
----------------
Of the last left, washington, barrera, ebi, carroll. None are that impressive. Of those left however I think we keep ebi.

Pops isn't getting any playing time because the Mavs plan on developing him in the D-League... Ager has been getting time because he's going to be on the 13-man roster this season and Washington, Barea, Carroll, & Ebi are getting time to fight for the 15th spot...

The only reson I DON'T see us taking Ebi is because he can't play in the D-League since this is his 3rd season... None of the other guys have been all that impressive, but Barea has shown a lot of heart & hustle [and can develop in the D-League as a rookie], so I'm betting he'll get the spot if Washington or Carroll don't magically blossom into something special against the Bucks...

[mqywaaah]

Yeah. Barea could be a sweet pick.

[nikeball]

my pick goes to the little man! has more fight in him! more to prove.

[nashtymavsfan13]

Originally Posted by dude1394

Too bad he's not more popular, that's be worth some bucks I would think.

Yeah, it would be. I actually have a couple of them. Just think if it was Lebron instead?

[mnmpeanut]

you know its a good preseason when one of the biggest problems is who our 15th guy's gonna be.

i hope its dwash, but he'll probably end up in europe.

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by mnmpeanut

you know its a good preseason when one of the biggest problems is who our 15th guy's gonna be.

I gotta agree with the candy-coated chocolate-covered peanut...

[shaw-xx]

According to Mavs.com, they waived Carroll. Nice.

[kriD]

Mavericks Waive Pat Carroll

October 15, 2006 —The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have waived guard Pat Carroll. Carroll played in two of the Mavericks preseason games and averaged 2.5 points and 0.5 rebounds in 9.5 minutes per game.

The Mavericks signed Carroll as a rookie free agent on 8/17/06.

One down, two to go...

[Underdog]

Carroll didn't show ANYTHING in any of the preseason games he played... Barea, Ebi, & Washington have all had flashes of raw talent, but I bet one of them gets cut after the Houston game...

[dude1394]

I'm still taking ebi.

[EricaLubarsky]

Gimme JJB FTW

[fluid.forty.one]

Let's get Griffin again

[Five-ofan]

Originally Posted by fluid.forty.one

Let's get Griffin again

hes signed elsewhere(the bulls i believe)

[ty]

jjb

[fluid.forty.one]

Let's trade for Griffin