Dampier - 73 million, Devin Harris...

[Psychedelic Fuzz]

Dampier - 73 million and a fan favorite
Marquis Daniels - Mid Level Exception
Devin Harris - the reigning 6th man of the year
Nash walking away - jack squat

mavs #1 in opp 3p%
#2 in opp fg%
#1 in steals
#4 in opp pps
#2 in total rebounds
#2 in defensive boards

and still
#5 in ppg and not playing boring San Antonio/Detroit defensive basketball...

priceless

[Ninkobei]

Jeesh, that was the longest master card commercial ever.

[sike]

Originally posted by: Psychedelic Fuzz
Dampier - 73 million and a fan favorite
Marquis Daniels - Mid Level Exception
Devin Harris - the reigning 6th man of the year
Nash walking away - jack squat

mavs #1 in opp 3p%
#2 in opp fg%
#1 in steals
#4 in opp pps
#2 in reb %
#4 in total defensive boards

and still
#5 in ppg and not playing boring San Antonio/Detroit defensive basketball...

priceless

perfect example of why Fuzz should post more often...genius!

[u2sarajevo]

I liked it... however I would have added this to the beginning...

Jason Terry - Some spare that jacks up threes because he likes the way they make the clanking sound when they get missed.

[bernardos70]

He is shooting 40% this year though. 2.9 attempts, 1.1 made per game. I say keep shooting.

EDIT: If you're being sarcastic, I didn't get it.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-confused.gif[/img]

[u2sarajevo]

No sarcasm intended. Antoine Walker sucks. He is shooting 28.4% from downtown. Good riddance I say.

And as for Jason Terry, keep shooting. Please.

[TVI]

Originally posted by: Psychedelic Fuzz
#5 in ppg and not playing boring San Antonio/Detroit defensive basketball...

Aww, Fuzz. C'mon now...keep it real!

Dallas has improved, but they're far from the defensive juggernaut you are making them out to be...

Dallas gives up 45.66 rebounds per game (#25)
Dallas gives up more rebounds than they get (-.33 differential - #14)

And while Dallas does indeed score a whopping 2.82 ppg more than San Antonio...[img]i/expressions/anim_roller.gif[/img]

San Antonio is #2 in point differential (+9.78)...
San Antonio is #1 in points allowed (85.85)...
San Antonio is #1 in fg % allowed (0.411)...
San Antonio is #1 in assists diferential(+6.35)...
San Antonio is #1 in blocks allowed(+3.5)...
San Antonio is #2 in blocks diferential(+3.07)...
San Antonio is #6 in rebounds diferential(+2.78)...

Gotta give credit where credit's due...
[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

[G-Man]

True that San Antonio Defense is awesome. It is expected to be awesome.

What no one expects is the Mavs to hold anyone to 27 points in the 2nd half.

Mavs D may be the biggest surprize in the NBA this year.

Just hope it lasts. It feels like a dream we'll wake up from soon.

[Psychedelic Fuzz]

i have a hard time counting blocks allowed and block differential as defensive stats.
anyway, we could go back and forth all night. all it will prove is that you can find a stat to back up anything.

like:
SA only gets 1.3 more blocks/game than Dallas.

Dallas is #4 in TO differential
#9 in opp TO's
#5 in TO's
ahead of San Antonio in all 3 categories

SA ranks 29th in the league in opp 3%

I'm just pointing out that this team hasn't just improved defensively, it's one of the better defensive teams in the league, and doesn't have the anemic offense we've come to associate with good defensive teams.

[Evilmav2]

Aww, Fuzz. C'mon now...keep it real!

Dallas has improved, but they're far from the defensive juggernaut you are making them out to be...

Dallas gives up 45.66 rebounds per game (#25)
Dallas gives up more rebounds than they get (-.33 differential - #14)

And while Dallas does indeed score a whopping 2.82 ppg more than San Antonio...[img]i/expressions/anim_roller.gif[/img]

San Antonio is #2 in point differential (+9.78)...
San Antonio is #1 in points allowed (85.85)...
San Antonio is #1 in fg % allowed (0.411)...
San Antonio is #1 in assists diferential(+6.35)...
San Antonio is #1 in blocks allowed(+3.5)...
San Antonio is #2 in blocks diferential(+3.07)...
San Antonio is #6 in rebounds diferential(+2.78)...

Gotta give credit where credit's due...
[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

Yeah, but San Antonio basketball is still boring...

[sike]

Yeah, but San Antonio basketball is still boring...

true...

[bloodyhell]

damp gets 73 million, For how many years?

[kriD]

73 million for 7 years

BUT he has to appear in three All-Star games in the first six years OR play 2100 minutes in a minimum of 70 games during the 2009-2010 season to qualify for the final year.

So basically it's about 59.7 million for 6 years with a 7th year team option.

[Poindexter Einstein]

You can slice and dice the defensive stats 100 different ways to try to prove a point.

But the facts are extremely obvious, no matter how you slice it:

The Mavs play pretty darn good defense now, and everyone knows it.

Thats about all that needs to be said, to understand how effective the changes and the coaching have been, in getting players in here (and coaching them) into a team that can stop the opposition.

[madape]

8.9 points..... 2 first round draft picks
7.2 rebounds.... the rights to Eduardo Najera and Christian Laettner
Cap crippling 7 year contract....$73 million bucks

Milking a bonehead owner dry while putting up Raef LaFrenz like numbers.... WORTHLESS

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Give Damp a break, Lafrentz will never be an inside presence like Damp is. He's starting to get it. The last two games he has been very solid. As long as he stays under the basket, I'm happy. He also sets a MEAN pick. Probably my favorite thing about him is his pick setting.

[Poindexter Einstein]

MADAPE ... thanks for the reminder of how LITTLE the Mavs had to give up, to get such an effective center. Two scrub players, two scrub draft choices, and no change in cap status. In essence, a huge UPGRADE at center, for free.

What a steal!

[rakesh.s]

just wondering how devin harris is the reigning 6th man if he was never crowned

[Psychedelic Fuzz]

Harris cost us the reigning 6th man of the year.

[sike]

Originally posted by: kriD
it's about 59.7 million for 6 years with a 7th year team option.

was that seventh year team option ever disclosed? I never remember reading anything conclusive.

[madape]

and no change in cap status.

Remind me again about why Nash is no longer here? Oh yeah, Cuban said that we couldn't afford to pay the two-time all star All NBA honored point guard his market value.

But when presented the opportunity to ridiculously overpay for a journeyman center who's career averages are 8.9 points and 7.2 boards a game, he couldn't reach fast enough to flush that cash down the toilet.

If it was free money to sign Dump, why was it not free money to re-sign Nash? Seems like we picked one over the other to me... or panicked late in the offseason when it looked like our team was quickly forming into a stinking pile of crap. Either way, the dump signing was not a steal. It was a robbery. And the Mavericks are his unfortunate victim.

[sike]

Originally posted by: Poindexter Einstein
MADAPE ... thanks for the reminder of how LITTLE the Mavs had to give up, to get such an effective center. Two scrub players, two scrub draft choices, and no change in cap status. In essence, a huge UPGRADE at center, for free. What a steal!

indeed. As long as they get the same effort that Damp has shown the last two games, this deal is a no brainer.

[Poindexter Einstein]

MADAPE ...Signing Nash would have added money to the payroll, dollar for dollar. He was a free agent. Then, on top of that, he was offered far OVER market value by Phoenix - no one disputes that fact.

By contrast, Dampier was not a free agent signing (adding payroll) but rather was a trade - where you have to match contracts and send away what you take back. So the cost was Najera and Laetner - which is a yawnable price.

You are funny, cause the Mavs finally have a quality center who makes them good defensively, which they have lacked for many years, and you cant even recognize it. Are you STILL being madly in love with your boy Shawn Bradley as if he can provide everything the Mavs need at center? Sounds like it.

[sike]

Either way, the dump signing was not a steal.

the "steal" factor has yet to be determined...if Harris turns out to be the player we imagine, and Damp turns into a double double type center who consistantly gives you the tough interior defense the Mavs have lacked for years, then all is well.

If by fair market value, you are saying the Mavs should have matched the PHX offer you are simply nuts. There is no way that Nash's game will hold up over those six years. Not too many 36 year old point guards putting up 17ppg and 9assistsppg.

[madape]

Originally posted by: Poindexter Einstein
MADAPE ...Signing Nash would have added money to the payroll, dollar for dollar. He was a free agent. Then, on top of that, he was offered far OVER market value by Phoenix - no one disputes that fact.

By contrast, Dampier was not a free agent signing (adding payroll) but rather was a trade - where you have to match contracts and send away what you take back. So the cost was Najera and Laetner - which is a yawnable price.

You are funny, cause the Mavs finally have a quality center who makes them good defensively, which they have lacked for many years, and you cant even recognize it. Are you STILL being madly in love with your boy Shawn Bradley as if he can provide everything the Mavs need at center? Sounds like it.

First of all, Laettner's contract expires this year, and Najera's soon after.. the next six years are certainly added salary cap over what we'd pay if we simply would shown a little patience and waited out those contracts.

The real story however is that we aquired three other centers this offseason before we decided to change direction and go with Dampier. I don't think it's out of the realm of reality to think that MBenga, Pavel, or Booth could average 8 points and 7 boards. Those numbers are Dampier's career averages, and incidentally they are exactly what he's averaging this year. Don't be fooled. Those numbers are fairly pedestrian.

We certainly could have aquired ANOTEHR center for far less than we're paying Damp that could put up the kind of numbers we're seeing out of Damp. In fact, I think we have four centers on the roster now who could do exactly the same, if not more if given the same number of minutes. Dampier gets the benefit of playing time here, which is something that no other center has ever received under Nelson. That's the ONLY reason why people are noticing a difference between this year an last. I don't doubt for a second that any of our four other centers could easily match or exceed Dampier's production thus far. In fact, we could have signed Oestertag, Keon Clark, Chris Mihm or any run of the mill center for peanuts, played them 30 minutes and they would have given us around 8 points 7 rebounds.

What you don't do is pay nearly $80 million for that kind of production. No way in hell you do. Add on the fact that we gave up 2 first round draft picks and two solid veteran rotation players and the deal looks ridiculous. There's a reason that most experts laughed out loud when they read the terms of the deal, and it's not because they're Mavericks fans. They laughed because Cuban got played BIG time. We've got one of the worst starting centers in the league, and we pay him like he's an all-world player.

And you can spin the Nash bafoonery all you want, but it's arguable that right now he's the best point guard in the NBA. I don't doubt for a second that the guy will be busting people up well into his late thirties. He's going to earn every last dime of that contract, and he'll go into the Hall of Fame wearing his Phoenix Sun Jersey. When he retires, columns will be written about Cuban's decision to let him go, and they will be far from complementary.

[grndmstr_c]

What you don't do is pay nearly $80 million for that kind of production. No way in hell you do. Add on the fact that we gave up 2 first round draft picks and two solid veteran rotation players and the deal looks ridiculous. There's a reason that most experts laughed out loud when they read the terms of the deal, and it's not because they're Mavericks fans. They laughed because Cuban got played BIG time. We've got one of the worst starting centers in the league, and we pay him like he's an all-world player.

First, the contract is more likely to be in the 60 million range, and even if it goes the full 7 years you're bending reality a bit to call it nearly 80 million. Second, one of the first round picks probably won't end up being a pick from what I've read, and the "two solid veteran rotation players" wouldn't have been that on this team, and barely deserved to be considered that on their new teams, what with Laettner barely sniffing the court in PF-starved Miami, and Najera not really doing anything of note in GS. Third, your memory of the reaction of the experts is different than mine.

[GermanBlitzkrieg]

Ape, too early to say you're wrong. But, Damp HAS been a major upgrade in the middle. I've watched the games. Except for a couple of games, he's given us a clogged up middle. The defensive improvement and record speak volumes. And, no Nash taking shots and plays best reserved for Dirk. It's now Dirk's team. With Nash, that would still be muddled.

Like I said, too early to judge. But what matters are Ws. And I like what I'm seeing.

[Ninkobei]

It's not like Cuban didn't offer Nash good money. He offered him over 10 million a year. Nash just wanted the 13 mil a year he got from Phoenix. IE: He wants that extra mansion for his pet kangaroo.

[kg_veteran]

Two thoughts:

1. Is Erick Dampier REALLY one of the worst starting centers in the NBA? It seems to me that he's one of the best centers in the Western Conference.

2. Isn't it a little early to be proclaiming that Nash will make the Hall of Fame? Unlike the Rolling Stones, time is not on his side, and he needs to add quite a bit of padding to his career stats if he hopes to make it there.

[sike]

We aquired three other centers this offseason before we decided to change direction and go with Dampier. I don't think it's out of the realm of reality to think that MBenga, Pavel, or Booth could average 8 points and 7 boards. Those numbers are Dampier's career averages, and incidentally they are exactly what he's averaging this year. Don't be fooled. Those numbers are fairly pedestrian.

so, no ajustment time or learning curve needed in Nellie's system for Damp? Or just none that you are willing to grant? You of all people, being the Bradley apologist that you are, should be honest enough to admit that the box score does not reveal all true impact. Bradley often has poor box scores and yet you rightly prasie all the challenged shots and pressures that highly impacted the game but failed to make the box. Yet you will not show Damp the same. Damp's impact has been largely unrecorded by box scores. The fact that scrubs have not been hanging career nights on us by walking down the lane for easy layups/dunks is due largely to him being in the middle to dominate the interior. I find it unfair that you grant this to your chosen one, Bradley, but not to your hated Dampier. If you think Shawn or Dj or Booth could really make the same kind of impact that Damp does one on one with the Centers of this league, you must be watching another game.

Dampier gets the benefit of playing time here, which is something that no other center has ever received under Nelson. That's the ONLY reason why people are noticing a difference between this year an last.

you are usually an intelligent poster, but this statement is rediculous. Even when Bradley was getting serious mintues a few years ago this team's defense was nothing like it is now. Certainly more defensive minded guards play a part in the improved D, but the presence of Damp in the middle is something that Bradley(or Booth or DJ) cannot bring: A real banger with real size.

I don't doubt for a second that any of our four other centers could easily match or exceed Dampier's production thus far.

the season is early, and I'm not nearly the Damp apologist that you are for Bradley, if Damp proves nothing more than a totally inconsistant mess, then I will be here to admit it. But from what we have seen lately, Damp may be turning a corner. He may not be the 12 & 12 guy that some expected (not I) but if he is a 10 & 10 guy on this team I will be more than happy. I, and most others, don't expect Dampier to be a TD or KG like guy...just solid and strong...we already have our TD/KG guy.

What you don't do is pay nearly $80 million for that kind of production. No way in hell you do. Add on the fact that we gave up 2 first round draft picks and two solid veteran rotation players and the deal looks ridiculous. There's a reason that most experts laughed out loud when they read the terms of the deal, and it's not because they're Mavericks fans. They laughed because Cuban got played BIG time. We've got one of the worst starting centers in the league, and we pay him like he's an all-world player.

revisionist history to be sure.

And you can spin the Nash bafoonery all you want, but it's arguable that right now he's the best point guard in the NBA.

I totally agree

I don't doubt for a second that the guy will be busting people up well into his late thirties.

I totally disagree. Nash will retire as soon as possible and go live the easy life. He is no Stockton, he'll be an average to good point guard when he's 35 if he has not suffered any serious injuries.(admitted speculation)

He's going to earn every last dime of that contract, and he'll go into the Hall of Fame wearing his Phoenix Sun Jersey. When he retires, columns will be written about Cuban's decision to let him go, and they will be far from complementary.

well, I guess your speculation is no better than mine, so I'll guess we'll just have to wait and see on this one.

[Poindexter Einstein]

MADAPE: "we gave up ... two solid veteran rotation players ..."

When you evaluate Najera and Laettner in such a manner ("solid veteran rotation players"), I (a) almost died laughing, and (b) understood how flawed your analysis of players is.

Here in Dallas last year, Najera was a 3rd string center on a team who sorely needed a center, and a 3rd string SF on a team who lacked one, and a 5th team PF. He provided hustle, but was constantly injured. Laettner was in such demand that the Warriors paid him in full to go away, rather than keep him on their roster.

Those are the players of YOUR dreams? Ack, if I was Shawn Bradley, i would be insulted to be placed in such company, in the pantheon of "players that Madape thinks are wonderful."

I WOULD ADDRESS ALL THE OTHER POINTS OF YOUR SILLY ANALYSIS, BUT THE OTHERS ALREADY SKEWERED IT SO WELL THAT THERE IS NO NEED TO DO IT AGAIN. We have a solid center in Dallas now, and maybe someday you will open your eyes and appreciate the upgrade that has finally arrived. He isnt perfect, but thats how centers are - they come with flaws. BUT, he is the very thing we have been wanting here for the last 10-15 years, and I sure as heck am thrilled to see it.

[StrikerV]

Steve Nash is averaging 11.2 assists / 15.7 ppg

Would we want that or Damps average production / Effective Defensive Upgrade to our team.

Its sorta hard to say... but I go with Damp for now...in 2 years, we will know.

[madape]

Originally posted by: Poindexter Einstein

When you evaluate Najera and Laettner in such a manner ("solid veteran rotation players"), I (a) almost died laughing, and (b) understood how flawed your analysis of players is.

Here in Dallas last year, Najera was a 3rd string center on a team who sorely needed a center, and a 3rd string SF on a team who lacked one, and a 5th team PF. He provided hustle, but was constantly injured. Laettner was in such demand that the Warriors paid him in full to go away, rather than keep him on their roster.

Those are the players of YOUR dreams? Ack, if I was Shawn Bradley, i would be insulted to be placed in such company, in the pantheon of "players that Madape thinks are wonderful."

I WOULD ADDRESS ALL THE OTHER POINTS OF YOUR SILLY ANALYSIS, BUT THE OTHERS ALREADY SKEWERED IT SO WELL THAT THERE IS NO NEED TO DO IT AGAIN. We have a solid center in Dallas now, and maybe someday you will open your eyes and appreciate the upgrade that has finally arrived. He isnt perfect, but thats how centers are - they come with flaws. BUT, he is the very thing we have been wanting here for the last 10-15 years, and I sure as heck am thrilled to see it.

I have no doubt that Erick Dampier is a mediocre center, and I agree with you that he has flaws, and that he certainly isn't perfect. If 8 points and 7 rebounds looks like an elite center to you, than YOU are the one who needs to open his eyes. Those numbers are NOT indicative of "one of the best centers in the Western Conference" as many have argued. They are indicative of a man who should be earning about $4 million a year. I too am more than happy to be seeing significant court time being given to a true center. It's unfortunate that those minutes are going to a man who hurts us more than helps us (check the plus minus stats), and to someone who's contract will be an albatross on our necks until the year 2011.

I thought we did a damn good job of addressing the center situation with good smart pickups like MBenga, Pavel, and Booth. All of which in time could have matched or excede the prodcution we're currently seeing from Erick Dampier at a fraction of the cost. It's not even worth mentioning the two time NBA shotblocking champion with strataspheric plus minus production who can barely get off the bench for this team. I firmly beleive that if we employed a steady rotation of Bradley/Booth/MBenga, we'd see better numbers and more wins.

Dampier is a guy that virtually no one else in the NBA wanted to pay more than the mid level exception to get, and we give him a contract worthy of a player with twice his ability. Golden State had zero interest in keeping him, and probably would have let him go for nothing if the Mavericks hadn't stepped in to be their fairy godmother. I admit that Laettner and Najera weren't the prizes of our roster at the time, but they are the kind of players that help teams win. I would rather have both backing up Dirk than see our future placed in the hands of a bum like Dampier. Dampier is a career loser and career underachiever. He's made a career of making others around him WORSE. It's scary as hell to think that we are a Dirk sprained ankle away from BECOMING the 2003 Golden State Warriors. And as much as I enjoy seeing a true center on the floor for more than 10 minutes a game, I do NOT want the Mavericks to become the Warriors.

At least before we traded for this guy, we were headed in the right direction. I was excited to watch Harris, MBenga, Pavel, Howard and Daniels grow with this team. I was anticipating that at least one of those two first round picks would turn into something special. I knew it would be a tough transition period when Nash was forced out, but I was comforted by the fact that we had a nice future to look forward to. A big chunk of that potential was traded away for a guy I long thought of as being one of the biggest walking turds in the NBA. His performance thus far is EXACTLY what I expected. Mediocre numbers... 3 crap games for every good one... just enough to keep bafoons talking about him as if he were one of the best centers in the NBA, and just enough to keep our future stars on the bench. People who pay attention should know better. People who have followed him longer than two months should know better. He's an average center at BEST. On a good night he looks like a real player, but the good nights are few and far between for Dampier. He's much more likely to lay an egg than to have a double double. If you expect anything more... well, as most Golden State fans would advise, get used to being disappointed.

[Max Power]

Originally posted by: madape
And you can spin the Nash bafoonery all you want, but it's arguable that right now he's the best point guard in the NBA. I don't doubt for a second that the guy will be busting people up well into his late thirties. He's going to earn every last dime of that contract, and he'll go into the Hall of Fame wearing his Phoenix Sun Jersey. When he retires, columns will be written about Cuban's decision to let him go, and they will be far from complementary.

Nash has played a LOT better than I expected in Phoenix. But how much of that is the fact that he felt "disrespected" by Cuban's opinion that Nash wouldn't hold up?

I know for a fact that when Nash played here he didn't have the muscle tone that he has now. In one of the interviews Nash said he started working out to prove his detractors (Cuban) wrong. Would Nash have put the same effort into building his body into a better NBA body if he had stayed here? Somehow I doubt it.

[grndmstr_c]

I thought we did a damn good job of addressing the center situation with good smart pickups like MBenga, Pavel, and Booth.

You're quoting +/- stats in your criticism of Dampier, so I'm surprised you haven't taken the time to look at the +/- for DJ and Booth, who are the 2nd and 3rd lowest rated players on the team by that measure at -39.1 and -20.7 respectively.

As for Damp's +/-, if you'd bothered to check the stats yourself you'd have noticed that Damp's +/- has climbed from being in the negative 20's a couple weeks ago all the way up to a -.9, which means that your appraisal of him as someone who hurts more than he helps rings hollow in terms of his play for the entire year, and is a gross mischaracterization of his impact more recently.

[Max Power]

Originally posted by: madape
If 8 points and 7 rebounds looks like an elite center to you, than YOU are the one who needs to open his eyes. Those numbers are NOT indicative of "one of the best centers in the Western Conference" as many have argued.

Why does Dampier have to be evaulated by his numbers? This isn't fantasy basketball.

I see driving lanes to the basket because Dampier has sealed off the interior defender (something that Bradley was physically incapable of doing). What number covers that?

I see offensive players declining to drive the lane on Dampier (despite Bradley being a shotblocker, players used to LOVE to drive on Bradley). What number covers that?

I see Dampier being able to cover low-post players one-on-one so the ball rarely comes inside (Bradley was a terrible one-on-one defender). What number covers that?

[sike]

Apology to Fuzz for a corruption of his very funny thread.

[Poindexter Einstein]

"Why does Dampier have to be evaulated by his numbers? This isn't fantasy basketball. "

Apparently the guy you are talking with doesnt understand real hoops. It is not a bunch of stats added together, and a bunch of +/- numbers, and a bunch of "per-48 mins" calculations, and the like. Little things sometimes are more important than big things. The effect you have on others can be huge but almost immeasurable. The things you mention are crucial. And how about this one: "do you take the pounding, where a player like Dirk is freed up to run and score and board? What number covers that?"

The thing I notice is that the Mavs arent that "soft in the middle" team any more. Unless Dampier is hurt, that is, and then they look a lot like last year. That tells me eloquently just how valuable he is. Benga, Pavel, and Booth arent even in the same ballpark - but then again, the guy who touts them as the better answer to the Mavs needs at center also thinks that Najera and Laettner were extremely valuable players. Good grief. Such worthless analysis tells me why he doesnt see the value of Damp, who IS incredibly valuable. He just doesnt know how hoops.

Does Damp also toss up those glittery stats? Nope. And who cares (other than some fantasy geek-a-zoid). The Mavs finally have a center who makes a difference.

[kg_veteran]

Originally posted by: Max Power

Why does Dampier have to be evaulated by his numbers? This isn't fantasy basketball.

I see driving lanes to the basket because Dampier has sealed off the interior defender (something that Bradley was physically incapable of doing). What number covers that?

I see offensive players declining to drive the lane on Dampier (despite Bradley being a shotblocker, players used to LOVE to drive on Bradley). What number covers that?

I see Dampier being able to cover low-post players one-on-one so the ball rarely comes inside (Bradley was a terrible one-on-one defender). What number covers that?

Excellent post.

I have been one of the most vocal posters on this board in support of playing Shawn Bradley more often and more consistently. I'm STILL not happy with how they use Shawn. I was also lukewarm about the acquisition of Dampier when he was initially acquired. I wasn't sure exactly how much he would improve the team. Having said that, even considering that he is inconsistent statistically and doesn't always seem to have 100% motivation, I have to admit that Dampier has been a HUGE improvement of the center spot here in Dallas. To suggest that playing a combination of Bradley, Booth, and Benga instead of Dampier would provide equal or better center play is crazy talk, IMO.

[dalmations202]

I have been one of the most vocal posters on this board in support of playing Shawn Bradley more often and more consistently. I'm STILL not happy with how they use Shawn. I was also lukewarm about the acquisition of Dampier when he was initially acquired. I wasn't sure exactly how much he would improve the team. Having said that, even considering that he is inconsistent statistically and doesn't always seem to have 100% motivation, I have to admit that Dampier has been a HUGE improvement of the center spot here in Dallas. To suggest that playing a combination of Bradley, Booth, and Benga instead of Dampier would provide equal or better center play is crazy talk, IMO.

I agree....Damp does seem to be the banger that the Mavs have been looking for. Although just watching, I still don't see the Booth fit now. How do you think this team would do with Booth gone, and his minutes going to Bradley and Benga?

Right now, if Nelson would learn how to play Bradley 12-20 min a night, with Damp getting close to 30, and Benga getting the rest, I think they would be better off. I still think Nelson should quit dreaming of Dirk being his center, and keep him away from there. IMO, Dirk has played way to much center already this year, and any time Henderson is in, then Dirk is the Center. I don't mind the Dirk, Henderson, Damp/Bradley lineup, but the Howard, Henderson, Dirk lineup needs to be forgotten about.