Mavs say Finley is staying put

[MavsFanFinley]

I didn't see this posted. If it is, let me know and I'll delete this thread.

Anyone find it interesting that Nelson pulled Finley aside in the morning and said they were not interested in trading him, but that night a rumor starts flying around?

Mavs say Finley is staying put
Coach assures veteran team not shopping him; Donnie likes this team

Sunday, November 9, 2003
By EDDIE SEFKO / The Dallas Morning News

Don Nelson pulled Michael Finley aside on Saturday morning before the Mavericks' shootaround in San Antonio. He wanted to clear the air of some speculation that was making the rounds.

"I told him we're not interested in trading him, no matter what he might be hearing," Nelson said.

Less than 10 hours later, Finley was the subject of a trade rumor that had its genesis more than three months ago and was rekindled Saturday in Portland and circulated at the SBC Center in San Antonio before the Mavericks finished their win over the Spurs.

Never mind that Finley's contract – worth more than $62 million over the four seasons after this one – also could make dealing the 6-7 swingman and cornerstone to the franchise's turnaround difficult, even if the Mavericks were inclined to do so.

There was no validity to the report that the Mavericks were dealing Finley and Antawn Jamison to the Trail Blazers for Rasheed Wallace and Bonzi Wells.

"Not one ounce of truth," Mavs president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said. "That was completely out of the blue."

The conjecture apparently was born out of conversations the Mavericks had with Portland in August, when Nick Van Exel still was with the team and the Mavericks were considering acquiring Arvydas Sabonis. This rumor clearly had mold on it.

So when the rumors were stomped out, the next order of business for the Mavericks' brass was to reassure players that they should not be walking on eggshells these days. There is no revolving door at the entrance to the Mavericks' locker room.

"To shake this thing up again wouldn't be the right thing to do," Donnie Nelson said. "Barring a no-brainer – and those just don't come along very often – the last thing we need right now is more change. We love the guys we have.

"Yes, we're vulnerable right now because we haven't developed chemistry yet. But we sit down with our guys and make sure they are all on the same page. And everybody likes where this team is headed. Everybody in the locker room likes the teammates they're sitting next to."

But after two major trades in the span of two months that seriously altered the look of the team, it would be human nature if players wondered who would be next to be packing their bags.

As Jamison said while dressing into a neatly tailored bronze suit after Saturday's game: "It's business," he said. "You gotta do what you gotta do."

The problem the Mavericks have to avoid is allowing the looming specter of another trade – real or imagined – to infiltrate their thoughts. Any player can be traded. And the Mavericks obviously are not afraid to pull the trigger.

But just because there were two rapid-fire trades and they still are in the market for a quality big man doesn't mean something is always in the works.

Two of the team captains, Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash, said they have not noticed the situation causing problems in the locker room. Nash, however, said he could understand how the issue might arise.

"I haven't seen any evidence of problems yet," he said. "Whether there are some guys who might wonder about it, I'm sure that's a possibility. But it hasn't been an issue with the team yet."

Said Nowitzki: "I think our problems have all been on the court so far, trying to get used to each other. I haven't heard anything about guys being worried about trades."

Owner Mark Cuban and Donnie Nelson have added two talented, versatile players to the squad in Jamison and Antoine Walker without disturbing the Big Three of Nash, Finley and Nowitzki.

That has created a situation where the Mavericks have elite-level players both in the starting lineup and coming off the bench.

Right now, rather than concerns about future player movement, the bigger worry is learning to fit all the pieces together.

As Donnie Nelson said: "If we had come off this road trip 2-1 instead of 1-2, we probably wouldn't even be having this conversation. But that's the way basketball is. Right now, our only concern is to focus on everybody trying to bring whatever they can to the table."

And for now, that requires players to believe that their future is with the Mavericks.