Minny struggles with new players - Dallas-Mavs.com Forums

LordOfTheMavs · 11-01-2003, 01:23 AM

64 pts by the TPups. Looks like the Mavs aren't the only team this year that will have a rough start to the season due to the addition of star players. 10 pts in the 1st quarter was lowest in franchise history. And these guys had all pre-season to work together. Anyone worried?
Mavs fans be ready for an up and down month or two of bball. I think we will go from looking unstopable one quarter to pathetic the next. One thing is for certain, this season will not be anything like last season. Raise the expectations or lower them. Whatever. But look for something much different this year.

4cwebb · 11-01-2003, 12:57 PM

I think that the addition of the new players to Minny's roster poses the same problems that the addition of Walker poses to the Mavs' lineup...all of the offensive roles have to be readjusted, and it is going to take some time for both teams to work through those adjustments.

In Minny's case, the changes were warranted. Still uncertain about the changes to the Mavs' offense.

LRB · 11-01-2003, 01:09 PM

Minny looked like they were playing their 1st preseson game and having a very off night of it as well.

4cwebb · 11-01-2003, 01:20 PM

I wouldn't be surprised if Minny continues to play poorly for the first month or so of the season...it's just going to take all of those guys some time to get used to playing with each other, and it's not going to get any better when they have to factor Wally into the mix. Also, I wonder how Hudson feels getting such a reduced role in the offense? I bet he's not happy about it.

LRB · 11-01-2003, 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by: 4cwebb
I wouldn't be surprised if Minny continues to play poorly for the first month or so of the season...it's just going to take all of those guys some time to get used to playing with each other, and it's not going to get any better when they have to factor Wally into the mix. Also, I wonder how Hudson feels getting such a reduced role in the offense? I bet he's not happy about it.

Wally is the one that I really worry about in that mix. He was already unhappy with his shots before the new aquisitions. Wally just has never struck me as much of a team player.

bogey · 11-01-2003, 03:45 PM

I wouldn't worry about Minny too much just yet. It's teh first couple of games. Ask me again in 2 months.

Murphy3 · 11-01-2003, 03:59 PM

well,..i'm no more worried about minnesota than i was before the season..i don't think their mix of players will work as planned. after two games, i've seen nothing to change my opinion

MavKikiNYC · 11-01-2003, 08:06 PM

Spree--nothing but class. Wonder which 'clique' he was in.

Chemistry of Alchemy? Sprewell Sounds Off
By LIZ ROBBINS

Published: November 2, 2003

SAN ANTONIO, Nov. 1 — The way Allan Houston and Charlie Ward see it, everybody is different off the court. And whether there were cliques formed around off-court interests on last season's Knicks team — as Latrell Sprewell asserted Friday night when he returned to the area when his Minnesota Timberwolves played New Jersey — Ward and Houston believed that they did not disrupt the team chemistry on the court.

"I don't think it was a problem," Houston said Saturday morning before the Knicks played the San Antonio Spurs. "We had a lot of pieces out of place, I don't think it was a problem between people not being best friends.

"Some people choose to do different things than other people choose to do, but we always treated everybody the same. I think a clique is more a group that separates themselves. I don't think it had a lot to do with chemistry — chemistry is on the court."

On Friday night, Sprewell said that his new team in Minnesota had great chemistry and then compared it to the situation in New York. "It's not like in New York, where there is a group of Christian guys, a group of guys who are into hip-hop, guys into their own little thing. Here, everybody is pretty much on the same page," Sprewell said.

He also believed that off-court closeness made it easier to win close games. The Knicks lost their first game to Orlando by squandering a 10-point lead in the final four minutes of regulation. Last season, the Knicks often squandered double-digit leads to lose games.

"Some times it could have any effect, when you're close off the court, you may have a connection," Houston said. "If you're on the court and you believe in somebody and everybody's proving themselves, you're going to go to that person."

Knicks Coach Don Chaney pointed out that Houston usually is that person but that he was — and still is — bothered by a sore right knee. Chaney did not blame the defeat on chemistry, but mistakes and Tracy McGrady.

"We made mistakes," Chaney said. "To me, it was more concentration and that we missed shots. When you get down to the line like that, you got to have a guy you can go to, our guy is crippled. Their guy stepped up."

Chaney admitted that he was surprised by what Sprewell said. "I think we have good chemistry. I thought we had good chemistry last year and he was part of that," Chaney said.

Ward, whom Chaney calls the "spiritual leader of the team," did not believe he was excluding Sprewell by his Christianity. "We invited everyone to come to our bible studies," Ward said. "There are no cliques on the basketball court because you're trying to win."

"Allan and I hang out a lot because we like going to the same places," Ward said. "Our families hang out because we like hanging out with each other, we learn a lot from each other. Nothing against anyone else, I don't hang out with Keith Van Horn. But when we get on the court and when we're at work, we're here to work. That has nothing to do with basketball. We've all had dinners together, during the course of our years together to work on the chemistry outside, but people are different.

"Everyone's not going to be on the same level as far as outside basketball."

He said that sacrifice and hard work make chemistry, but so, too, does skill and, Ward said, "guys making plays when you need them. Our team is getting there."

Kurt Thomas agreed with Ward and Houston. He saw Sprewell's statement as his opinion. "I definitely think last year we showed signs of the whole team getting along with each other," Thomas said. This year, even with new players like Van Horn, Dikembe Mutombo and three rookies, Thomas said the chemistry is coming along. "We're all having a lot of fun and there's not any attitude and that's really important."

bogey · 11-02-2003, 12:30 AM

I see noone noticed that the T-pups looked pretty good tonight.

Murphy3 · 11-02-2003, 12:49 AM

i'm sure they looked damn good putting up 73 points

bogey · 11-02-2003, 12:51 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by: Murphy3
i'm sure they looked damn good putting up 73 points

What I saw, they looked pretty damn good. Defensively they were swarming all over the craptors. I only saw a few minutes, but during that time the offense clicked fairly well.

LRB · 11-02-2003, 12:53 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by: bogey
I see noone noticed that the T-pups looked pretty good tonight.

When an NBA team only scores 73 points in a game they do not look good no matter how much they win by. It's a matter of the other team winning the Ugly contest.

bogey · 11-02-2003, 12:54 AM

They played some great defense and looked impressive doing it.

sike · 11-02-2003, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by: bogey
They played some great defense and looked impressive doing it.

playing great "D" is not impressive against a team with only one real offensive threat....the Raptors(sorry, could'nt force myselft to call them craptors[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]..oh guess i just did now...am the one using the stupid name...and looking 13 years old[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img])....just plan and simple: suck...they suck in the East.....they suck hard....in the East....so lets not see any Pup fans gloating about this sorry looking W......

by the way I have been on record as saying from the very biginning that this team will be the biggest flop of the year....as far as expectation to dilevery...or bang to hype ratio