Dirk critical of Mavericks free agency

[j0Shi]

I personally think the Mavs indeed weren't aggressive enough. They tried to stay competitive while not taking on long-term money and bad deals in preparation of the rebuild that inevitably will come. This led to all the borderline 8th seeds and first round exits, because you simply can't content that way.

I truly believe they tried to change the strategy with Parsons though. They realized we have to overpay for talent and a chance at a new star. And Parsons nearly landed DJ last year. I get that's still a miss, but our change in approach nearly paid off instantly. Then of course Mavs lost confidence in Parsons injuries. That's just bad luck.

So they are trying the same path again. We didn't get the big names, cause still lacking assets, so here's the next young guy we're overpaying and hope he'll eventually contribute to a core that indeed is interesting for other FAs.

I also agree that the new CBA and salary-cap is something that simply couldn't be predicted. Not only the Mavs are struggling with it. That doesn't make us smarter than the rest, but also not worse.

I would add that teams are also still slowly adjusting to the new star mentality. LeBron failed to win a championship at Cleveland, so he teamed up in Miami. Howard failed at Orlando, went to Harden. Durant failed, now GSW. DJ stayed with Paul and Griffin. Stars are choosing easy ways to get their Rings and being the man or face of the franchise somewhere isn't necessarily a selling point any longer.

I think the only "stars" that sign into capspace nowadays are the Wades, which are past their prime and are mainly looking at the max amount of money the can grab.