2 More Moves? - Dallas-Mavs.com Forums

MavsFanFinley · 08-18-2003, 11:04 PM

2 More Moves?
Deal's Done - With More To Come

By Mike Fisher – DallasBasketball.com

You want some stories behind the story of the blockbuster trade the Mavs completed Monday? We’ll give you three of them:

Forget the ‘third-team’ talk; Mark Cuban tells us it was fairly innocuous. Factor in the possibility that at one time, Dallas’ discussions with Golden State focused on center Erick Dampier, a suggestion that the Mavs still know they need help at the 5. And, sources tell us, somebody ought to advise Warrior-turned-Mav Chris Mills to not bother unpacking his Samsonites.

Mavs President of Utopia Donnie Nelson says his cel phone was burning up this weekend with teams wanting a piece of the Antawn Jamison trade action. No doubt some of those calls were attempts to grab Mills and his expiring $6 million contract. But what a few third teams also wanted to do is find a way to continue the pillaging of the Warriors roster. In terms of talent, Dallas absolutely fleeced Golden State (giving up Nick Van Exel and a quartet of non-factors Evan Eschmeyer, Popeye Jones, Antoine Rigadeau and the off-court-value Avery Johnson in exchange for star Jamison, potential rotation players Danny Fortson and Jiri Welsch and cap-balancing throw-in Mills). Some other clubs hoped to surf the wave Cuban and the Nelsons created, but nothing more.

Mills’ presence is the only place where more hay can be made, and the Mavs didn’t need to muck up their agreed-upon swap with Golden State to make him available elsewhere. Mills can logically be packaged as a cap-room guy to help the Mavs in their pursuit to fill two remaining trouble areas: interior defensive help and a backup point guard.

Dampier might have worked. Brian Grant, Kurt Thomas, Dale Davis and others might still work. The Mavs still have exception money to play with, too. A big man? A little man? The exception might get you one, Mills might get you the other.

Meanwhile, may we shoot down a couple of wayward suggestions from the peanut gallery?

Our man Norm Hitzges, a friend, radio legend and DB.com contributor, is suggesting maybe Jamison should come off the bench. Think of the mismatches!

Norm is off the mark here in thinking, as many get caught up in doing, that the sixth man is more important than the fifth man. If ‘bench scoring’ is really that key, why not just bring Nowitzki in off the bench?

Same with the minutes argument that is, inevitably, brewing among Mavs fans. Question: Who plays how much? Answer: Who knows? We work on the assumption that the roster is still two moves away from being completed, and that those moves are coming soon. We’ll be patient enough to wait.

MFFL · 08-18-2003, 11:07 PM

This is an example of one the good articles that I USED to enjoy off of Fish's site. Last year it was too much stupid stuff and not enough basketball.

Chiwas · 08-18-2003, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Mills can logically be packaged as a cap-room guy to help the Mavs in their pursuit to fill two remaining trouble areas: interior defensive help and a backup point guard.

Fisher is reading us.

Drbio · 08-18-2003, 11:12 PM

Fisher gets half his stuff from this site. Great copying of us though.

MFFL · 08-18-2003, 11:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by: Drbio
Fisher gets half his stuff from this site.

He gets the other half from LMF

Rhylan · 08-18-2003, 11:33 PM

hehe.. it's all common knowledge, held by the 'alpha'-fans. Just a matter of which one is getting paid to write it. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

I could be in print/radio TOMORROW. I got the skillz, yo.

Tony tha Mavs fan · 08-18-2003, 11:48 PM

Quote:

And, sources tell us, somebody ought to advise Warrior-turned-Mav Chris Mills to not bother unpacking his Samsonites.

Does this mean the Mavs are gonna trade Chris Mills before the 24 hour time period ? Fish got some kinda inside information, i wonder who might be inquiring about him?

Blonde Bomber · 08-19-2003, 08:04 AM

Does the 24 hour period start AFTER the trade is accepted from the league office?

If so, that means the Mavs still could trade Mills now instead of waiting for two months. I might be inclined to hold onto Mills until the trade deadline when teams are looking to dump for the next year.
We might get better value then. Plus well see how Najera fits in our rotation and how much LaFrentz has progressed from last year. That way, they can be included if need be.

kg_veteran · 08-19-2003, 09:02 AM

Nice article by Fish. He summarized our thoughts quite well. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

Quote:

Dampier might have worked. Brian Grant, Kurt Thomas, Dale Davis and others might still work. The Mavs still have exception money to play with, too. A big man? A little man? The exception might get you one, Mills might get you the other.

Grant doesn't work because Cuban's not going to take on his salary at this point, plus we really only need a guy tall enough to play center.

Davis would work, but Portland's not going to give us his $9 million expiring salary for Mills' $6 million expiring salary and other compensation.

Kurt Thomas? There's another guy that can't play center.

More likely acquisitions include Theo Ratliff, Lorenzen Wright, or even Vladimir Stepania.

uberfan · 08-19-2003, 12:51 PM

We will have to wait to package Mills and Najera, not necessarily a bad idea, but:

Mills earns $6.6 MM so he could bring back as much as $7.69 MM salaries in trade by himslef now.

Of the people who have been mentioned, Seattle may be the best bet.

Booth makes $5.5 MM this year with 4 years left.

Potapenko makes $5.7 with 2 years left.

James makes $4.5 MM with 2 years left.

Seattle wants to dump Forte and his $1.08 salary. Forte is no backup PG, though.

Unless Memphis got a center from Seattle or GS, why would they trade Lorenzen Wright now?

Ratliff is out of reach unless we can package someone other than Mills. Not sure when Najera's BYC goes away. Someone said another 6 weeks.

So, unless we sign someone like Stepania, we may have to wait at least 60 days to trade for another 5.

kg_veteran · 08-19-2003, 12:56 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by: uberfan
We will have to wait to package Mills and Najera, not necessarily a bad idea, but:

Mills earns $6.6 MM so he could bring back as much as $7.69 MM salaries in trade by himslef now.

Of the people who have been mentioned, Seattle may be the best bet.

Booth makes $5.5 MM this year with 4 years left.

Potapenko makes $5.7 with 2 years left.

James makes $4.5 MM with 2 years left.

Seattle wants to dump Forte and his $1.08 salary. Forte is no backup PG, though.

Unless Memphis got a center from Seattle or GS, why would they trade Lorenzen Wright now?

Ratliff is out of reach unless we can package someone other than Mills. Not sure when Najera's BYC goes away. Someone said another 6 weeks.

So, unless we sign someone like Stepania, we may have to wait at least 60 days to trade for another 5.

You make a good point about Wright. I'm not sure he's obtainable.

If a Seattle center is the best we can do, we'd be wise to wait. Seattle wasn't exactly solid in the middle last year.

Najera and Mills might get you Ratliff on the eve of the season opener...

Big Boy Laroux · 08-19-2003, 01:47 PM

how about najera and mills for ratliff and dickau? that would be sweeeeeeeeeet. we'd get another crazy hair guy out of it.

by the way, i have no idea if this works contract-wise. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

XERXES · 08-19-2003, 02:00 PM

OP made the observation to me earlier that Mills will not be at today's press conference...i think they are trying to get something down as we speak (or type)...

Evilmav2 · 08-19-2003, 02:02 PM

Dan Dickau? Oh HELL YEahh....

Dickau might have been born to be a Mav....

Blonde Bomber · 08-19-2003, 02:04 PM

what about trading Mills to the Nuggets for Marcus Camby?

They both make around 6 million and Camby has two years left compared to Mills expiring after this year.
Maybe we can sweeten the deal with a 1st round pick. Camby, if healthy, would slide into the starting 5 spot.

I want Camby or either find a way to get Ratliff.

Big Boy Laroux · 08-19-2003, 02:13 PM

man, i've been a zags fan since my sophomore year in college (my roommate and i watched them tear up the university of memphis... richie frahm had a hell of a game)...

so anyway, i've followed all those guys, and dickau is one hell of a player. clutch, too (at least in college). i haven't watched him much with atlanta, but i would love ot have him as a mav.

damn realgm doesn't have our new roster yet. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

jayC · 08-19-2003, 04:09 PM

Hello, everything is recycled.

Best Fits know
Dale Davis- I just don't see the trailblazers helping us win the title.
Thomas for bradley lets see how far the rabitt hole Scott Layden's facsination goes with the mantis.
Stepania-good rebounders don't grow on trees. For the right price.
We still don't know what we have with Danny.
Ratliff- seems to be the perfect fit a good defender and a solid rebounder. Somewhat injury prone but with this team who cares?

PGs
1) Best
2)Anderson
Pipe dreams
Jayson Williams

MFFL · 08-19-2003, 05:23 PM

I'd love to see big Z here. We could live with him missing a game or ten with injuries.

OutletPass · 08-19-2003, 05:32 PM

Just think they've been after Ratliff...but it does take the other team to say yes...as Cuban was quoted as saying much earlier..."some GM's just don't have the stones".

MFFL · 08-22-2003, 08:48 AM

http://www.dfw.com/mld/startelegram/sports/6592503.htm

A couple more moves could tweak a roster that has 14-players under contract for next season. Chris Mills, in the last year of a contract playing $6.6 million, was also acquired Monday but is on the trading block and could be moved by Thursday. (The nine players in Monday's trade have 10 days to report and pass physicals with their new teams. The Mavs can't trade Mills until the 10-day period ends.)

The Mavs would like to use Mills to land another frontcourt player, preferably a center or power forward.