Inside the Mavericks - Stop Bashing Dirk

[mary]

Enough with the bashing of Nowitzki
11:47 AM CDT on Thursday, May 26, 2005

This endless bashing of Dirk Nowitzki has to stop.

If another "Dirk the Jirk" e-mail comes wafting in from cyberspace, it will be immediately deleted without further review.

Apparently, there is a lot of latent anger about Nowitzki out there. In the playoffs, all he did was call out Erick Dampier, voice his displeasure about Jason Terry, call the team dumb and miss a 3-pointer that was admittedly poor shot selection with 10 seconds to go in the overtime of Game 6.

But what if he'd passed up that shot and passed the ball. Can't you already hear the howls that would have followed: Nowitzki doesn't want the ball in crunch time. He's unwilling to take the big shot.

NBA teams would rather have a superstar who is willing to take - and miss - big shots rather than one who shies away from them.

Nowitzki grew up some in this playoff run. Did he make some bad decisions? Yes. Should he pick his spots for chewing out teammates better in the future? Yes.

But should he shut up and go back to being the quiet, lead-by-example type?

Absolutely not.

Eddie Sefko

MAVERICKS Q&A

Q: When Steve Nash has a career year and a career playoff series it's easy to say Mark Cuban made a mistake by not re-signing Nash. However, the definition of “career year” or “career playoff series” is one that will never happen again (See Nick Van Exel). The flip side is, “What would the Mavs have been like with Nash?” Therefore I am challenging you to play GM and tell me the trades and acquisitions you would have made last summer that would have given the Mavs legitimate shot to contend for a title this year or next year?

Michael Bond

SEFKO: This is a fair question. Unlike D-Moore in these instances, I'll try to be brief. First, re-signing Nash would have been priority No. 1. I would have offered $10 million less than Phoenix and he would have stayed. Then I would have traded Antoine Walker to New York for Nazr Mohammed and spare parts. If you've noticed, Mohammed has been a pretty good center for the Spurs. I still would have done the Antawn Jamison deal for Jerry Stackhouse and the draft pick that would become Devin Harris, along with Christian Laettner. The Calvin Booth (and later Keith Van Horn) deals would also have been done. In this scenario, your starting lineup would have been Mohammed at center, Nowitzki and Josh Howard at forwards, Nash and Michael Finley at guards. Off the bench: Stackhouse, Harris, Marquis Daniels, Eduardo Najera and Booth/Van Horn. If Phoenix was still hot for Nash, I would have held out to see if they would have been willing to swap Shawn Marion for him. If not, let them rot. Not sure if this is a championship team. But it's not bad. And if Nash was as committed in Dallas as he was in Phoenix, it's a guaranteed conference finalist.

•••

Q: What does Cuban say now that Steve Nash has walked all over his team? Further, why does he constantly change the team? It never gets a chance to meld.

Sandi Durow, Los Angeles

SEFKO: I'm glad to see the combination of smog and suntan oil in Los Angeles hasn't consumed everybody's brain cells. You hit it on the head. Cuban needs merely to let this team grow for a year or two and see what develops. You never know when you might have a great product. And by the way, Cuban publicly has congratulated Nash. But in his lonely times, I'm sure he punches a hole in the wall that the little dude got the best of him.

•••

Q: I read what you guys said about having assets for sign-and-trade scenarios. Would the Mavericks be interested in trading Michael Finley to Seattle for Ray Allen?

Christian Lozano

SEFKO: Only if they can't trade him for Michael Redd. Or Larry Hughes. Hey, I'm all for it. But if you can convince anybody to take on Finley's $51.8 million for the next three years based on what he produced this season, then you instantly are NBA executive of the year. Teams would rather lose a free agent for nothing than take back a cap-clogging contract like Finley's.

•••

Q: Do you think a healthy Keith Van Horn would have made a difference in the Phoenix series?

Ely Weisz, Chicago

SEFKO: Yes. The Mavericks wouldn't have been in that series with him. They never would have gone small against Houston and figured out their little people were better than Houston's.

•••

Q: With the current contention between Erick Dampier and Dirk Nowitzki, I want to know if Dampier will be back next season. Also would he be considered a bust at this point?

Jay Madden, Fort Worth

SEFKO: Since we had dozens of Dampier-related questions this week, we took the one that best summarized them all. First off, Dampier has six more seasons and nearly $60 million guaranteed for the remainder of the contract. Coming off this season, can't see any team out there that would want to trade for him. Not even New York, which pursued him last summer. As for whether he's a bust, it's a shade early to be calling him Chan Ho Dampier. He's a bust so far the same way Drew Henson has been a bust for the Cowboys, with one major difference - Henson is young enough to improve. With Dampier, I fear what we see is what we get.

•••

Q: First, everybody knows the Nash deal looks bad this year. But in a couple years, when Nash is oft-injured and the Suns still owe him three more years, won't the deal look better? Second, who are the free agents for the Mavs, Suns and Spurs and are any of those teams under the cap?

Tim Raub, Portland, Texas

SEFKO: From a basketball standpoint, it's a bad deal now and it will be a bad deal three years from now. When the Mavericks traded Jason Kidd last decade, it was a bad deal. It's still a bad deal. Now, from a financial standpoint, I totally understand Mark Cuban's thinking. It was a sound financial decision. But in basketball terms - and especially if you consider that the Suns already have had seven more playoff games this season than last season (worth more than $1 million each to an owner) - then losing Nash was and always will be a bad decision. As for free agents, the Mavericks have Alan Henderson and Darrell Armstrong up for grabs. The Suns have Bo Outlaw, Joe Johnson and Paul Shirley available and the Spurs have only Devin Brown among their key players as a free agent. All of these teams are over the cap, although the Spurs and Suns are less than $10 million over it, while the Mavericks are almost $50 million over it.

•••

Q: I know this is far-fetched, but is there a possibility the Mavericks could make a play for Shaquille O'Neal again this summer?

Stephen Stokes

SEFKO: No chance. And judging from O'Neal's injuries this season, I'm not sure he's a guaranteed ticket to the NBA Finals anymore.

•••

Q: Wondering why you guys don't give any love to Jason Terry? He had a great first season with the Mavericks and a very good playoff run. Is it just because of his defense on that last Nash shot?

Mark Newby, Flower Mound, Texas

SEFKO: That's part of it, yes. It's a snapshot of a bigger picture in that Terry is not a true point guard. He's a scorer and he can do that very well. But defensively he is a liability and he does not handle the ball well on a consistent basis. But you are correct. I suspect we didn't appreciate Terry's accomplishments while they were happening. Consider this our warm-and-fuzzy love letter to the headband kid.

•••

Q: Is it time for Michael Finley to hang it up? He's been a warrior in good times and bad and is a class act. But he's looked overmatched lately.

Patrick Tyner

SEFKO: It's not time for him to retire. But it is time for him to become a 24-minute player off the bench. If he looks at things objectively, even Finley would probably see that he could be a monster in that role, getting plenty of shots per minute in a role similar to Vinnie Johnson in those championship years at Detroit.

•••

Q: I'd love to see some analysis done on Avery Johnson. Losing a 16-point lead comes back on the coach. They say he's a defensive-minded coach, but I haven't seen it. I blame him for not calling timeouts when he should have and for not utilizing their depth, which was their biggest asset.

Muhieddin Najib

SEFKO: No question Johnson has received plenty of rope from us in the media because he's only 18 games into his coaching career. He made mistakes, true. Who didn't in Game 6? Dirk Nowitzki made mistakes. So did Jason Terry and Erick Dampier. And Michael Finley is still trying to make a shot. But Johnson also made adjustments against Houston that tilted that series in Dallas' favor. If you are going to jab him for substitution patterns, you have to give him similar credit for resurrecting small ball and getting the team past the Rockets. Let's give the guy a little time. If next season doesn't produce a longer playoff run, then we can pull off the gloves - on everybody.

•••

Q: I love the Mavericks. They can do this every year, and I'm OK with it. But the hypocrisy of some of their statements drives me crazy. To wit: Mark Cuban says he won't let money stand in the way of jewelry. Then he says he couldn't have gotten Dampier, Terry and others if they'd kept Nash. Dampier can't match up with Yao because he's too tall. Dampier can't match up with Stoudemire because he's too quick. Geez, can this guy guard anybody beside D-Moore?

SEFKO: I can't think of a better way to put a lid on the Mavericks' playoff run than to point these
things out. And by the way, when exactly does that Nash breaking down thing start?


Text

[Thespiralgoeson]

Originally posted by: mary

Q: Do you think a healthy Keith Van Horn would have made a difference in the Phoenix series?

Ely Weisz, Chicago

SEFKO: Yes. The Mavericks wouldn't have been in that series with him. They never would have gone small against Houston and figured out their little people were better than Houston's.

What the hell is he talking about? That's utterly ridiculous. First of all, having KVH on the floor IS going small. I think having a 6'10 PF guard a 7'6 C is what I'd call small. And more importantly, KVH would have been a HUGE help against Phoenix. He matches up with Amare much better than anyone else on the team. I really think we would've won that series if we had KVH. Honestly, that comment is one the stupidest I've read.

[Drbio]

Sefko is an idiot.

[Bayliss]

This endless bashing of Dirk Nowitzki has to stop.

If another "Dirk the Jirk" e-mail comes wafting in from cyberspace, it will be immediately deleted without further review.

Apparently, there is a lot of latent anger about Nowitzki out there. In the playoffs, all he did was call out Erick Dampier, voice his displeasure about Jason Terry, call the team dumb and miss a 3-pointer that was admittedly poor shot selection with 10 seconds to go in the overtime of Game 6.

But what if he'd passed up that shot and passed the ball. Can't you already hear the howls that would have followed: Nowitzki doesn't want the ball in crunch time. He's unwilling to take the big shot.

NBA teams would rather have a superstar who is willing to take - and miss - big shots rather than one who shies away from them.

Nowitzki grew up some in this playoff run. Did he make some bad decisions? Yes. Should he pick his spots for chewing out teammates better in the future? Yes.

But should he shut up and go back to being the quiet, lead-by-example type?

Absolutely not.

He may be an idiot but he's right about that issue. Dirk may not have responded the correct way or performed his best.... but just a little while ago many people were questioning if he "wanted" the pressure of taking the shots..... or getting on his teammates.

Rome wasn't built in a day.... he normally isn't a jerk, so I don't think he'll stay one. And knowing when to pick your spots is just as important as actually speaking up. He was already behind the 8 ball as it was... considering the whole international thing. But I digress.

I'd rather see Dirk be pissed off that they lose the series and willing to improve his game. I'd rather see him want his team to succeed. I'd rather see him him bust his @ss on the court "trying." It could be worse, he could just not give a d@mn and go "ho-hum... there's always next year."

And for me... as a fan... that's far worse for the franchise player to be "ho-hum" than "pissed off."

[kg_veteran]

I agree with you, Bayliss. I was pretty upset with the way Dirk handled himself at the time, but the more I've thought about it I realize that the maturation process is just that -- a process. Dirk will get to where he needs to be as a leader, and there's no reason to think he's a jerk. The team seems to still be behind Dirk, and so am I.

And yes, Sefko is an idiot.

[Thespiralgoeson]

Maybe I'm the only one, but I actually didn't think that the way Dirk handled himself was wrong at all. Calling out Damp was absolutely the right thing to do. He played horribly in Game 1, and then he came back and played well... As for Terry... Maybe Dirk yelling at him didn't help the situation, but lord knows everyone who watched that game wanted to scream at Terry when he came off Nash. Sure, it probably wasn't what you'd call constructive criticism, but Terry made a bone-headed play that ultimately cost the game, and needed to be checked.

[Just211]

If every Mav gets towel whipped for missing defensive assignments, then Dirk better close his eyes, causes he'd get the shit whipped out him. Now if Dirk wasn't such a liability on defensive rotations, it be okay, but sometimes you have lead by example as well. And well, he doesn't. Hopefully Avery can fix that.

[Thespiralgoeson]

Originally posted by: Just211
If every Mav gets towel whipped for missing defensive assignments, then Dirk better close his eyes, causes he'd get the shit whipped out him. Now if Dirk wasn't such a liability on defensive rotations, it be okay, but sometimes you have lead by example as well. And well, he doesn't. Hopefully Avery can fix that.

Nobody here is saying that Dirk doesn't need to work on his D, but c'mon... This has nothing to do with "missing defensive assignments"... Terry was right in front of Nash, and came off of him. Nash hit the three and we lost in OT... It was a bone-headed mistake and he needed to be yelled at.

[jayC]

I see both points. One Dirk carried the team to get to the point of being a fourth seed. Two Dirk usually performs in the clutch his previous game 7's he had averaged 30 points and 15 rebounds. In 2002-2003 he had multiple 40 point games and finally on his career he is a 25ppg scorer in the playoffs. His past playoff performance was not him. And in those playoff games he abused smalls and took big men to the goal. In that playoff run Nash was a non factor, nick van exel was the playoff hero. Revisionist history with Sefko and the rest of the media. Nash was awful in last year's playoff run it appeared it was time for the mavs and nash to go their seperate ways. Did Nash win the title no? Their is one winner and 29 losers.

[Thespiralgoeson]

Of course Dirk didn't play as well as we expected him too, but it should be noted that this was his first ever playoffs without Nash, and without Nellie.

[dude1394]

I keep thinking what would amare be without nash, what would yao be without mcgrady. I don't know enough to know how affected duncan is without parker.

There was just dirk and very inconsistent number 2's. Not josh, not mike, not jason/stack consistently. Certainly not damp. Not to mention not having any semblance of a point guard that made plays for him. I'm not too upset about dirk's performance to be honest, I think that those that are aren't being very objective.

Dirk however does realise that he has to get to a point where he can punish smaller defenders in the post. I think that will be him improving his post game but also the team has to get him closer to the basket against those guys and when the double comes (and it will) his team-mates have to step up and make them pay.

As far as dirk hurting poor itty-bitty damps/jason's feelings, too dang bad, don't play like idiots.

[LRB]

SEFKO: This is a fair question. Unlike D-Moore in these instances, I'll try to be brief. First, re-signing Nash would have been priority No. 1. I would have offered $10 million less than Phoenix and he would have stayed.

What in the hell makes idiot sefko think that Nash would have stayed here for $10 million less than the Phoenix offer? Is he reading the tea leaves that fell out of his @$$?

[vjz]

Originally posted by: LRB

What in the hell makes idiot sefko think that Nash would have stayed here for $10 million less than the Phoenix offer? Is he reading the tea leaves that fell out of his @$$?

Funny [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

And very valid. On what basis is he assuming Nash would take $10 mil less? Pure speculation. If I remember correctly, Nash's statement was something like "If I take less, they may still trade me" and "Pheonix wanted me more..."

Even the statement is so damn arrogant "I would have..." and "... he would have stayed." Right.

[Rhylan]

"If Phoenix was still hot for Nash, I would have held out to see if they would have been willing to swap Shawn Marion for him. If not, let them rot."

This shows a fundamental misunderstanding of the oh-so-complex idea of free agency. You have no leverage, Sefko.. Nash can go any time he wants. There is no "holding out."

[dalmations202]

So Sefko is saying that he would get Nash to stay for 10M less than Phoenix is offering and then trade him to Phoenix.

Yea, that is going to bode well for the team with free agents, fans, etc.

From Nash's perspective:
I took less $$ to stay here, only to get sent to the same place for 10M less.

Players nor fans would ever show any loyalty to this organization again.

[TheBlameGame]

My guess is this won't go over well on my first post but here it goes.

Eddie Esefko is so far up Dirk's navel he can't see straight. The fans are not allowed to express displeasure with the way Dirk played in the playoffs but he can blame it all on Jason Terry who was the guy who got us to the second round virtually by himself?

The hypocrisy in the Dallas news has hit an all time low and Eddie is the leader.

[Misfit Mav]

Originally posted by: TheBlameGame
My guess is this won't go over well on my first post but here it goes.

Eddie Esefko is so far up Dirk's navel he can't see straight. The fans are not allowed to express displeasure with the way Dirk played in the playoffs but he can blame it all on Jason Terry who was the guy who got us to the second round virtually by himself?

The hypocrisy in the Dallas news has hit an all time low and Eddie is the leader.

I don't think Sefko is too much of a Mavs homer. In fact, he needles the Mavs pretty often-- he has that kind of snide "reverse-homerism" you get in the local press sometimes. I think it was fair to defend Dirk in this instance.

I agree with you that blaming Terry is dumb, but one outburst from Dirk does not amount to "blaming it all on Terry."

[TheBlameGame]

Originally posted by: Misfit Mav

I don't think Sefko is too much of a Mavs homer. In fact, he needles the Mavs pretty often-- he has that kind of snide "reverse-homerism" you get in the local press sometimes. I think it was fair to defend Dirk in this instance.

I agree with you that blaming Terry is dumb, but one outburst from Dirk does not amount to "blaming it all on Terry."

I am refering to the way he called out Jason Terry during one of the questions in that article. It sounded like he was blaming Jason to me.

[Misfit Mav]

Originally posted by: TheBlameGame

I am refering to the way he called out Jason Terry during one of the questions in that article. It sounded like he was blaming Jason to me.

Sorry- misread your original post. I thought you were referring to Dirk blaming Terry, not Sefko.

[DevinHarriswillstart]

The article doesn't change Dirk's poor performance though. I agree Dirk bashing is moot and pointless because he isn't going anywhere so people should just deal with it. Still, we always seem to go through the motions of stuff liek this. Whenever a player is bashed or something, an article or post always comes up with some defense of that player. It happened a lot with Antoine Walker. Dirk is my fav player in the league, but he did let us down in the playoffs. There is just no denying it.

[grndmstr_c]

There's no denying that Dirk could have played considerably better in the playoffs. The problem with all the bashing was that he was far from the only one at fault, and at least in the Phoenix series, the one the Mavs lost, he was considerably less culpable than most of the guys on the team - pretty much everybody outside of Josh underachieved. It's fine to criticize, but the fans and the media just got flat out of control for a while there.

[dirno2000]

All valid points gmc but that's pretty much the way it goes. Look at all the crap KG has taken over the years because the T-Wolves weren't good enough to advance past the 1st round of the playoffs despite the fact that his numbers have been stellar...same goes for C-Webb. When you're that much better than everyone else on the team, you're going to take the heat even if you play well...

[Texas Hokie]

Everyone needs to keep in perspective, however, that Dirk HAS delivered in the playoffs for several years. In some years (or at least series), he was the only one playing well, and sometimes appeared to be the only one with a clue. One bad post-season doesn't make him a playoff dud.

[TheBlameGame]

Michael Finley has come up big for the Mavs in the past but that doesn't stop people from nit picking him every game. I am not sure why Dirk gets a free ride. Even when he played badly last season and refused to take it to the hoop for almost the entire season no one was allowed to call him out on that.

It doesn't seem fair that he gets a free ride. Tim Duncan is having a not so good series against Detroit. Don't think for a second he won't have people doubting him if San Antonio loses this series and he will deserve the criticism just like Dirk deserves it. The difference in this situation is Tim has two titles and Dirk has none.

[Thespiralgoeson]

shut up