# Can Dallas reach the finals?



## Floods (Oct 25, 2005)

It may be a little Early for Mavs/Finals talk, but i have a feeling should the Mavs meet up with San Anton in the playoffs, they could win in a 7-game series. They lost Doug Christie, but this team could always score, now they can defend, and still score! Mavs/Cavs 2006 NBA finals

P.S. i know at least 2 people will rip me for this post


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## KokoTheMonkey (Aug 4, 2003)

Well yeah, Dallas can reach the Finals, providing that they are healthy come playoff time. I think this team has a much better outlook with Avery as the coach and with Devin Harris and Daniels playing very well this season.


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## Floods (Oct 25, 2005)

Same here. Daniels is awesome (why does it always seem undrafted rookies turning out to be awesome??), Harris will be great, Howard great defender, and oh yeah Nowitzki. And Dampier. And Van Horn. And Terry. And Stack.


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## Chalie Boy (Aug 26, 2002)

Yes the Mavs CAN reach the finals. Key word CAN. It will take A FULLY healthy team, Dirk being more of a leader instead of a *****er, Terry playing his butt of come playoff time, J-Ho being J-Ho, Daniels needs to play within his game, We need Damp and Diop to play aggressively but stay out of too much foul trouble, and that good spark off the bench KVH, Stack, and Harris. Avery has this team playing hard and they are rebounding better and trying on defense, while still putting up points. Thats more than we could say before even when we were a 60 win team. THE MAIN KEY IS TO STAY HEALTHY!!! :gopray:


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## LionOfJudah (May 27, 2003)

Healthy and maintain the level of play as high as its been early on this year...

We can be healthy and still play like crap. You can have injuries and play good basket ball. :whoknows:


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## JT (Mar 1, 2004)

i don't think so. i don't trust dirk as the best player of a team. plus they haven't made any major moves from last year, and you know how insanity is repeating the same thing but expecting different results...


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## Pnack (Aug 23, 2005)

it wouldnt suprise me at all if they did...but there gonna have to go through San Antonio who is great at shutting down the up-tempo like game the Mavs like do run


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## Chalie Boy (Aug 26, 2002)

stevemc said:


> Healthy and maintain the level of play as high as its been early on this year...
> 
> We can be healthy and still play like crap. You can have injuries and play good basket ball. :whoknows:


You can have injuries and play good basketball, but no J-Ho no finals period. You can't lose a key core player of your team for a long period of time. Or lose them during the playoffs etc..


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## Mavericks_Fan (Apr 19, 2005)

The Mavs obviously can go to the finals, but health is the biggest concern.

Other concerns are, first of all, Dirk's aggressiveness. Doing nothing on the court other than tossing up fade away 20 footers all game long won't get it done. Why he's been playing like that the past 3 games is a mystery, and I hope he snaps out of that real quick.

Also the defense must be more consistent. Mavs have shown flashed of great defense and flashed of Nellie defense. It doesn't have to be solid, lock down, detroit D every night, but it has be to at least good and consistent. The lapses will kill you as the San Antonios and Detroits will take advantage of it.


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## xray (Feb 21, 2005)

Mavericks_Fan said:


> ...(o)ther concerns are, first of all, Dirk's aggressiveness. Doing nothing on the court other than tossing up fade away 20 footers all game long won't get it done. Why he's been playing like that the past 3 games is a mystery, and I hope he snaps out of that real quick...


I can't tell you how much Dirk has fallen out of favor with me (I'm sure he's real worried about that, lol); but something has changed, and it makes me wonder if we should (buy low and) sell high. His value, IMO, is higher around the league than it is with the Mavericks.

Any time that is true, you should explore your opportunities. That would obviously change the course of this team, and its season.


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## Chalie Boy (Aug 26, 2002)

bray1967 said:


> I can't tell you how much Dirk has fallen out of favor with me (I'm sure he's real worried about that, lol); but something has changed, and it makes me wonder if we should (buy low and) sell high. His value, IMO, is higher around the league than it is with the Mavericks.
> 
> Any time that is true, you should explore your opportunities. That would obviously change the course of this team, and its season.


Are you suggesting trade? If so for who? Dirk is widely considered as a top 7 player..


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## Floods (Oct 25, 2005)

Trade him to Boston, that would make me happy :biggrin:


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## Mavericks_Fan (Apr 19, 2005)

bray1967 said:


> I can't tell you how much Dirk has fallen out of favor with me (I'm sure he's real worried about that, lol); but something has changed, and it makes me wonder if we should (buy low and) sell high. His value, IMO, is higher around the league than it is with the Mavericks.
> 
> Any time that is true, you should explore your opportunities. That would obviously change the course of this team, and its season.


There's nobody in the league who is available that would be better than Dirk. I've said before and I'll say again the only guy in the league I would trade Dirk for is Tim Duncan. Nobody else would be worth it.

Who you gonna trade for?...

Shaq: Old and broke down and injury prone, plus I can't stand him (which admittedly is meaningless here)
T-Mac: Injury prone, is always one step away from throwing his back out for weeks on end. Doesn't seem to have the fire to elevate a team to next step
KG: Bad knees and doesn't have the ability to score the way Dirk does, and this team needs someone to score the way it's built presently
Pierce: Not as good of a scorer as Dirk, and offers really nothing else better than Dirk to compensate for it.
AI: We'd be a .500 team at best trading Dirk for AI.
Kobe: What would be the difference between the two? Only difference right now is Kobe shoots more, but Dirk can get more rebounds and is bigger.

So who are you going to trade Dirk for and get what he's worth out of it? If you can't get Duncan then you'd only make the team worse.


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## xray (Feb 21, 2005)

Maverick_Fan, you presented your case well; and that is the opinion of the majority, I'm sure.

But I'm not convinced. I agree with your assessment of the players you listed, for the most part; however, chemistry cannot be predicted - (I'm not proposing a trade here, but) Dirk in a Pistons uniform, would Dirk become a more determined player in that enviroment? 

That's my gripe with Dirk (and yours as well). He's a wonderfully talented player, who either cannot or will not step up big lately. It seems natural to want to be "The Man" during this time of Josh's (and Stack's) absence, but it appears Terry is more suited for that role. I don't want him screaming at Damp or Devin after a play - I want him pissed enough to try to rip the rim off, or jack it from 30 - knowing well it will go in.


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## mff4l (Dec 31, 2004)

bray1967 said:


> Maverick_Fan, you presented your case well; and that is the opinion of the majority, I'm sure.
> 
> But I'm not convinced. I agree with your assessment of the players you listed, for the most part; however, chemistry cannot be predicted - (I'm not proposing a trade here, but) Dirk in a Pistons uniform, would Dirk become a more determined player in that enviroment?
> 
> That's my gripe with Dirk (and yours as well). He's a wonderfully talented player, who either cannot or will not step up big lately. It seems natural to want to be "The Man" during this time of Josh's (and Stack's) absence, but it appears Terry is more suited for that role. I don't want him screaming at Damp or Devin after a play - I want him pissed enough to try to rip the rim off, or jack it from 30 - knowing well it will go in.


if you look at the flow of the games you will see why it's happening. dirk is "the man" people know that and try to take the ball out of his hands. he's gets frustrated sometimes and forces some bad shots (especially the last 3 games) but guys like howard, terry, and daniels have all gotten good looks because of it.


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## xray (Feb 21, 2005)

mff4l said:


> if you look at the flow of the games you will see why it's happening. dirk is "the man" people know that and try to take the ball out of his hands. he's gets frustrated sometimes and forces some bad shots (especially the last 3 games) but guys like howard, terry, and daniels have all gotten good looks because of it.


MFF4L - you're right that teams are defending him as the primary focus, but if "guys like howard, terry, and daniels have gotten good looks because of it", then where are Dirk's assist numbers? 

Dirk is either being shut down (compared to his previous output), or he is not adjusting to "the flow of the games". Perhaps this is a stage in his career that he will improve on (passing, assists), but he's been in the league, what 8 years? 

I understand, in perspective, he's still young; but at this stage in his career, he should be showing us what he is - instead of trying to figure out what he will become.


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## mff4l (Dec 31, 2004)

bray1967 said:


> MFF4L - you're right that teams are defending him as the primary focus, but if "guys like howard, terry, and daniels have gotten good looks because of it", then where are Dirk's assist numbers?
> 
> Dirk is either being shut down (compared to his previous output), or he is not adjusting to "the flow of the games". Perhaps this is a stage in his career that he will improve on (passing, assists), but he's been in the league, what 8 years?
> 
> I understand, in perspective, he's still young; but at this stage in his career, he should be showing us what he is - instead of trying to figure out what he will become.



he's still adjusting to playing without nash and he still doesnt have a true pg. so he's forcing shots. the thing is this. dirk will never be a high assist man. ive accepted that. the thing is when dirk is doubled he usually swings the ball then another pass to an open teammate for an open look. it's not always on the first look but when guys like dirk draw double and triple teams you have guys frantically trying to rotate over. so although dirk doesn't always get the assist the fact that he drew all the of the defense's focus opens up things for the rest of his team. the mavs as a whole are a pretty horrid passing team though. we really don't have any playmakers


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## B-Ball Fanatic (Jul 29, 2005)

I am tired of people complaining about Dirk. He is averaging 24 and 9 this season, and shooting 46% from the 3 point line. He has not hit his peak this year yet, and his double-teams are stimulating the Mavericks offense. Dirk Nowitzki is on the top 5 list of every GM in the league, and the best thing is he is only 27. I would have to agree that Tim Duncan is the only player I would rather have, and he does not average what Dirk does. Dirk Nowitzki is one of the 5 top players in the world, and we are lucky to have him in Dallas.


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## Mavericks_Fan (Apr 19, 2005)

B-Ball Fanatic said:


> I am tired of people complaining about Dirk. He is averaging 24 and 9 this season, and shooting 46% from the 3 point line. He has not hit his peak this year yet, and his double-teams are stimulating the Mavericks offense. Dirk Nowitzki is on the top 5 list of every GM in the league, and the best thing is he is only 27. I would have to agree that Tim Duncan is the only player I would rather have, and he does not average what Dirk does. Dirk Nowitzki is one of the 5 top players in the world, and we are lucky to have him in Dallas.


I have to agree with this.


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## Chalie Boy (Aug 26, 2002)

B-Ball Fanatic said:


> I am tired of people complaining about Dirk. He is averaging 24 and 9 this season, and shooting 46% from the 3 point line. He has not hit his peak this year yet, and his double-teams are stimulating the Mavericks offense. Dirk Nowitzki is on the top 5 list of every GM in the league, and the best thing is he is only 27. I would have to agree that Tim Duncan is the only player I would rather have, and he does not average what Dirk does. Dirk Nowitzki is one of the 5 top players in the world, and we are lucky to have him in Dallas.


Great post.


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## xray (Feb 21, 2005)

B-Ball Fanatic said:


> I am tired of people complaining about Dirk. He is averaging 24 and 9 this season, and shooting 46% from the 3 point line. He has not hit his peak this year yet, and his double-teams are stimulating the Mavericks offense. Dirk Nowitzki is on the top 5 list of every GM in the league, and the best thing is he is only 27. I would have to agree that Tim Duncan is the only player I would rather have, and he does not average what Dirk does. Dirk Nowitzki is one of the 5 top players in the world, and we are lucky to have him in Dallas.


I guess my Ferrari is the wrong color. 

Not a racist comment, I just want everything from one guy, I guess.


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