Another NBA season is upon us. The entrance to this year is quite interesting, probably the most compelling that I can recall. Think about all these things:
- the Mavericks flameout in the first round;
- the fallout from the Stoudemire/Diaw suspensions;
- the referee scandal;
- the lingering questions over Kobe's situation;
- the new look Celtics;
- they hype over Oden and Durant (and the subsequent punch in the gut that Blazers' fans have to experience).
There are so many compelling storylines that have happened since last year's playoffs through now that it's created more anticipation for the season (albeit not all good). Recall that two seasons ago, the big story to start the season was David Stern enforcing a dress code. Last season it was introducing a new ball. I would say that there's a little bit more to currently digest.
And that's a good thing too. Because it's pretty difficult to be a Mavericks' fan right now. I mean, I still love my team but the ghosts of the past two years are impossible to ignore. How can I properly enjoy this season? The Mavs could flirt with 70 wins, produce the MVP and coach of the year, make it to the Finals...and not a single Dallas fan could be blamed for not really getting excited. We've been down all of those roads the past two years only to experience heartbreak. Twice.
That has also been compounded by my move from Dallas to Austin during the NBA offseason. I took it for granted but at least when I was in Dallas I was never alone in my misery. After the last two playoffs there was always a shoulder to cry on. The sympathy doesn't extend quite as far here in the state capital. Sure there are some fellow Mavericks' fans here but I see a lot more people sporting Tim Duncan jerseys than I do those of Dirk Nowitzki. One of my coworkers is a diehard Spurs' fan and he never ceases to needle me about the Spurs dominance over the Mavericks. He seems to take particular delight in the loss of last season. It irks me just because I can't respond. What am I supposed to do, bring up 2006 Conference Semifinals? Then he'll just turn around and point out the collapse in Finals.
One thing I don't get is where the hatred that Spurs' fans have for the Mavericks originates. Ok, it's a rivalry, I get that. But it really only became that way over the past seven years or so really. During one conversation my coworker and I were having, I told him that I had rooted for the Rockets during their Finals' runs in the mid-90s and I had also rooted for the Spurs during their first two titles ('99, '03). I rooted for them because they were Texas teams and if MY team couldn't win it all, then I wanted another state team to do so. He responded that there was no way that he'd ever root for the Mavericks (I took note that he did NOT also mention the Rockets...interesting). Initially, I find that perplexing...why would I, along with many other Dallas fans that I know, so willingly root for other Texas teams when the feeling is in no way reciprocated? After thinking about it somewhat, I think I may have stumbled upon at least part of the reason.
Although I never really though of it as so, Dallas is apparently Texas' shining beacon to the rest of the world (as you read this, bear in mind that I am from Fort Worth not Dallas; all things being equal, given a choice between which city to live, I'd pick Fort Worth every single time). Houston is larger and more populated and San Antonio has a more famous legacy, but Dallas is the city that was given its own television soap opera. Dallas is home to more corporations, more millionaires, more...glitz. In recent years, Austin's popularity has grown exponentially but that's mainly because it offers such a radical alternative to the rest of the state. As I type, I'm sitting in a hotel in London. During my stay here, anytime someone has asked my where I'm from, and I reply, "Texas," invariably they mention JR and Bobby (a show that last aired 16 years ago). "Dallas" (both the city and the show) IS--for all intents and purposes--Texas to the rest of the world. As such, it suffers from Marsha Brady Syndrome (Dallas, Dallas, Dallas!) that I'm sure is not particularly appreciated by the residents of Texas' other major cities. And it doesn't help when you have bombastic owners such as Mark Cuban and Jerry Jones running the city's key sports' franchises. So while the attack from fellow Texans stings, I think that I can at least understand it.
I'm taking a different approach to the NBA this season. For the first time in years, I won't be playing fantasy basketball. Initially, this wasn't a conscious decision. I had planned to play but the first league that I was going to be a part of wanted to hold the draft on Sunday, October 28. That's all well and good except that because I was out of the country the draft would have started at around 12:30AM my time and I would have had to pay 15 pounds for internet access (kinda hard to explain why I'm expensing $30 for internet use at midnight). So I decided to opt out of the league. Then the more I thought about it, the more I realized that maybe it would be refreshing to not play in a league. Now I can just focus on rooting for the Mavericks, instead of also hoping that Tim Duncan goes for 35 and 17 against them since he's my starting PF/C.
The main thing that concerns me is the uneventful summer that Mark Cuban and Donnie Nelson had. Is keeping this team relatively the same really the right thing to do? Is the team's psyche strong enough to bounce back after the past two years? We shall see. One thing I'm not worried about is how Dirk bounces back. That may surprise people who don't follow the Mavs regularly, since they've most likely labeled him a choker. Look, if people want to harp on Dirk for the times he's fallen short, fine. Yes, he was unable to make the proper adjustments against the Warriors last season and he melted against the Heat the previous season (along with his entire team, I might add). But why is it that his critics are so quick to point out those two instances yet conveniently overlook his entire career up to that point? Up until the Finals, Dirk's 2006 playoffs were amazing. He hit clutch shots against the Grizzlies in the first round sweep, he hit THE clutch shot against the Spurs in the second round against the Spurs and he torched the Suns in the Western Conference Finals. And it's not like that was the only time he's ever done that. For his career Dirk has averaged 22.3 ppg and 8.6 rpg during the regular season. During the playoffs, he's averaged 25.2 and 11.1. That means he plays even better in the playoffs when the competition is better, the play is rougher and the defense is more likely to key in on him. Yet he's considered a choker. Actually, that's not particularly fair, since really the only people I've really heard call him that are fans of other teams and Charley Rosen, whose opinion can never be taken seriously. By and large, most sports' writers and commentators seem to actually appreciate Dirk's talents.
Finally, the big rumor around Dallas is the possible acquisition of Kobe Bryant. I've heard a lot of people poo-pooing the possibility but I think there's a greater chance of it happening than people realize. It all depends on if Kobe REALLY wants out of LA. If he does, he's already said there are only three teams that he's willing to go to: Chicago, Dallas and Phoenix. Most people automatically consider the Bulls the front runners since they are in the Eastern Conference, where the Lakers would prefer to send Kobe. Here's the main problem: in order to get him, they'd have to give up so much (probably Luol Deng, either Ben Gordon or Kirk Hinrich, either Tyrus Thomas or Joakim Noah, and probably Ben Wallace to make the contracts work) that they may not be anywhere near as competitive, even with Kobe. And that's where Kobe comes in; he has a no trade clause. So if he sees the offer, thinks that it would leave the Bulls too short on talent to help him win, he could could just refuse to agree to the trade.
Phoenix is another option. They could probably offer the best return for the Lakers since they could send two top-30 players in Shawn Marion and Leandro Barbaso along with the requisite contract fodder. The issue here would be from the team's side. Would Jerry Buss and Mitch Kupchak be willing to send Kobe to the team that is currently their biggest division rival? I'm not sure.
Which might make Dallas a nice compromise. The Mavs could put a package together around Josh Howard, Devin Harris and Erick Dampier. That's in the same ballpark as what the Lakers could receive from either of the other two teams. The Mavericks and the Lakers are in the same conference but not the same division (plus by trading Kobe, the Lakers would be acknowledging that they are in rebuilding mode anyway). Would I be interested in that? I'd hate to see J-How and Devin leave but if it meant bringing in Kobe, I'd be all for it.
Go Mavs.
