The leaders must have seen it probably from a mile away; I mean this is the club that shackled offseason signing Harrison Barnes to a table basically to send the message they learnt from the mistake of being spurned by DeAndre Jordan after agreeing to sign him. The stunt was a well executed joke but the message was clear that this side doesn’t mess around.
The Dallas Mavericks is and has been lauded for many years as a franchise of stable management and leadership catapulted from the doldrums of the league at the time of owner Mike Cuban’s purchase in 1999 to a near perennial playoff team. In the tougher Western Conference, making the playoffs consistently is a tough task to accomplish.
Even the Los Angeles Lakers of Kobe Bryant’s era missed the playoffs more than Dallas has in the past decade but having such a magnificent record has its downside in the complex world of the NBA. In 15 years excluding this season, Dallas has missed out on the postseason just once in the 2012-2013 season but keeping the run alive has forced the side’s top hierarchy to be super smart in putting out a competitive roster on the floor every season.
That ultimately means few rookies, more mid veterans and more veterans in the team. In 2011, the ultimate vindication was realized as the side beat the Lebron James-led Miami Heat in stunning fashion to win its first ever NBA Championship earning the distinct honor of being the oldest team in history to do so. Times have changed so much so, starting Point Guard on that title winning team, Jason Kidd, is in his fourth year as head coach and Samuel Dalembert finds himself out of the league.
In the midst of the changes, one figure has been a constant for the Mavericks and it can be no other than sweet shooting seven foot German, Dirk Nowitzki. The aging Forward deliberated on retirement probably out of proximity pressure after seeing fellow long tenured Texas-based Tim Duncan of San Antonio Spurs hang his high tops.
After serving the only club he has known since being drafted into the league in 1998, Dirk received a guaranteed bumper deal worth $25 million for this season. However, Cuban and his posse made the second year of the deal a club option meaning the side would have to decide on rewarding what essentially will be Nowitzki’s last contract in the league at the end of this season.
The guaranteed year deal was initially pegged at $20 million but Cuban decided to toss in a couple of extra dollars; five million to be precise to sweeten the deal. Perhaps the savvy tech businessman Cuban sensed the end was near for Dirk hence the flush of extra cash on the big German maybe as the perfect send off paycheck. 10 games into the season, the cautious approach is paying off as Nowitzk- facing inevitable decline- has played just three games and averaged 12 points as he continues to nurse an Achilles injury.
For the season, Dallas is off to easily one of its worse starts after losing eight games. At this rate, the side is destined to miss out on the postseason for the second time since 2000-2001 season. Chances of overturning the odds look bleak particularly in the super difficult Western Conference meaning the perpetually proactive management will be already looking to next season and maybe just maybe letting go of its stalwart figure.
And maybe, just maybe, it will be the right time for Dallas to bow to the demands of getting better through the draft. With the prospect of losing Nowitzki, Andrew Bogut, Deron Williams and Devin Harris next season through free agency or retirement, losing many games now, seems to be in the best interest of the club’s future. The club’s future I should say is in good hands judging from the play of Harrison Barnes who is exhibiting a bit of range of his immense potential after four years of being a complementary player at Golden State Warriors.
Risking $94 million in four years for his signature has proven to be another coop for Dallas’ top brass and by replicating the risk involved in spotting the right talent in the draft looks and feels as the best move for the Mavericks. Already rooted a step from last place in the conference standings, are setting themselves up for a battle of draft lottery balls with New Orleans Pelicans, Philadelphia Sixers and Phoenix Suns for next year’s pool of players including Ghana’s own Amida Brimah.
Letting young studs Dwight Powell, Justin Anderson and Nicolas Brussino see more time on the court plays right into this theme playing through the mistakes young players in the league face will make them better to complement the efforts of Barnes for future challenges.
By Yaw Adjei-Mintah
