NBA At 2: A Surprise Maverick?
As the Dallas Mavericks prepare to face the Miami HEAT in the 2011 NBA Finals it can be dangerous to look back at the regular-season series between the two teams as an indicator for how the Finals might go. The two teams met just twice, with Dallas winning both games fairly easily. The second loss, in fact, was the one that inspired Miami’s players-only meeting that turned their entire season around. The HEAT were a totally different team when they played the Mavs early on, and have long since discovered their identity.
The HEAT aren’t the only team that’s undergone a significant change since that last meeting in November, though. The Mavericks were burning through the league like a hot knife through butter until a pair of significant injuries set them back in late December. They were 24-5 when they lost first Dirk Nowitzki and then Caron Butler to injuries. Nowitzki came back . . .Butler didn’t. The ruptured patellar tendon in Butler’s right knee caused him to miss the rest of the season and all of the postseason to date, though he has been working incredibly hard to try and make it back for the Finals.
The Mavericks struggled for a while as they looked for ways to make up for the absence of Butler, who was one of their primary defensive catalysts and was having the most efficient offensive year of his career prior to the injury. The Mavs signed Peja Stojakovic and Corey Brewer to fill the void, and while Stojakovic’s shooting has been key and Brewer’s defensive energy has been of use in spot minutes, the two of them together hardly constitute a replacement for Butler.
Surprisingly, Shawn Marion has been the one to really step up and deliver for the Mavs. Marion felt a little like the odd man out after failed stints in Toronto and Miami, where he was asked to do everything but the pick-and-roll player he was in his most successful years as a Phoenix Sun. Last summer Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle had a heart-to-heart with Marion, showing him stats and film, and convincing him that he really could be a very effective post player. That has certainly paid off, and Marion has become a threat to score in the paint even as the three-point shot has fallen out of his arsenal. Marion’s defensive presence has also been huge, and he’s been tested by the likes of Gerald Wallace, Ron Artest and Kevin Durant this postseason. In each case, Marion’s defense was a huge part of the Mavs’ ability to close out those series.
Still, Marion is no Caron Butler, and the Mavs are going to need all the defensive help they can get in guarding Miami’s LeBron James.
It would be a remarkable feat for Butler to return at all. Typically a ruptured patellar tendon takes six months of aggressive rehab to return to pre-injury condition, but that’s for an average person and not a professional athlete. You’ll recall that Portland Trail Blazers center Joel Przybilla suffered this same injury in a game in Dallas and he has had a hard time even returning to the court. In Butler’s case, we know he’ll be back, but how soon and for how long remains to be seen.
Even if Butler can log 10-15 meaningful minutes it would be a significant help for Dallas. As great as Peja is at scoring the ball, he’s a screen door on the defensive end. The HEAT would likely have LeBron switch over to Nowitzki and let a smaller player keep a hand in Peja’s face. If Butler’s on the floor, it keeps the defense honest and also keeps pressure on LeBron when Marion needs a blow. He would be a valuable tool for Carlisle to have in his arsenal as he prepares for a gritty, hard-fought NBA championship series.
Up Close: Jordan Williams
HOOPSWORLD continues our in-depth look at the 2011 NBA draft class with this exclusive interview with Jordan Williams. The Maryland forward has been working hard to drop weight and get into better shape for the 2011 raft process. In this interview he talks about where he is in that process, what he needs to show teams in workouts, what he thinks of the "weak draft" concept, and more:
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McHale, Rockets Close To Deal
When the Houston Rockets traded Shane Battier (back) to the Memphis Grizzlies for Hasheem Thabeet and DeMarre Carroll is marked the beginning of the end for the team as we knew it. Head coach Rick Adelman was adamantly against the trade (as were his players), as it set them back in their quest to make the playoffs. Meanwhile, GM Daryl Morey and his staff were hoping Adelman could turn Thabeet into a serviceable big man. After all, he had worked miracles with more than a few players before. Of course, the stretch run in a tight playoff race is hardly the time to start experimenting, and Adelman wasn’t having it. Thabeet would spend most of the rest of the season in the D-League and the Rockets would just miss the playoffs after putting up a valiant fight (one that would have been significantly aided by Battier, who helped Memphis beat out Houston for the final playoff spot).
That was the end for Adelman. He was frustrated by his front office’s inability to land key free agents and the Battier trade was the final straw. Many believe he made the decision to leave the Rockets the day that trade was consummated, though he continued to fight as hard as ever to get them to the playoffs. It was also the end for Houston management, who were ticked off that Adelman wouldn’t play Thabeet.
And so a coaching search began.
{AUTHOR_BOX}Rockets management really wanted to bring in a big name to help the team draw interest from free agents and also get them back into the playoffs. Mike Brown and Stan Van Gundy were among their top choices, but Brown didn’t want the job and Van Gundy wasn’t fired from his old one in Orlando, as many believed he might be. At the same time, Rockets owner Les Alexander said he didn’t want to pay a high-dollar coach, as the high-priced coaches he’s had in the past failed to yield championship results. That pretty much meant Houston was down to lesser-known coaches and assistant coaches as they looked for their future leader. After interviewing more than a dozen candidates, they eventually settled on Dallas Mavericks assistant Dwane Casey, Boston Celtics assistant Lawrence Frank and former Minnesota Timberwolves GM and head coach Kevin McHale.
As we have been reporting for over a week now, McHale was the ultimate choice. The two sides are now putting the finishing touches on a contract that is likely to be in the two-years, $2 million per season range with an option for a third year.
Good choice for Houston? McHale was a part of two Celtics teams who beat the Rockets in the NBA Finals (1981 and 1986), so there will be no love lost there. He has a modest record of 39-55 as a head coach in Minnesota, and he’s known as the man who traded Kevin Garnett, a trade from which the team is still trying to recover. At the end of the day the Rockets chose McHale because he is inexpensive and because he is a former player. Is that really a great criteria for hiring a head coach?
Drop your comments in the comments section below. This columnist is supremely underwhelmed.
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