Players Acquired: G Justin Anderson (draft), F Satnam Singh (draft), C Samuel Dalembert (free agency), F Jeremy Evans (free agency), G John Jenkins (free agency), G Wesley Matthews (free agency), C JaVale McGee (free agency), C Salah Mejri (free agency), F Maurice Ndour (free agency), G Deron Williams (free agency), C Zaza Pachulia (trade)
Players Lost: F Al-Farouq Aminu (free agency), C Tyson Chandler (free agency), G Monta Ellis (free agency), F Richard Jefferson (free agency), G Rajon Rondo (free agency), F Amar’e Stoudemire (free agency), C DeAndre Jordan (kidnapped)
For Mavericks fans, the 2014-15 season will be mostly remembered for how much of a nightmare the Rajon Rondo situation was.
Before Christmas, the Mavericks traded Brandan Wright, Jae Crowder, Jameer Nelson, a conditional first-round pick and a second-round pick in 2016.
The move didn’t just not work out, it was a freaking disaster. In his 46 games with Dallas, Rondo averaged 9.3 points (lowest since rookie season), 6.5 assists (lowest since 2007-08) and 4.5 rebounds (lowest since 2010-11).
The chemistry clearly wasn’t there with his teammates and it most definitely wasn’t there with head coach Rick Carlisle.
The Mavericks were 26-20 with Rondo and 24-12 without him.
The team ultimately was dominated by the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs. Houston won 3-1 and Rondo didn’t appear in the final three games of the series.
Dirk Nowitzki continued to be Dirk, averaging 17 points per game and 5.8 rebounds per game while shooting 38 percent from the 3-point line. But he did play less than 30 minutes per game (29.6) for the first time since his rookie year in 1998-99. The team also had solid contributions from Monta Ellis (18.9 PPG) and Chandler Parsons (15.7 PPG), but Ellis is in Indiana now and nobody is quite sure when Parsons will be back in the lineup after undergoing knee surgery.
The team has plenty of obstacles to overcome after losing Ellis and Chandler in free agency paired with the injury concerns to Parsons and Matthews. This team doesn’t look like a 50-win team right now.
The Big Question
Can the team hold its own until Parsons and Matthews return to the lineup?
Without those two, the starting lineup probably includes Jenkins, Raymond Felton, Anderson, Nowitzki and Dalembert.
That doesn’t seem very promising.
Parson’s return is unknown and Matthews probably won’t be ready until at least December. The Mavericks will have to avoid the bottom of the Western Conference if it plans to compete for an eighth seed in a loaded Western Conference.
How Can The Wolves Beat Them?
Minnesota was 0-3 against Dallas last season. The Wolves will play the Mavericks four times this season, Jan. 10 and April 3 at home and Jan. 20 and Feb. 28 on the road.
It obviously all depends if the Mavericks are at full strength. The lineup listed above looks like one the Wolves could beat. But adding Parsons and Matthews to the mix not only bolsters the starting lineup, it gives the team depth. Carlisle is a smart coach and will adjust to whatever he’s given.
The Wolves should aim to split this series. Chances are the offense will run through Nowitzki (as it has since some of you were born) and rookie Karl-Anthony Towns will have the task of guarding him once Kevin Garnett subs out. He’ll need to stay down on pump fakes otherwise he’ll be out of the game in a hurry.
Ratke’s Prediction
In my preseason predictions which mean absolutely nothing, I have the Mavericks sliding to 10th place in the Western Conference, missing the playoffs for just the second time since 2000.
Leapfrogging them in the standings? Kevin Durant and the Thunder. Anthony Davis and the Pelicans. And… Gordon Hayward and the Utah Jazz.
Describe This Team In 15 Words Or Less
Rebuilding could be closer than Mark Cuban thinks.