To start things off, here are some quotes from anonymous Dallas Mavericks players, as well as coaches, or anyone that is tied to the organization.
"We're really a better team than people believe. I think we can win it."
"No team should beat us. We should win it all. This is our year."
"The only team that can beat us is ourselves. If we play Maverick Basketball, we will win. It is that simple. We're a great team, but always manage to beat ourselves."
"Coach Carslile looks like Jim Carrey!"
Alright, so I made up those quotes. Sue me. But there's a method to this madness. They are to prove a point. The point is, this is a Dallas Mavericks team that has the potential to win it all. Our main obstacle is ourselves. It is not a complicated matter. While every team in the NBA claims to be talented enough to win, a lot are just blowing smoke. This Dallas team is for real. And this is coming from a guy who thinks we haven't even been deserving of a WCF berth since 06'.
After the jump, I'll describe what 'm talking about.
Dallas is for real. We have everything we need, and more. We have Kidd. If any point guard can handle the load of winning a Superbowl, it is Jason. Superbowl? Yes. Jason Kidd is in fact the Quarterback of this team. He can facilitate our offense, and lead our young guns to great seasons. Time after time we've seen Jason set us up to make shots that are easy. Think Steve Nash. He turns players into stars, they think it's them, and not Nash, go to other teams, and go back to being mediocre.While Terry and Barea aren't stars, they're not bad for backups. They're actually pretty talented.
At the SG/SF we have Roddy and Butler, with Marion and Dojo ready to sub in. These 4 make us deep. A very deep team in this position. With Marion and Butler providing a solid defensive front, and also scoring(on Butler's part) it frees up Roddy and Dojo to score freely. We are dynamic, and can score. We can defend, and can run the fastbreak. While we have no superstar here, there is no reason these 2 positions should have do any worse than -4 against opposing SG/SF combo's. That is when they play a bad game.
At PF/C, we have what we've needed for years. Scoring the ball has never been a problem for Dallas in the Nowitzki era. We're a solid team at that. Our problem has been our inability to stop driving guards, and big men pounding it in against us. With a Chandler/Haywood front, it allows Dirk to focus fully on offense. And we all know what he can do when he turns his attention to offense. We now finally have a defensive C (2, actually) to compliment Dirk.
This is it. This is our year. From a Field General PG, backed up by a scoring shooter in Terry, and 2 quick drivers in Roddy and Barea, to our defensive big men, and everything in between, we might be the deepest team in the NBA. All of the attention is directed at the Heat and Lakers. Teams will overlook us. The remaining attention also falls into the Magic and Celtics, also a little to the Thunder. We have the underdog angle. An angle we haven't had for years. See: Our 2006 Finals run, when only a Zebra crew could stop us.
Teams can beat us. Teams will beat us. And at seasons end, we will look back at probably another disappointing year. When looking back, we will have beaten ourselves. Over the course of the year, we will continue to pass too much. Then, we will hit a phase where everyone tries to shoot too much(Terry), and our team is hurt. As the Mavericks, we will inevitably play bad defense on occasions, and teams will blow us out of the water.
What won't happen? There will not be games where we come out and play a good game for our team and lose. Not this team. Not this year. When this team is firing on all cylinders, we are too deep, too talented, and too strong to be beaten. Other teams need several talented players to win. We need Dirk, then any 2 or 3 of our 5 others who are capable of changing a game. Our depth will be our best friend, and our inexperience together will be our biggest foe. If we make another midseason big-time trade, this year will be a bust. We need to develop chemistry, not go for the next big deal. This is the team.
Get Roudy, get Proud, and get Loud.
Go MAVS!