In case you missed the game tonight, you missed an absolute thriller. Don't let the score fool you folks, this was a nail biter. Yes, I know what you are thinking... a nailbiter versus the Kings? Seriously? I'm here to tell you that I was on the edge of my seat the entire night. Like Jose Juan Barea running the point, I dribbled all over myself in absolute fear that the Mavs would find a way to give this gimme away.

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I do this every year and every year Dirk still isn't a starter. This year he's coming off a season where he's a NBA champion and a finals MVP. It's a travesty that he's going to have to go to the All Star as a coach's pick. Take 5 minutes out of your day and vote for Dirk from your home computer, your work computer, and your cell phone. You can vote everyday and you don't even have to vote for every starter spot. You can just vote for Dirk and submit.

Forwards: Kevin Durant (OKC) 633,538; Blake Griffin (LAC) 394,264; Dirk Nowitzki (Dal) 231,832; Pau Gasol (LAL) 185,428; Kevin Love (Min) 143,814; LaMarcus Aldridge (Por) 118,268; Tim Duncan (SA) 81,783; Lamar Odom (Dal) 59,686; Metta World Peace (LAL) 39,006; Danilo Gallinari (Den) 34,438.

http://www.nba.com/allstar/2012/asb/eng/landing.jsp?referrer=asb12_mainGeneral&cid=asb12_mainGeneral

Seriously, Blake Griffin over Dirk? Come on, people.

I was young, maybe 7 years old?  I, like every other Texas boy, was too young to start playing football.  My parents decided that the next best thing was soccer.  They put me in the closest YMCA soccer league, and hoped the best thing I can learn from soccer was teamwork, footplay, toughness and I could apply that to my very first football season.  I became good enough that I was able to venture to the Reunion Arena for the youth sports championship, in which the champion would get the rare chance to meet Tatu of the acclaimed Dallas Sidekicks.  

I didn't get that chance, and as a disappointed kid, I hung my head and ventured off of the astroturf.. a young kid not getting the shot to meet his hero...  As I left, I met a giant, a man that towered above me and said "dont worry about it, you'll get them next year kid".  He had a basketball jersey on and was getting ready for shootaround.  He was unrecognizable to me, I mean who cared about basketball in Dallas?  The Mavericks were a Dallas team by name, but they were more a filler between the Cowboys' seasons.  They hadn't even pulled up the turf yet to let him feel the hardwood beneath his feet.  He practiced his shot on the same fake grass that I had just gotten embarrassed on, "you'll get them next year kid".   That moment, that very second, Rolando Blackman made me a MFFL.  I realized that even though my jumpshot resembled JJ's one footer, my heart had shades of green and blue.  

I watched, in pain, as the Mavericks struggled and fought, sometimes with each other, as they strung together makeshift teams trying to fight the greats and claw their way into a chance for greatness.  

And as I realized that my hopes were dwindling, I threw my hands up and kicked every piece of electronic equipment when the Dallas Mavericks traded Robert "Tractor" Taylor, a dominant force, for a German high schooler, someone that's English was suspect, and toughness was on par with that of a Swedish quilt maker.  

..and then I fell in love.  This tall, lanky, awkward looking 7 footer showed me something I'd never seen in a Dallas Cowboy, a Texas Ranger, a Dallas Sidekick, my hero,  I saw a kid that wanted nothing more than to compete with the very best in the world's most competitive league, and to prove to the world that he is capable of true greatness.  

I've seen the Cowboys win Super Bowls.  I've been up at 2am when the Stars have won the Stanley Cup.  I've seen the Rangers fight bankruptcy to go to the World Series.  

...but I've never been drawn to tears like I was last night when a Dallas team gets "that chance".  I've never looked at every person on a roster and said "that guy deserves it".  I've never looked at my girlfriend/sister/wife and as she looked at me, there weren't any words to be said, because we both knew that this team, for a second, made life make sense for just one time.  

I want to thank the MMB community for being such a torrential force.  A clan that can be hysterical and genius at the same time.  Jon and Marie reminded me of "back in the day" when there were only 10 of us on this thing arguing back and forth how the Mav's could finally become champs.  

A shout out to Wes, who brought a lot of us here and kept us interested.  And credit due to LJ and her him minions for the incredible job on keeping masses that be in the faith.  

-A dumb 7 year old that wondered why those guys in the ugly green jerseys were stepping on the Sidekick's floor

BTW.. JJ still sucks..

Grizzlies small forward Rudy Gay will miss the rest of this season after a second opinion on his partially dislocated left shoulder determined that the injury requires surgery.

Gay received the news after traveling to Birmingham, Ala., to visit renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews.

“I’ve never really been hurt. I’ve never had anything shut me down,” Gay said. “There’s really no brace or anything I can wear to make it better. I have to have the surgery

Link

General Manager Donnie Nelson talks about growing up with the Mavericks' organization, the entrance of Mark Cuban, and the decision to draft Dirk Nowitzki over Paul Pierce.

HoopsHype Interview

With Dirk, it’s almost like a kid from American suburbia. Yeah, he has skill and the mindset but still, you have to be patient for two years. And you’re going to get your butt handed to you until this kid matures. That was the last thing Dallas wanted to hear. They hadn’t made the playoffs in like 10 years and we’re preaching patience. What flashed in my dad’s eyes that draft night was that Paul Pierce is a ready made, here and now product from right up the road. He was the sure fire thing. The safe money would have been on Paul, he steps right in. The smart money is on Dirk because he is 7-feet and Paul is 6-6. They are both great players but it is so incredibly hard to get size and skill in this league. People kill for it. They both are 1 and 1A in that draft. Believe me when I say we were just happy to survive with Dirk [laughs]. People put their necks on the line. Dirk first and foremost. He could have played in Europe for another two or three years. He took the majority of the risk. But there were a lot of guys in that draft room that put ‘em out on the table too.

he Dallas Mavericks (also known as the Mavs) are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas, USA. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Founded in 1980, the Mavericks have won three division titles (1987, 2007, 2010) and one conference championship (2006). According to a 2008 Forbes Magazine report, they are the seventh most valuable basketball franchise in the United States, valued at approximately $466 million; the franchise is surpassed in value only by the New York Knicks, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Chicago Bulls, the Detroit Pistons, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Houston Rockets.

Sad day, hope he clears.  

Per Sefko:

The Mavericks will keep one of their players with a non-guaranteed contract, but not the other. Steve Novak, the stellar outside shooter who played sparingly in the first two months of the season, will be waived so that he can clear waivers before next Monday, when all contracts become guaranteed.

Novak was working on a veteran minimum contract worth about $800,000.

Meanwhile, it appears Brian Cardinal will be retained. If he is on the roster on Monday, his entire salary of about $1.3 million will be guaranteed.

The loss of Novak means the Mavericks will carry a 14-man roster for the time being. As of now, only 11 of those players are healthy.

Teams can sign players to 10-day contracts starting on Monday and that means the Mavericks could look to add a player from the NBA Development League or elsewhere.

http://www.rotoworld.com/content/playerpages/player_main.aspx?sport=NBA&hl=137833&id=765

I think they got scared that they weren't going to be able to pull the trigger on the Damp chip.  Going into the summer I would have thought we could have gotten much more than this.  I don't even see how you can not use it to get Jefferson and turn around and say well Tyson Chandler is just as good, let's get him.

As we all know Dirk can't play every second of every game.  What the Mavericks need most they already once had, a stellar backup for Dirk that can create his own shot, pound the boards, and excite the crowd.  Ladies (all two of you) and Gentleman I present to you, KHump. 

If they get him, sources say they have a deal in place to move Kris Humphries to clear additional cap space to make a max offer to Chris Bosh or another free agent of his choosing.

What team would be on the other end of that deal?  Your Dallas Mavericks (we can always dream).

Ben and Skin just said that JET texted them and said he's going to need surgery after the face injury last night.  They were pretty vague about it, so not much detail.  Hopefully, it was a joke, but if it wasn't hopefully he won't miss a lot of time.  There is one good thing that could come from it, more playing time for Roddy B.  But, knowing the Robot, he'll plant him into the bench and replace JET wil 5 dolla bill Stevenson.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4924306

One source told ESPN.com's J.A. Adande that the Rockets -- fresh off constructing a three-team blockbuster that sent Tracy McGrady to New York and landed Kevin Martin in Houston -- offered veterans Shane Battier and Luis Scola, multiple draft picks and the expiring contract of Brian Cook for Stoudemire. But the source said Phoenix wanted to waive the requisite physical examinations for the players involved to make sure the trade went through in time, only for Houston to refuse because of Stoudemire's injury history. ESPN.com

Seeing the 2nd place Mavs host the All-Star game in their backyard and not have a starter might make me throw up all over LeBron during the weekend's festivities.  I'm sure you all already know, but you can vote daily.  If Pau (Only I can fill the entire stadium w/ my European stench) Gasol or Tim (Can you imagine what my bug eyes will look like on the biggest TV in the world) Duncan start in front of Dirk, we should all be strung up by our jock straps.  Vote daily, make your friends and family vote daily.  Put Dirk in as the starter.  17 days left.

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Forwards: Carmelo Anthony (Den) 1,410,356; Dirk Nowitzki (Dal) 753,971; Tim Duncan (SA) 685,390; Pau Gasol (LAL) 667,767; Kevin Durant (OKC) 474,506; Trevor Ariza (Hou) 436,088; Luis Scola (Hou) 371,914; Shawn Marion (Dal) 282,421; Ron Artest (LAL) 234,618; Lamar Odom (LAL) 175,271; LaMarcus Aldridge (Por) 155,933.

Guards: Kobe Bryant (LAL) 1,606,032; Tracy McGrady (Hou) 649,563; Steve Nash (Pho) 648,558; Chris Paul (NO) 622,619; Jason Kidd (Dal) 405,027; Aaron Brooks (Hou) 374,635; Chauncey Billups (Den) 281,911; Deron Williams (Utah) 255,059; Brandon Roy (Por) 224,350; Manu Ginobili (SA) 222,743; Jason Terry (Dal) 212,242.

Centers: Amar’e Stoudemire (Pho) 1,143,849; Andrew Bynum (LAL) 676,634; Nene (Den) 235,276; Marc Gasol (Mem) 190,476; Antonio McDyess (SA) 130,058; Greg Oden (Por) 124,037; Al Jefferson (Min) 119,580; Marcus Camby (LAC) 100,399; Andris Biedrins (GS) 90,464; Mehmet Okur (Utah) 87,838; Emeka Okafor (NO) 82,616; Spencer Hawes (Sac) 25,109.

Wallace still could remain in Detroit, but he has expressed a desire to finish his career with a legitimate contender in the East. He would help either Boston or Orlando counter Cleveland's addition of Shaquille O'Neal.

Bass, 24, came into the league with New Orleans as a second-round draft pick. Although still unheralded as a backup last season to Dirk Nowitzki, he is considered a good rebounder who would provide Dwight Howard with more help around the basket.

Leave our Seabass be!

http://nba.fanhouse.com/2009/06/26/magic-to-pursue-rasheed-wallace-brandon-bass/

Breaking news...

The Milwaukee Bucks agreed to trade Richard Jefferson to the San Antonio Spurs for Bruce Bowen, Kurt Thomas and Fabricio Oberto a Bucks source told ESPN.com. The two teams have agreed to the deal in principle. A trade call to make the deal official is coming later Tuesday.

The Spurs really got another scoring threat and help when Manu breaks his toe and didn't give up a whole lot.  Trying to think of a word to express my opinion on this trade, but all I can come up with is..

...fuck.

Looks like the Knicks finally made a move, I was secretly hoping that we could steal Hughes for nothing, but I guess that ain't gonna happen now.  I still think the Mavs make a small move in the next hr.

Derek from Detroit: IS IT THE KNICKS MAKING A DEAL????????????

 Chad Ford: (1:22 PM ET ) Yes. Bulls and Knicks have agreed to a trade. Larry Hughes for Tim Thomas and Jerome James. I'm told it's waiting for league approval.

....syke

Well I think Cuban is actually trying to send us a sign about the upcoming season.  I know pickings are getting slim, but this is just depressing. 

George and the Mavericks reached an agreement Wednesday on a two-year contract worth about $4 million, according to Mark Bartelstein, George's agent. Bartelstein said the deal includes a player option for George to return to free agency after next season.

"He's excited about returning to the Mavericks," Bartelstein said. "He's excited about playing for [new coach] Rick Carlisle. Rick made a great impression on him and came to visit him a couple of times."

Full Link...

Dallas Morning News Article..

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http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3525609

Well I still held out some hope, but that has been crushed yet again.

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