Kobe, Dirk & The Missing Mavs: Is Mark Cuban Loyal - to a Fault?
WHITT’S END: 1.7.21
Whether you’re at the end of your coffee, your day, your week or even your rope, welcome to Whitt’s End …
*If Mark Cuban was in charge, Emmitt Smith wouldn’t be in the Dallas Cowboys’ Ring of Honor, Michael Young wouldn’t reside in the Texas Rangers’ Hall of Fame and Mike Modano’s number wouldn’t be retired by the Dallas Stars. The Dallas Mavericks owner said as much this week when detailing his team’s (re: his) philosophy on retiring numbers.
Dirk Nowitzki’s No. 41? In.
The No. 24 belonging to Mavs’ original All-Star and third all-time leading scorer, Mark Aguirre? Out.
Why? “The way I’ve kind of looked at it, and it’s no disrespect to Mark, is guys who wanted to leave are going to have a harder time than guys who made the effort to stay,” Cuban said in an interview on The Ticket. “That’s just it in a nutshell.”
There are franchises founded upon loyalty. And then there is Cuban’s cult.
Dirk’s jersey retired to the rafters was a slam dunk and – kudos to Cuban – done with the perfect mix of class and pizzazz. But that’s an irrationally high bar for entrance into an ultra-exclusive club: Win a championship and stay for 21 seasons, or else?
If Cuban sticks to his criteria of discrediting “guys who wanted to leave”, that means the likes of Jason Kidd (who left for the New York Knicks after Dallas’ 2011 championship), Michael Finley (left in 2005 to end his career with the San Antonio Spurs and Boston Celtics) Jason Terry (played for four teams after leaving in 2011) and Rick Carlisle (quit after last season to join the Indiana Pacers) have no shot at Mavs’ immortality.
For what it’s worth, two of the four Mavs to have their numbers retired – Rolando Blackman (Knicks) and Derek Harper (Lakers) – ended their career with other teams. And what about guys who wanted to stay but were ushered out by Cuban himself, like Tyson Chandler or Steve Nash?
Since its inception the Cowboys’ Ring of Honor has enjoyed a singular overlord (first Tex Schramm, since Jerry Jones). Likewise, it’s Cuban’s franchise and (mostly) his arena and he can hold all the grudges (if that's the right word) he wants. But just because he played his last two seasons as an Arizona Cardinal, should Emmitt not be in the Cowboys’ Ring of Honor? Same for the Rangers’ Young, who ended his career with the Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Dodgers? And Modano who, after 16 years in Dallas, had the audacity to skate his final season wearing the sweater of the hated Detroit Red Wings?
After all, by Cuban’s guidelines they are all “guys who wanted to leave”. I always thought it was uncomfortably peculiar that the Rangers retired a “locker” for Baltimore Orioles’ iron man Cal Ripken Jr. at The Ballpark in Arlington. But not raising Aguirre’s No. 24 to the Mavs’ roof is criminal. While instead bestowing that numerical legacy to a rival non-Mav – no offense, Kobe Bryant – is almost comical.
*Ever wonder “Why 41?” for Dirk? As a kid and a teen in Germany he always wore 14. But when he arrived in Dallas the number was taken by a point guard former GM Don Nelson promised would be a “cornerstone” of the future – Robert Pack. So Dirk simply flipped the digits and, voila, history.
*In the immortal words of Dirk, the Cowboys this Saturday night should “shut it down … let’s go home!” Micah Parsons and Tyron Smith are out with COVID. Trevon Diggs is sick. And so on and so on … Play the game? Sure.
Play to win?
Nope, if that means taxing starters and extending players who you’ll count on heavily next weekend.
The Cowboys have much more to lose than to gain in Philly. A year from now you won’t remember who the Cowboys played in Week 18, much less whether they won or lost. But you’ll be able to recite every play from their first playoff game at AT&T Stadium. Perspective, people. Perspective.
*Troy Aikman has his own beer. Seems like just yesterday we were sipping Mai Tais together on Waikiki Beach and reminiscing about his four touchdown passes in Super Bowl XXVII from a couple days earlier. There are no living links to the story I penned about that experience or I would put it right here.
*Love me some Brad Davis. Gritty and tough as a player, I still remember his 26-point performance (including 5-of-5 3-pointers) that closed out the Utah Jazz in a first-round playoff series in 1986 and him taking multiple charges every single game. But, he’d be the first to tell you his No. 15 pales in comparison hanging in AAC’s rafters next to Dirk’s No. 41. Signed as a free agent by the expansion Mavs in 1980, he played 12 seasons but averaged only eight points and five assists over his career. Savvy floor leader. Scrappy defender. Sharp-shooter. Loyal employee who became an assistant coach under Dick Motta and a radio analyst beside Chuck Cooperstein.
But c’mon, Davis’ banner hanging next to Dirk’s is like putting my laptop in the sportswriting Hall of Fame next to Frank Deford’s.
*Greg Zuerlein had made 11 consecutive field goals before last Sunday’s miss left in three three-point loss to the Cardinals. He’s made clutch kicks late in games four times this season, but I get the feeling you – and I – don’t trust him in the playoffs to make an extra point, much less a key field goal. Zuerlein has made six of eight field goals in AT&T Stadium; 22 of 26 on the road.
*Honestly, I don’t love the replica statue Cuban unveiled of Nowitzki that will someday – in its larger-than-life size – stand guard outside the AAC. I know it’s supposed to be all artsy-fartsy, but did I miss something? When did Dirk play for the Harlem Globetrotters and shoot three balls at once?
*Favorite memories from those of us who have covered Dirk for decades? They’re right here in this SI roundtable.
*Hot.
*Not.
*Not that long ago I considered Dak Prescott for NFL Comeback Player of the Year to be a lock. But, suddenly, hello, Joe Burrow.
Dak’s injury was more horrific (and came equipped with mental health issues), but don’t forget that the Cincinnati Bengals’ quarterback totally wrecked his knee in November 2020, suffering a torn ACL, MCL and other structural damage. Though their 2021 stats are comparable, Burrow leads in completion percentage, yards and touchdowns. And, let’s face it, leading the Bengals to win the AFC North is much more of an achievement than Dak leading the Cowboys to the NFC East.
*Applying Cuban’s logic of loyalty, the next banner raised in AAC should honor Keith Grant. Who, you ask? Grant has been with the organization since Day 1 in 1980, serving as a ball boy, scout, player personnel director, co-general manager and these days, resident capologist. When he writes his book, every Mavs fan should read it.
*NOVAX Djokovic has never respected the game of tennis. Always thought he was above rules that somehow didn’t apply to him. When he made fun of other players during on-court skits. When he faked injuries and quit in the middle of matches. When he denied science and held a COVID super-spreader tournament in the middle of a pandemic. That’s why no one is shedding a tear at him being denied a chance at tennis history – he, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are all tied with 20 major titles – as Australia is turning him away from the Open because he is unvaccinated. Djokovic certainly doesn’t have to get vaccinated. It’s his freedom of choice. But he’s learning, finally, that actions come equipped with consequences.
*When his Green Bay Packers won the Super Bowl in 2010, Mike McCarthy’s team was the third-least penalized team with 78. This year’s Cowboys are the most-penalized, so far with 122. Dallas has been called for 26 holding penalties; the Packers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Los Angeles Rams 11 each.
*The NFL is saying goodbye to the Wonderlic test at the scouting combine. Now it should implement a clock-management quiz for all prospective head coaches.
*How slow are the Mavs playing under Kidd this season? Slow enough to baffle the wise guys in Las Vegas. In their 18 home games, the final total has gone under the predicted total established by the sportsbooks 14 times. The Mavs lost their first 11 games this season when not scoring at least 100 points. Somewhere in Maui, Nellie the offensive mastermind is rolling over … a new joint. Even crazier: When the Mavs won on Wednesday, it was only the second time since 2016 they had won when shooting less than 40 percent. They are now 2-57 in their last 59 shooting under 40.
*Stat I can’t come close to comprehending: In their last three games together, Prescott has completed only 12 of 23 passes to Amari Cooper. The veteran receiver’s last 100-yard game came when Cooper Rush started on Halloween. He hasn’t had one with Dak since Week 1 at Tampa Bay.
*As deserving as Dirk’s jersey retirement was, it was equally delicious. Closest thing I’ve seen as far as a celebration for an individual sports figure in DFW was Dallas’ “Tom Landry Day” parade two months after his firing in 1989.
*Sad underbelly of Dirk’s career? Given his individual achievements – MVP, Finals MVP, 14 All-Stars, sixth-most all-time points, etc. – and consistent sacrifices on the court and at the negotiating table, the Mavericks grossly underachieved during his 21 seasons. Of the NBA’s Top 10 all-time scorers, only Karl Malone and Carmelo Anthony won fewer titles (0) than Nowitzki. Given only his body of work, you’d predict Dirk’s Mavs would’ve won at least two titles, maybe more. But he got his one in 2011. Hold onto it as tight as you do the memory of Dirk.
*My 2022 New Year’s resolution? I’d take a repeat of 2021, honestly. Coming off the firepit Hellscape that was 2020, last year turned out pretty decent.
*This Weekend? Saturday is for some morning tennis practice and nighttime exhibition football, Cowboys-Eagles style. Sunday is for a weird NFL Week 18 without the Cowboys. As always, don’t be a stranger.
