Mavs Donuts: Carlisle says 'Flush It!' But Porzingis Problems Deserve Analysis
DONUT 1: FLUSH IT! That’s coach Rick Carlisle’s in-public bumper-sticker-slogan reaction to his Dallas Mavericks’ 116-106 loss at Boston on Monday.
“We’re going to flush it and move on,” Carlisle said.
Rick’s chestnut here (something he will use a few times annually) was applied to an awful night in Beantown for Kristaps Porzingis.
But ...
DONUT 2: DEEPER BEHIND THE MANTRA The post-loss go-to mantra from Rick is ...
a) Applicable to not just KP, but to the Mavs’ work in Boston in general ...
b) Not meant to suggest that KP’s mini-slump merits easy dismissal because "it's only one game'' - because this hasn’t been only one game ...
c) Shouldn’t be misunderstood as Rick suggesting that the Mavericks will not self-scout and review ... and also should not be misunderstood as a suggestion from Rick that the rest of us ignore it, either.
Therefore, we will not ignore it. We will not skip over analysis. We will not “flush it”; not yet.
DONUT 3: QUOTABLE "It's a work in progress.'' - KP.
DONUT 4: KP'S DIP That’s a great spot from which to begin. The introspective Porzingis is taking seriously his dip in production. That manifested itself on Monday in Porzinigis, managing just four points and five rebounds on 1-of-11 shooting from the field.
He struggled with his shot early, got into foul trouble, has problems with the defensive physicality and gave Dallas nothing.
DONUT 5: BY THE NUMBERS The evidence of the dip? In Porzingis' first three games, he scored 20 in each, and averages 26 points per.
In his last six games, he's experienced one 20-point game with his average dropping to 14 points per.
DONUT 6: THE NEXT CHALLENGE The Mavs are 6-4 and have moved onto New York, and here comes a challenge for Dallas and KP in another form. The Knicks are lousy - so much so that team management is calling press conferences to acknowledge the lousiness and the "Fire-the-Coach'' rumors have started - but the Knicks were good enough to come to Dallas last week and upset the Mavs.
Wednesday night, 7 p.m. tip at Madison Square Garden. (Another Dennis Smith Jr. Watch, we presume?) By that time, stuff can be "flushed.''
DONUT 7: WHERE IS THE HELP? We've celebrated the work of the "Bench Mob,'' which has truly been instrumental in Dallas' wins. But we wonder of another of Rick's mantras, "Be Ready,'' isn't being stretched a bit thin here.
Remember when Delon Wright was going to be a full-time starter (something we questioned over the summer given the fact that never in his NBA career had he ever been any such thing? Wright has started. Once. In the season-opener.
Remember when Justin Jackson was primed to be a starter, too - an idea that came to us directly from Mark Cuban and the owner's visit with DBcom? Jackson has played in all 10 games, but starts? Zero.
There is a fine line between "Be Ready'' and "button-pushing'' and appearing to be "grab-bagging'' it.
DONUT 8: A 'BAD LOSS'? We discussed this on Tuesday morning on 105.3 The Fan, and I argued against that characterization of what happened in Boston. Why? The Celtics came in with a 7-1 record to your then-6-3 record.
Boston was supposed to win. And because fate is cruel, Boston was supposed to win while fueled by Kemba Walker, Dallas' real offseason target (no offense, Delon), who seemed to taunt the Mavs just a bit while scoring 29 points, with five assists and five rebounds, all while shooting 9-of-17 from the floor and 8-of-14 from three.
This wasn't a "bad loss'' for Dallas. It was just a "loss.''
DONUT 9: LUKA MAGIC Luka Doncic, after yet another electric effort in Boston (34 points to go along with nine assists and six rebounds) continues to exist right near that triple-top-10 level, as he's averaging 28.3 points (fifth in the NBA), 10.3 rebounds (11th) and 9.1 assists (second).
The average-a-triple-double bit is one of the reasons Giannis was the MVP a year ago. And it's one of the reasons Luka can be a contender for the same this year.
DONUT 10: FREE THROWS AIN'T FREE I get that Dallas is short on guys who can create their own shots ... but that at the same time, this roster has shooters who are good marksmen when set up properly.
So ... why is this a bad team from the the line?
The Mavs are shooting 76 percent on free throws; that'll put you in the bottom half of the NBA. Bad enough. but it gets worse: As Coop points out, they entered the Boston game ranked No. 29 in fourth-quarter free-throw percentage at 64.6 ... and then made just 6-of-12 against the Celtics, causing that number to plummet further.
The Mavs are good, but they're not good enough to win without free throws. The Mavs seem "clutch'' ... but they're not clutch enough if they are missing half of the most "set-up-properly'' shots in the sport.
DONUT 11: MAVS STEP BACK: Mark Cuban says it’s the best Mavs podcast in the land, and yeah, we’re very proud of it. The latest edition of Mavs Step Back? Dalton Trigg and Matt Galatzan work the game analysis of KP and the Knicks ... with much more to come. Tune in!
DONUT 12: THE FINAL WORD "The Boston game is another example of what the Mavs could be if KP could get it going consistently.'' - DBcom's delightfully positive Dalton Trigg.
