MVN - Most Valuable Network

My thoughts on Gerald Green, DeSagana Diop, and J. J. Barea

As Joe recently reported, it’s been quite a week for the Dallas Mavericks in terms of activity.

Let’s start, of course, with the news earlier this week that both Gerald Green and DeSagana Diop have agreed to join the Mavericks next season. Neither one of these guys is a big-name free agent, but the could help in their own way.

However, did the Mavericks get a good deal for these guys? Let’s look at them individually.

Gerald Green

I love this kid’s athleticism and his ability to get to the basket. Really you need no proof that the guy has freakish skills once you’ve seen in performance in the 2007 Dunk Contest.

The issue with Gerald Green has never been his talent. It has to do with his commitment to the game of basketball. He made a big mistake back in 2005 by coming straight out of high school to the NBA. He wasn’t mature enough, quite frankly, to play the game yet on a professional level. His second season with the Boston Celtics made it appear that he was really starting to develop into something–he averaged 10.8 minutes a game–but this was on a weak roster that managed to lose more games than any team in the NBA. Obviously there was some sort of red flag that led Danny Ainge to include him in the Kevin Garnett deal. The same red flag appeared pretty quickly in Minnesota; the guy obviously has the talent to succeed in the NBA, but he doesn’t always practice or play as hard as he should. He only managed to play in one game after being traded to his hometown Houston Rockets.

The good news for the Mavs is that Green’s contract lasts only for a year and is at the minimum salary. It won’t cost against the MLE and he will certainly be worth the risk if he develops into a halfway decent player.

DeSagana Diop

I’ve always liked ‘Gana, even if some of the skills he brings to the floor are limited. He can rebound the ball well, block shots, and play some pretty solid defense. Guys with Diop’s size are hard to come by in today’s NBA, especially ones who will play with his level of hustle.

Unfortunately, Diop has no offensive game to speak of. The guy didn’t even score much in the 2007 Vegas Summer League when he was up against NBDL players and rookies. He’s a horrible free throw shooter and for some inexplicable reason rarely dunks the ball. I did have the pleasure of meeting him back in 2006, so if it’s any consolation Diop loves the Mavericks organization and is a really great guy with the fans. His sense of humor, in addition to his good relationship with Dirk Nowitzki, are clearly reasons Donnie Nelson was willing to overpay for him.

That said, Dallas clearly did overpay to get Diop back from New Jersey. $5.75 million isn’t the kind of salary you give to a guy who averaged 3.0 points a game in his best season. With Diop eating up the full MLE, it prevents the Mavs from signing a Corey Maggette or a James Posey this offseason.

However, there is hope. My friends as Dallasbasketball.com are reporting that Dallas is hoping to execute a sign-and-trade with New Jersey for the big fella so that Diop’s salary doesn’t count against the MLE. Potential trade pieces? Eddie Jones, who picked up his $2 million player option, is a possible target, as is a sign-and-trade with Devean George.

J. J. Barea

Spanish-language site Primera Hora is reporting that fan favorite Jose Juan Barea (known affectionately around here as J. J.) will be signed to a 3-year deal worth approximately $1.8 million a season. While this hasn’t been officially confirmed, it seems likely that Barea will remain a Mav next year. He’s a solid third point guard due to his scoring and passing ability, but his size (he’s listed at 5′11” and that’s a stretch) will probably keep him from becoming elite. $4.8 million over three years is certainly not too much of a financial burden, so I can’t object to the move.

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So there hasn’t been any major moves yet this offseason, but the activity by the Mavericks so far suggests that at least Rick Carlisle, Donnie Nelson, and Mark Cuban are looking for creative ways to get their team prepared for next season. We’ll have more as it breaks.

Welcome back ‘Gana, and hello Gerald

As was reported yesterday, DeSagana Diop reached a verbal agreement with the Mavericks on a five-year contract worth the full midlevel exception, a move that should help shore up the interior defense.  This deal is defenitely better from Diop’s perspective (he cashed in by headlining a relatively weak class of free agent big men), but I’m not saying that Dallas overpaid to get him, unlike haters like ESPN’s John Hollinger.

At only 26, he’s still on his way up, and he’s already been to the Finals with most of this team.  He should usurp Erick Dampier’s starting spot and hopefully be a 20-to-25 minutes per game player.  I favor Damp’s strength and somewhat-better offensive ability over ‘Gana, but it looks like the team views Diop as “the guy” and wants him to separate himself in camp.  Hopefully he’ll take after his counterpart and his scoring numbers will also jump with him playing alongside Jason Kidd.  After signing this deal, there’s no reason why Diop shouldn’t come back to Dallas motivated and ready to prove himself.

Could the Mavericks have gambled by using the MLE on someone like a Corey Maggette and later pulling out a sign-and-trade to bring back Diop?  In an ideal world, yes.  I’m sure the Mavs at least inquired about Maggette before deciding to give all of the midlevel to ‘Gana.  But young seven footers that can play defense and don’t cause any problems in the locker room can sometimes be hard to come by, and that’s why teams are willing to pay a premium to get ‘em. If you’re having trouble remembering what Diop brings to the table, maybe this will jog your memory.

In other Mavs free agency news, Gerald Green made it official today by inking his new one-year deal with Dallas.  I guess because he was released by the Rockets before the end of last season and only signed a one-year deal for the minimum, he didn’t have to wait until July 9 to put pen to paper.  Green is expected to be on the Mavs’ summer league roster and will have to earn himself a roster spot for next season by proving that he’s got his head on straight.  The signing involves little to no risk from the Mavericks’ perspective, and with the potential addition of Foster on the roster as well, there’s a chance Dallas could have two up-and-coming Michael Finleys on their hands.

With the MLE now gone, the Mavericks have only two more places from which to pick up some players: either through a trade or via the summer league.  Once Diop signs next week, the roster will have ten spots accounted for, leaving five for the taking.  That means they aren’t done yet, and neither am I.  Stay tuned…

EDIT: Brush up on your español, because Jeff Caplan found a Puerto Rican news outlet that is reporting that the Mavericks have agreed to a two-year deal including an option for a third year with restricted free agent (and Northeastern alumnus) J.J. Barea.  Nothing from the team yet on this, but I suspect the report is pretty reliable.  I like Barea as our third point guard behind Kidd and Jason Terry.

So, assuming Diop and Barea both sign next week, the Mavericks will officially have 11 men on the 15-man roster.

Summer stars hit the court

Two young members of the Dallas Mavericks’ young summer league team worked out at American Airlines Center today: Shan Foster, the Mavs’ lone draft pick from last week, and Renaldas Seibutis, the 50th pick of the 2007 draft. Art Garcia spoke with them after the two hour shootaround.

Seibutis spent the past year in Greece as a member of the Olympiacos but played in only three games before undergoing back surgery.  He’s 6′5″, can supposedly play both guard positions, and he’s only 22 and has been playing professionally in Greece and Lithuania since he was 18.  “Ronnie,” as he prefers to be called, is currently property of the Olympiacos and would require a buyout in order to join the Mavericks in the Fall, but a good showing in the summer league may net him a roster spot if the Mavs are as inactive in free agency as some predict.

Foster, the former Vanderbilt standout, will have to adjust to the speed of the NBA game, and he already admitted that he is working on modifying his shot in order to “minimize all excess motion.”  I’m usually not in favor of messing with someone’s shot, especially if the guy has had a lot of success with it in the past, but who knows how much or little tweaking the coaches are trying to make.  I assume they know what they’re doing.  The Mavs are looking for shooters, so Foster will need every edge he can get in order to make the team.

Stay tuned for more on the Mavericks and the Vegas Summer League, which begins on July 11.