Is Rick Carlisle the Future?

 

 

In the sports world, Rick Carlisle is known for two things- being Jim Carrey’s doppelgänger and brilliant at in-game adjustments. Carlisle has arguably been a Top-3 NBA coach for some stretch now. He is the only Mavs coach to bring the Larry O’Brien Trophy home for a parade. Rick might even get a statue next to Dirty Dirk. Well, maybe. It’s gloomy to think that was 5 years ago, feels more like half that time.

 

Wins the Mavs have tallied-up since Rick Carlisle joined the bench:

 

Year	# of Wins	Playoff Run
2008-2009	50	Lost W. Conf. Semis
2009-2010	55	Lost 1st Round
2010-2011	57	Won NBA Finals
2011-2012	36	Lost 1st Round
2012-2013	41	No Postseason Appearance
2013-2014	49	Lost 1st Round
2014-2015	50	Lost 1st Round
2015-2016	42	Lost 1st Round

 

The Mavs have captured one 50-win season since Dirk performed genocide on the 2011 NBA Playoffs. That snapped an 11-year streak of at least 50-win seasons. Dallas has not graduated the 1st Rd in 5 years. This trend is going the wrong way. It seems now to be policy for the Mavs to serve us underwhelming additions and FA heartbreak. But who’s to blame? It can’t be Carlisle, can it? After all, he is 2^nd on the Dallas Mavericks list for best winning-percentage:

 

– Avery Johnson 73%

– Rick Carlisle 59%

– Don Nelson 57%

 

The front-office says that Donnie, Mark and Rick all agree on the win-now-window. Keep building around Dirk as he graciously pump-fakes Father Time. But what happens when Dirk’s done? Will the front-office move forward with the same philosophy? It’s no secret Carlisle loves veteran’s and blue-collar character. But what is Donnie’s preference after all this time? Draft young or hire used? It is hard to figure out Cuban too. His statements come as curveballs:

 

“The worst position you can be in the NBA is to be mired in mediocrity.”

 

“If we got shut out and didn’t get DeAndre, we weren’t going to try and fill the roster. It would be time to take a step back.”

 

We know that Cuban isn’t going anywhere. If Donnie starts dating the draft exclusively, can he be successful? Will Carlisle bail for a contender if we rebuild? Time will tell. In the meanwhile, Mavs fans better pray that Dirk dodges Father Time until he’s 46 and that Carlisle falls in love with the city of Dallas. What do you say Mavs fans; will Rick Carlisle be the Mavs’ Jerry Sloan?