The Numbers Game: The Mavericks Hit Skid In 2nd Week

 

 

Week 2 Rankings (previous rankings in parenthesis)

 

While these rankings reflect before last nights game, it is clear that the Mavericks took a step back from their 3-1 start and have analysts wondering if their defense can step up to the plate this season just how easy will it be for Chandler Parsons to find his game with his new squad. If last night is any indication, he should come around just fine. Here are some of the rankings by analysts from all over:

 

ESPN (Marc Stein): 13th (3rd): “Dirk Nowitzki needs just 17 points to pass Hakeem Olajuwon for ninth place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, but you can’t find a soul in the Mavs’ locker room talking that up after heavy losses to the Blazers and Heat, another rash of third-quarter woes and Chandler Parsons’ rough week.”

 

SB Nation (Drew Garrison): 12th (4th): “There’s reason to have faith in the Mavericks becoming the powerhouse team they should be under Rick Carlisle, but a 4-3 record to start the season without any high-quality victories is suspect. Chandler Parsons is having a hard time adjusting to playing five hours up the road in Dallas, shooting under 40 percent from the field and 30 percent from three-point range. This is not the player the Mavericks expected to get when they swiped him away from Houston.”

 

CBSSports (Matt Moore): 10th (4th): “Getting Tyson Chandler and Al-Farouq Aminu was supposed to solve the garbage fire they called defense. Yet the flames rise higher and the smell gets worse.”

 

NBCSports (Kurt Helin): 12th (6th): “They have the best offense in the NBA this young season gut have ugly losses to the Heat and Blazers because their defense has been terrible. Dirk Nowitzki should pass Hakeem Olajuwon for ninth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list at home against the Kings this week.”

 

Yahoo Sports: (Mark J. Spears): 13th (8th): “Newcomer Chandler Parsons is off to a tough start, averaging 13.6 points on 39.1 percent shooting.”

Peachtree Hoops: 12th (5th) : “I think Dirk gets more fun to watch as he gets older.”

 

Fansided (Gerald Bourguet): 9th (3rd): “The Mavericks have one of the most high-powered offenses in the league, they’re extremely deep and they have a ton of veteran experience that will come in handy when the playoffs roll around. But why does it feel like Dallas is sputtering after that 3-1 start? Aside from two dominant wins over the Utah Jazz, the Mavs haven’t quite been the Western dark horse we thought they’d be.

Any team with so many new additions will take time to mesh, but Chandler Parons has felt like a square cog in a round hole so far. In the past week Parsons shot 21.2 percent from the field and went o-for-11 from three-point range. If you exclude his 5-for-13 performance against the Portland Trail Blazers, that field goal percentage nosedives even further to 10 percent. You think that’s bad? Getting pummeled by the Blazers and Miami Heat was even worse, and that’s before mentioning how Dallas almost allowed the Celtics to storm back from 25 down. This will be a good team soon, but the moving parts are still trying to settle.”

 

NBA (John Schumann): 7th (7th): “The Mavs still have the No. 1 offense in the league, but defense and rebounding (they rank 29th in defensive rebounding percentage) are big problems, they’re 0-3 against teams that were in the playoffs last year, and Rick Carlisle criticized their competitiveness after Sunday’s loss to the Heat. It’s kind of early for that kind of an issue. “

 

Lakers Nation: 14th (3rd) : “The Mavs will have to play defense in order to be considered a contender in the West. Their talent, however, cannot be denied.”