NBA Talk: Erick Dampier Could Be Heading To The Bench

(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

With the Dallas Mavericks' recent additions of Drew Gooden and Shawn Marion in the offseason, rumors started to heat up of starting center Erick Dampier heading to the bench.

"It excites me to have our quarterback back (Jason Kidd) and to have Shawn Marion on one wing and Josh Howard on the other. You got a runner like no other in Drew Gooden that can get up and down the court with the best of them," said Mavs' president Donnie Nelson. "You got Dirk Notwitzki, who knows how to play the game a little bit. And then you got Erick Dampier coming off the bench and giving you that role that you need."

Dampier has been playing an important key role in his stay with Dallas, playing good on the defensive side of the ball overall and making some smart decisions on offense by helping the team out in rebounds consistently.

Dampier was originally drafted by the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the NBA Draft back in 1996. He became a star with the Golden State Warriors and is now playing as a mentor in Dallas to help out the young centers.

He had averaged 5.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game in the 2008-09 season last year. But Dampier actually may not be heading to the bench after all, though. Despite Shawn Marion, Drew Gooden, Dirk Nowitzki, Tim Thomas and Dampier himself all maybe playing at the center spot this year, The Dallas Morning News is saying Dampier can start.

Dampier is still the starting center, because he has started about 700 of his 800 career games, and starting 80 last year. I don't think the Mavs will do that. The Morning News says that the Mavs will start Thomas, Marion, Gooden, Dirk, Thomas, and Dampier at the center spot against certain teams.

So it really isn't that bad for Dampier I guess because he was pretty good last year. The problem with him is sometimes he is inconsistent but overall, I think he is pretty good. Dampier is a good shot-blocker and expect some good things from him coming into this year.

He maybe getting older and he not as mobile as he used to be, but heck, it's way better than having a guy like The Kandi Man or Kwame Brown.

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