Something Better Than In The Middle: Dallas Mavericks Season Preview

(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

The Dallas Mavericks enter the 2009-10 season as tweeners. They are geared up for a run at the title this year, but they are also in position to snag a superstar in the Summer of 2010.

For Mavericks fans, it's a mixed blessing. They are in danger of becoming like the Pistons of 2005-2007, good enough to get deep into the playoffs, not good enough to win.

At the risk of being overly simplistic, the Mavericks' goal for this season should be progress: namely, a trip to the Western Conference Finals. With all the improvements they have made, the Dallas Mavericks simply need to go further, or it was all for naught.

Welcome My Son, Welcome to the Machine

The Mavericks were among the biggest movers and shakers this summer, with six of the Mavericks' 15 players coming in during the offseason.

These players cost the Mavs nothing but a few role players and a few long-term contracts, but we'll take it.

More importantly, each addition seems aimed at a fixing a problem, which is is what you want to see from a team determined to take home a championship.

The Mavs weren't athletic enough to compete with the Denver Nuggets in last year's playoffs, so they added Shawn Marion.

They struggled with three-point shooting, so they added Tim Thomas.

They didn't have reliable depth at center, so they added Drew Gooden.

All of these pieces came at a pretty cheap price. Jerry Stackhouse, who hasn't done much since 2007, and Antoine Wright were given away from Marion. I'll take that deal any day of the week.

Now, Marion's brief stops in Miami and Toronto might persuade one that his prime is long gone, that his freakish athleticism has gone the way of say, Detroit's salary cap space (too soon?).

But Marion seems to thrive when he's got a pass-first PG leading the offense. With the Heat, the offense revolved around D-Wade naturally. But Wade also brought up the ball much of the time, and passing (like not flopping) isn't what Wade is great at.

In Toronto, the offense ran through Bosh, and while I do like Jose Calderon as a PG, he's no Steve Nash or Jason Kidd. From what I saw up close and personal Marion will fit right in with these Mavericks, both defensively and offensively.

Addition by Subtraction

The key loss for the Mavericks, with all due respect to Antoine Wright and Ryan Hollins, was that of Brandon Bass. He provided a spark off the bench on the boards and with a good mid-range jumper.

But playing behind someone like Dirk, he wasn't going to get the playing time he wanted, so he decided to bolt. The fact that he went to the Magic rubs a bit of salt in the wound, but he deserves the opportunity. And hey, if he wants to throw the game when the Mavericks and Magic meet in the Finals, who am I to judge?

One thing the Mavericks have had a knack for doing is finding gems in trade throwaways. Kris Humphries is the latest on a list populated by Ryan Hollins and others.

Orginally the mavs sought to dump him in a way to pare their roster down to 15, but his play in the preseason has given him a regular spot in the rotation, in the same kind of role as Bass.

He brings much of the same to the table, a good jumper, good rebounder, defender who can body up to some of the bigger people in the league.

He has proven effective in small minutes, but on previous teams, it hasn't translated to bigger minutes. I don't think he'll have to worry about getting too many minutes in Dallas, so if he can make the most of it the Mavericks should have a deep bench.

Meet the Old Boss, Same as the New Boss

Jason Kidd has been signed to a three-year deal, and if the Mavericks are lucky, he will have two good ones.

Kidd, while not exactly a glamour signing was very important to the Mavericks' offseason plans, as well as the future of the franchise.

For those who are hating on Kidd's three-year deal, please, do tell, who else was available?

Try as Cuban did, he wasn't able to pry Chris Paul away from the Hornets. And call Cubes and Donnie Nelson crazy, but they didn't hold out for Deron Williams or Derrick Rose to become available.

Ramon Sessions? An interesting notion, but ultimately irrelevant. It took him a while to find a deal, which shows me that he probably isn't a game changer. Good player? Yes. Someone you want at the helm of a veteran team with championship aspirations? No thank ye.

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