Full-Court Press

Delonte West's departure appears imminent

DALLAS -- With the Dallas Mavericks unable to hold their own on the boards during the first seven preseason games, it was obvious they had to get another big body in training camp.

And it was obvious that one of the seven guards were going to be finding employment elsewhere.

Unfortunately for Delonte West, he's the guard most likely to be finding employment elsewhere. Especially since he was suspended today -- for the second time in 11 days -- for "conduct detrimental to the team.''

In the meantime, because of injuries to Dirk Nowitzki, Chris Kaman and Brandan Wright, the Mavs need some serious help on the frontline. That's why they're bringing in centers Eddy Curry, Chris Douglas-Roberts and Melvin Ely.

The Mavs bend over backwards to make it work with West. But they are close to cutting ties with the wily veteran after he was suspended without pay today.

West was a favorite of the team, coaches and fans. But he has a bipolar disorder, and sometimes his mood swings get him in trouble.While West was a valuable asset to the Mavs, they apparently could no longer deal with the distruptions he brought to the team.

The Mavs have until Monday to rid themselves of West, freeing them the opportunity to add Curry, Ely or Douglas-Roberts to their 15-man roster. As far as the players are concerned, they're ready to just focus on playing basketball.

"As a team we've got to look forward to moving on,'' point guard Darren Collison said. "And I think we’re ready to move on.''

Collison said there's one sure-fire way to put the West situation behind them.

"Win games,'' Collison said. "Focus on winning games.

"You focus on winning games and everything else will take care of itself.''

For his part, West contends he is innocent and that an agrument between two Mavs didn't involve him. West then went on his Twitter account to plead his case, tweeting:

"Just ask u to talk with me....I'm a grown man...that's not above logic and reason...Before u go to the papers wit false information.

"That my name showin up in any fashion in a negative light is the worst thing that can happen.everything Ived worked towards out d window.

"I love the city of Dallas..I love playin in the NBA...no I'm not off my meds...no I ain't on no bipolar trip...this real people lives.''

-- Dwain Price

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@dwainprice

 

 

 

Kaman may not play opening night

DALLAS – Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle didn’t sound too optimistic that center Chris Kaman will be able to play in Tuesday’s regular season opener against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Kaman has missed the last three games while nursing a strained right calf. The 7-footer also missed less than a week of practice earlier this fall when he sprained his lower back during the first day of trianing camp.

Now the Mavs aren’t sure how long he’ll be on the sidelines.

“I don’t know how realistic (playing opening night) is,’’ coach Rick Carlisle said. “I know he mentioned the other day that he thought he could do it, but we’re going to have to evaluate him
each day and just kind of see what’s what.

 “He’s working at it and he’s made some mild progress. He’s not there yet, and so we’ll just working with him.’’

-- Dwain Price

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@dwainprice

Mavs react to Delonte West's suspension

DALLAS – Ten days after guard Delonte West got out of the doghouse, suddenly his career with the Dallas Mavericks may be in jeopardy.

The Mavs suspended West on Thursday morning for conduct detrimental to the team. The suspension is indefinitely, meaning no one knows for sure when West will be back with the team – or if he'll be back at all.

In fact, even West and some of his teammates sounded like he'll never wear a Mavericks' uniform again.

“It’s between (Mavs management) upstairs, and they’re going to handle that problem,’’ forward Vince Carter said. “I wish him the best.

“He’s a helluva player. I like Delonte. He’s got some stuff he’s going to work out with
them. That’s not our concern.’’

The Mavs released a short statement, quoting Donnie Nelson – the team’s president of basketball operations – saying: “We have suspended Delonte for conduct detrimental to the team. The
suspension is effective immediately and no other statements will be issued.’’

Coach Rick Carlisle addressed the team and told them of the suspension prior to Thursday’s
practice. It was the second suspension for Wrest in the past 11 days.

After an Oct. 15 game against the Houston Rockets, the Mavs suspended West – also for “conduct detrimental to the team.’’ But after West talked with Nelson and Carlisle, that suspension lasted less than a day.

But this latest suspension could be detrimental to West’s future with the Mavs, since he is a repeat offender. And the two offenses occurred in a short period of time.

“This is a business, and we’re all professionals here,’’ forward Shawn Marion said. “There are things that happen and we have no control over it.

“It is what it is. It’s between them upstairs, and they’re going to handle that problem. I wish him the best.’’

West used his Twitter account to go on a rant about the situation. And he wasn't at all pleased with what suddenly has happened to him over the past 24 hours.

Part of West's tweeted stated: "If I'm not what u lookin 4 ....That's fine...just dont kick me in my ass on the way out the door....I didn't do anything to deserve that...

''"I love the city of Dallas..I love playin in the NBA...no I'm not off my meds...no I ain't on no bipolar trip...this real people lives..

 "And it just ain't right..imma leave it at that..no ill will towards no one...I'm just sittin here across from the arena wit tear in my eyes.''

West is in a dogfight with six other guards for playing time. But it isn’t clear what's at the crux of his latest suspension, other than West saying he was being blamed for an argument between two of his teammates that he had nothing to do with.

“We put out a release that I think addresses it,’’ Carlisle said. “And per the release, we’re really not going to comment any further on it.’’

In the Mavs’ locker room in Wichita, Kan., prior to their preseason game against Oklahoma City, West was very animated and going on and on about different issues and contracts around the NBA. But it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary.

Still, this latest distraction by West is one the Mavs know they don’t need with the regular season set to start Tuesday against the powerful Los Angeles Lakers.

“You’ve got to get over it,’’ point guard Darren Collison said. “It’s a tough business.

“As a team we’ve got to look forward to moving on, and I think we’re ready to move on.’’

Carter, for one, said he'll contact West and find out what's going on with him.

"That’s my buddy,'' Carter said. "Man, I tell you what, he’s a great guy. I don’t know what’s going on, so I kind of stay out it. But if he wants to sit and talk and vent, that’s what I’m down for. I enjoy it.''

And there's somehting else Carter enjoys about West.

"Other than that, we’re losing a competitor,'' he said. "That’s just plain and simple. He’s a competitor. We all know that.

"Everybody goes through their differences, because but that's one guy you can rely on. And I
feel for him. It’s a sensitive situation right now and it’s not much that I can say.''

With the regular season just around the corner, Marion said the stakes are too high to get bogged down in a player's personal issue.

"We still got to go on and focus on our task at hand,'' Marion said. "You
can think about it, but at the same time we can’t harp on it all day.

"We’ll grasp it and then kind of push it to the side and go do what we need to do. They're
going to handle it upstairs. Let them deal with it. It’s not in our hands.''

If West has played his last game with the Mavs, Carter knows he will be missed.

"Every time we go on the court the first thing he says is, ‘Let’s go get these boys tonight,’ '' Carter said. "Whether we’re favored to win or we not, he always believe we’re going to win.''

-- Dwain Price

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@dwainprice

 

Mavs suspend Delonte West -- again

DALLAS -- The Dallas Mavericks have suspended guard Delonte West indefinitely, the team announced this morning.

"We have suspended Delonte for conduct detrimental to the team," said Donnie Nelson, the Mavs' president of basketball operations."The suspension is effective immediately and no other statements will be issued."

This is the second suspension for West in the last 11 days. The Mavs suspended West on Oct. 15 for one day for conduct detrimental to the team.

In the Mavs' seven preseason games, West averaged 5.0 points, 2.0 assists and 1.3 rebounds in 17.6 minutes per game.

After the suspension, West took to Twitter to go on a twitter rant. Here' an account of West's recent seven tweets:

"I'm gonna just pray for um!!!...perception is not reality!!!..real is real...in any language,culture...and what's wrong is what's wrong.''

"All my family friends fans...who been right der wit me  this  uphill  battle over the last 4years to get to this point....already know.''

"That my name showin up in any fashion in a negative light is the worst thing that can happen.everything Ived worked towards out d window.''

"Just ask u to talk with me....I'm a grown man...that's not above logic and reason...Before u go to the papers wit false information.''

"If I'm not what u lookin 4 ....That's fine...just dont kick me in my ass on the way out the door....I didn't do anything to deserve that...''

"I love the city of Dallas..I love playin in the NBA...no I'm not off my meds...no I ain't on no bipolar trip...this real people lives..''

"And it just ain't right..imma leave it at that..no ill will towards no one...I'm just sittin here across from the arena wit tear in my eyes.''

-- Dwain Price

Follow me on Twitter

@dwainprice

Jae Crowder impresses Delonte West

WICHITA, Kan. -- Jae Crowder hasn't played in an NBA regular season game yet. But the Dallas Mavericks rookie is already impressing his veteran teammates.

After Crowder had a game-high 21 points, a game-high tying nine rebounds, three assists and two steals during Wednesday's 88-76 loss to OKlahoma City, guard Delonte West couldn't help but heap praise on the forward from Marquette.

"He's going to be a star in this league,'' West said. "You know he has the poise of a vteran in this league.

"For a young guy to come in like that with that type of composure, he has a huge upside.''

Crowder has been so impressive that there's already whispers of him being named as one of the Western Conference representatives in the rookie-sophomore contest during All-Star Weekend, which will be held this season in Houston.

-- Dwain Price

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@dwainprice

West don't believe in moral victories

WICHITA, Kan. -- As far as Dallas Mavericks guard Delonte West is concerned, moral victories are for losers.

So when he was asked to analyze how close the short-handed Mavs played the heavy-hitting Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night at INTRUST Bank Arena, West didn't want him hear any of that.

"We don't take (any) moral victories over here,'' West said. "Every game we go into -- full roster or not -- we are trying to win.''

The Mavs lost to the Thunder, 88-76, before a sellout crowd of 15,004. Dallas played without three starters -- Dirk Nowitzki, Chris Kaman and Shawn Marion -- and also without one of their top reserves, Vince Carter.

-- Dwain Price

Follow me on Twitter

@dwainprice 

Carlisle pleased with what he saw tonight

WICHITA, Kan. -- Although his team came out on the short end of an 88-76 score to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday, Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle was somewhat pleased with what he saw from his team.

Especially since the Mavs played without Dirk Nowitzki, Chris Kaman, Shawn Marion and Vince Carter -- all of whom were in Dallas while the Thunder were showing why they could win the NBA title this season.

"I thought we had a lot of guys that really battled tonight,'' Carlisle said. "They are a very physical team.

"We needed our physical guys to battle and I thought for the most part we did. The second half was better than the first half, and we need to build on that and we've got a lot to do before next Tuesday.''

The Mavs play their final preseason game Friday night at 7:30 in Dallas against Charlotte before opening the regular season Tuesday in Los Angeles against the Lakers.

-- Dwain Price

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@dwainprice

Thunder beat the Mavs, 88-76

WICHITA, Kan. -- Kevin Durant tallied 18 points to led the Oklahoma City Thunder to an 88-76 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night at INTRUST Bank Arena.

The Mavs are now 3-4 and will conclude preseason play Friday night at hone against Charlotte.

Jae Crowder led the Mavs with 21 points, nine rebounds and three assists, and Brandan Wright added 11 points before leaving the game for good in the second half after spraining his left ankle.

-- Dwain Price

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@dwainprice

Nowitzki taking it slow after knee surgery

DALLAS -– All things considered, Dirk Nowitzki acknowledged that he’s doing fine four days after he underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.

The Dallas Mavericks’ forward spoke to the media Tuesday for the first time since undergoing the first major surgery of his stellar 15-year career. Asked how he was feeling, Nowitzki said: “Not bad considering it’s my first major procedure that I’ve done in my career.

“And I really, really obviously don’t know what to expect.''

Nowitzki is expected to be sidelined for six weeks, and he didn’t give any indication that the timetable would be pushed up.

“A timetable at this point is probably ridiculous to talk about,’’ Nowitzki said. “Any time you have surgery on the knee there’s going to be swelling afterwards, and it’s just hard to say right now ...

“I think when you come off your first knee surgery you want to make sure all the swelling is gone, you want to make sure all the strength is fully back 100 percent, then you start going on the court. Then you can start shooting again and running and put another week or two on the court in before you even start thinking about playing again.’’

Although Nowitzki said he would love to be back in time for next Tuesday’s regular season opener against the Los Angles Lakers, he said he won’t rush back onto the court even if the Mavs’ have a poor record while he’s sidelined.

“I think two years ago, when I came back from my knee injury in the championship year, we didn’t do too well,’’ Nowitzki said. “I was out for nine games -- I probably came back way too early.

“I didn’t look good, I didn’t have my wind up, I was struggling there. So I don’t think this year that’s something that we’re going to do.’’

Coach Rick Carlisle said the Mavs will have to make do until Nowitzki returns.

"You talked to Dirk, so you don't need to talk to me about Dirk,'' Carlisle said. "Whatever the timetable is, whatever he said is what's happening, and we're just going to go from there.

"No disrespect, but I'm not a doctor and you're asking me questions about stuff that. . .We haven't had him for two weeks, so we're kind of getting used to it.''

Point guard Darren Collison certainly misses having a player of Nowitzki's caliber to turn to whenever the Mavs need a clutch basket.

"We defnitely do have some weapons who can make plays,'' Collison said. "Would we rather have Dirk, of course we'd rather have Dirk.

"When Dirk's in the game it seems like everybody's got easier shots because the defense decides to focus on him. It just means we've got to work a little bit harder, go to the paint a little bit more and we'll be fine.''

At age 34, Nowitzki knows his body isn’t the same as it was at age 24, and that recovery time sometimes can be tricky.

“I don’t think that’s going to change our approach with rushing back,’’ Nowitzki said. “We’ve got to make sure the swelling is 100 percent out and I’ve got my strength back.

“Once the swelling’s gone we can push more from day to day. Once the swelling’s gone we’re going to do a lot of court stuff and running and see how the knee responds to all that. We’re still a few weeks away from that.’’

In the meantime, Nowitzki will continue to rehab and hope for the best.

“I was walking around and looking around the house early in the weekend,’’ Nowitzki said. “Obviously I elevated it a lot and iced it a lot and I’m trying to do some exercises already, so I’m actually encouraged.

“So we’ll see how the next couple of weeks go.’’

-- Dwain Price

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@dwainprice

Nowitzki talking to the media now

DALLAS -- Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki is speaking to the media right now for the first time since undergoing right knee surgery last Friday.

 Nowitzki is slated to be out for six weeks, and said nothing has changed in that regard.

"The timetable  the first week is very important," Nowitzki said. "No doctor can actually say what's going to happen.

"I'd love to play next Tuesday, but that's not going to happen. Hopefully for the rest of my csreer I shouldn't have any problems."-- Dwain Price Follow me on Twitter @dwainprice