Point taken: Mavericks rookie Harris will start Terry to start season on bench, but will play plenty for Mavericks 10:02 PM CST on Sunday, October 31, 2004 By EDDIE SEFKO / The Dallas Morning News The Mavericks believe they have a rare point guard in Devin Harris, so rare that the rookie will be in the starting lineup on opening night. Coach Don Nelson said Sunday he believes starting the 6-3 Harris on Tuesday agaist Sacramento is the right thing to do. It will send Jason Terry into the backup role, although Terry also will play heavy minutes... If it asks for a password you can use mines E-mail- maverick411341@verizon.net pass- lkcxgggf http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dw...lede.a90a3.html
Should be interesting. Harris shot it horribly in the pre-season, but showed an ability to put up stats across the board, including over three steals a game. Rookie point guards are always up and down, so it will be interesting to see how he copes in Daniels' absence.
Looking at the pre-season stats, I dont see a lot of seperation between the two, except Harris stealng more. Of course the regular season is gonna be whole lot different. But Nelson seems to be having more faith in his rookies than the veterans these days. If only this experiment works, Harris could pretty much end up with the rookie of the year trophy as Barkley predicted. With the Mavs having so much depth, they could easily go with starting Terry if things dont go well. One other scenario I'm thinking is Mav's are planning on trading Terry - which I hope not..
Harris is a good defender and also a true point guard something Terry isn't. I'm guessing Nelson thinks Terry can and will play the Nick Van Exel role. Providing instant offense off the bench and be an energy spark. Harris will contend for rookie of the year now he will be their starter, he looks the most NBA ready out of every guard in the draft. Dallas will likely have Terry, Daniels and Stackhouse off the bench, great depth to have. I'm glad Nelson has come to his senses by stating Josh Howard will be his starter. He is certainly one of Dallas's best defenders.
Scattershooting... Devin Harris led the league in steals during pre-season at 4.8 per 48 minutes!! Let's hope he can match that in the regular season. Has a Maverick ever made an All-NBA Defensive roster? I think Derick Harper might have made second team back in the day. I can see Josh Howard, Marquis Daniels, Devin Harris and D.J. MBenga all making a play for these horors. Marquis Daniels will play in the opener, but might not be starting right away. Even though he's not at 100%, Jason Terry is impressed "He's so good, it's scary and he's so smooth. You don't even know he's out there." (www.dallasnews.com) Stackhouse is not at 100% either, but hopefully can play in the opener. This is another reason Jason Terry will come off the bench, expect seeing Terry and Harris playing together quite a bit. Dan Dickau might start the season on IR. I was hoping he'd beat out Alan Henderson, who doesn't look like he has much, but he probably would have had a tough time cracking that awesome guard rotation anyway. (www.dallasnews.com)
I smell a good season for my Mavericks . I totally agree with AllNet about Nelson finally coming to his sences and letting Howard start. Im ready for tomorrow! My Mavericks, and the Kings. This season will be a good one.
Terry Daniels Stackhouse Booth Mbenga I'd take my back-ups over any other teams. I think we have the best bench in the league, probably who can match up is Memphis but not by much.
Nelson knows what he is doing so i'm with him all the way...Howard should do a lot this season after how he performed and blossomed towards the end of last season...Harris plays good defense and I can't wait to see the Dirk/Dampier in effect this season...Dirk finally has freedom to roam and not be in the post...
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"><font size="3">Terry takes on sixth man role with optimism</font> Point guard eager to 'sacrifice' in exchange for team's success By EDDIE SEFKO / The Dallas Morning News Jason Terry isn't holding a grudge at being replaced by Devin Harris as the starting point guard for the Mavericks. In fact, he's ready to embrace the move. "Anybody who looks at the history of me, that's where I made my name," Terry said. "With my energy and leadership coming off the bench with that second group, that's going to be exactly what we need." .................... Terry said after five losing seasons in Atlanta, he'll do anything to ensure success for the team. "When you have a winning team, somebody has to make a sacrifice," he said. "And that person is me. The biggest difference is we're going to be winning. I'll trade that for anything." Daniels likely to play: Marquis Daniels missed all eight preseason games with an ankle sprain, but coach Don Nelson expects the 6-6 swingman to be available for Tuesday's opener. Daniels practiced extensively Sunday. While he had his left ankle wrapped in ice afterward, he said he's made big improvement. "I can't do everything, but I can do a lot more than I could a week ago," Daniels said. "It's just a matter of getting a lot more strength back in my ankle. I'm trying not to aggravate it too much and trying not to baby it too much." Nelson said he expects to have a full complement of players for the opener, which is a little surprising given that the preseason was filled with nagging injuries. "He's been very good in practice," Nelson said of Daniels. "He's not even 100 percent, but I forgot how good he is." That sentiment was echoed by Jason Terry. "He's so good, it's scary," Terry said. "And he's so smooth. You don't know he's even out there." </div> Full Story. It looks like our players are willing to make the sacrifices to be a successful team. I think that's partly because they were on such poorly constructed teams last year that they will do anything this year to make it work.
hopefully what JT says is true and comes from the heart. i mean, just look @ glenn robinson. "its ok, im a pro, i can sit on the bench" now he wants out. hopefully JT actually doesnt mind being on the bench, and wont ask to leave.
^^^although he said that he's okay with it(meaning Terry not Robinson) I think he'll be fine cuz i believe Nelly when he says Terry will play heavy minutes.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Jerry West:</div><div class="quote_post">Methinks Nelly is playing funny buggers. Terry will be starting before the first week is over.</div> I dont think so. They're clearly planning for the future, even if Harris doesnt perform well early. He's slated to be the franchise future point guard. Patience is the key for the mavs organization and the fans this season. I see a big chance of Terry being traded end of this season or in the middle. Here's the Mavs revolving door Juwan Howard -> Raef Lafrentz -> Antoine Walker -> Jason Terry -> ????
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting samoan-maverick:</div><div class="quote_post">Terry Daniels Stackhouse Booth Mbenga I'd take my back-ups over any other teams. I think we have the best bench in the league, probably who can match up is Memphis but not by much.</div> Another point made by Norm today is how young this team is. Dirk is 26 and already a star. The team will be built around him. Marquis Daniels, Josh Howard, D.J.MBenga, Devin Harris, Jason Terry are all younger than him. They will continue to improve over the next couple years. Complement that with Michael Finley, Jerry Stackhouse and Eric Dampier, who are all veterans but certainly they still have a lot of basketball left in them. Think about this, in five years, this team's starting lineup should be: Devin Harris (1st round 2004) Marquis Daniels (undrafted 2003) Josh Howard (1st roung 2003) Dirk (only 31 years old in 5 years) D.J. MBenga (undrafted in 2004) Great team! You gotta give serious props to Donnie Nelson (Don's son) who is responsible for the acquisition of all five of these guys.
This is a pretty bold move,JT is a proven solid PG,while Harris is just a rookie.Maybe he has been showing more then JT in practice and in training camp. I would think that they would put Harris at PG and Terry at SG and Finley at SF.This lineup would benifit them more and I bealive everybody would be satisfied(because JT may not accept coming off the bench).
I'm glad he is starting, he is a good player that plays D that the Mavs lack. He has great potential and I can't wait until he is fully developed.
Even though Harris needs a better jump shot, he made great passes. 8 points, 7 assists, with only 1 turnover. Pretty impressive for a rookie to only commit 1 turnover.
