Don Nelson and his young Dallas Mavericks stunned the league last season by finishing with an impressive 53-29 record, and an impressive 5-game first-round playoff victory over the veteran Utah Jazz. Everyone was talking about the up-and-coming Dallas offensive machine that seemed to find victories with relative ease. And then after the party ended, as it always does, a new NBA season began. With the start of a new season, it has become evident that Dallas’ opponents no longer find themselves in shock. 

The wisdom of the masses suggests that Dallas’ woes are a result of the respect they gained with last season's success. After all, no one is surprised by the fact that this young Dallas offense can score big points in a hurry and bury you before the end of the first half. I would certainly agree with this popular theory, but only to a point. I believe that Dallas’ woes come from three main weaknesses. 

1) Rebounding – Dallas is currently only averaging 39.5 boards a game (while their opponents have averaged 45.6/per game). This is absolutely unacceptable for any team that wishes to be looked upon as elite. You’ll never be considered a serious contender without the ability to consistently fight for rebounds. Thus far, Dallas has allowed it’s opponents way too many second (and third) chance opportunities to make a basket. Enough said. 

2) Inside “D” – Let’s face it, Shawn Bradley will never be Dallas’ franchise center (and his signing of a new multi-year contract will not change that fact). Don’t get me wrong, I like Shawn Bradley. He’s a pretty good player who has his shinning moments on the court. But I like him coming off the bench. He’s slow, inconsistent, and he tends to shy off when it comes to playing aggressive “in your face” defense. While it’s unlikely Dallas will have a dominant center any time soon, it would have been nice had Nelson spent a little more time trying to acquire a descent center to split the game time with Bradley…. And no, Evan Eschmeyer doesn’t count as an improvement. Hopefully Wang Zhizhi will be able to fill this void that is being felt at center. Even if Zhizhi can adapt to the aggressive NBA style play, it remains to be seen if he’ll actually be there when it counts. He’s currently being held hostage by his “commitment” to the Chinese national team, and therefore even if he is the next great one, we won’t know until he actually plays at least a full season in the NBA. Even if he were to return right now, it will be years before he’ll be ready to be their starting center. The bottom line is Dallas needs a good middleman right now. 

3) Juwan Howard – There’s no mistake that Dallas needed a post-up guy to go to, and Howard as a player is definitely not a team weakness. But his paycheck is a weakness, and the Mavericks didn’t need to add his $15-million/year salary to the mix. I would have much rather had a good center any day. If you ask me, this move was more “Cuban” motivated than anything else. Mark Cuban is a business man who obviously wanted immediate results from his investment. He wanted to insure his teams’ entrance into the post-season. Being to the playoffs for the first time in a decade is a heck of a marketing tool. Now Dallas is stuck with him, so they might as well make the best of him (Hey at least he adds some scoring and helps them in the rebounding department). 

So the only question is, what can be done?

The answer is difficult, and may not come this season. I say just sit back and be patient. Dallas has a great young team that will definitely contend. With the exception of Steve Nash, the nucleus of their future is under long-term contract, and soon Nash will be also. Whenever Howard’s contract runs out in 2003 he won’t be resigning with Dallas (or at least not for as much money as he’s going to want). In the mean time, Dallas will just have to reap the benefits that he does add. Why not? He’s a great player. 

While it would be nice to see Dallas trade their way into a good center, it’s probably unlikely. The Big “Three” (Nowitski, Nash, and Finley) are untouchable, and obviously no one wants Howard’s inflated salary. By having a consistently effective center, the Mavericks would also solve a good deal of their rebounding woes as well. In the short run, I see no easy solution to this problem. Either Bradley decides to get tough (yeah right) or Wang Zhizhi returns quickly and matures just as fast… or the Mavs will just have to do without a consistently good center. My guess is it’s the latter.