On the NBA Beat Ep. 180: Jason Gallagher: “Right Now, The Pieces Don’t Fit” for Mavericks - a podcast by Lineups

On the heels of a 2022 Western Conference finals berth, the 9-10 Dallas Mavericks are mired in mediocrity despite receiving historically brilliant contributions from superstar point guard Luka Doncic. Emmy Award-winning director Jason Gallagher, now head of production at The Old Man and the Three, triumphantly returns to shed light on what exactly isn’t computing.   

4:38-5:14: "I believe that the shooting will improve, but I believe that the Kemba [Walker] move is a result of not having a second playmaker. Spencer is just not that. He is about as good as an X-Factor could possibly be, and that's what you want. That's where he thrived last year. But as a reliable sort of playmaking second option, I think that we're coming to find that he's just not the decision-maker that Jalen Brunson was. He didn't have the steadying sort of temperament that Jalen Brunson had."

12:23-14:02: "You kind of come to this conclusion of 'Why does this feel more frustrating than before? Why does this feel like a weird stretch?' Tim Cato tweeted that this is as about as down as he's seen Mavs twitter in a while, and I think the reason is obviously making the Western Conference finals increases your expectations, but I also think that there's a level of, you have a generational superstar and, as importantly, you have a core that you've invested a lot of time and a lot of resources to developing that still feels like a work in progress. … And I think that that is why fans probably feel frustrated. … I do think that a move has to come. I think anyone but Dorian Finney-Smith, honestly, I'm willing to say goodbye."

24:46-25:41: "The reason why you love this sport is that it's a puzzle, and if the pieces don't fit, they don't fit. Right now, they don't fit. … I mean you're seeing him insisting on staying in all of fourth quarters and things like that. You have to keep him away, like he will want to be out there for as long as he possibly can. I just think that, you know, if the shots start falling from those role players, the load gets way lighter on him, and then he starts playing better. That is the puzzle that you want to solve."

48:22-49:24: "What I find to be most fascinating, though, is building around a generational superstar in the modern era, and if the Mavericks have the wherewithal to really understand what that is. … How do you make Dallas an attractive destination? How do you build properly through the draft and then manage a team that wants to play with such a ball-dominant player? There's so many moving parts there. I really think that you kind of go Lebron-Heat/Cavs, and you kind of give them the keys a little bit. I know that sounds crazy, but it is a generational superstar we're talking about. You sell the farm and you get one to two big names and then the rest come dying to play."

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