When you almost blow a 28-point lead to the lowly Utah Jazz and have to over-extend starters’ minutes, it comes back to haunt you. In this case, the leg-weary Mavs faded down the stretch of a loss in Denver last Saturday night after surviving the Jazz 24 hours prior.
But that’s a temporary problem. I’ve got a bigger, long-term concern. And he goes by the name of Vince Carter.
Look, I acknowledge that Carter is a great NBA player. Rookie of the Year. Eight-time All-Star. Epic dunker. But I also recognize he’s at the end of his career.
As in, nothing good comes from Carter shooting long 3-pointers or step-back jumpers at this point in the game. The Mavs don’t need it. And more often than not, Carter doesn’t make it.
The Mavs are off to a 9-5 start entering Monday night’s home game against Denver because of a dynamic offensive flow sculpted by Dirk Nowitzki and Monta Ellis and Jose Calderon. When the ball becomes stagnant in Carter’s hands, it’s bad for everyone. He was in an 11-of-33 slump before starting 1 of 7 against the Nuggets before making 4 3-pointers.
Bottom line: The Mavs will go nowhere fast if they’re living on Vince Carter shooting jumpers.
At this point, Carter is a backup littered with 40-percent shooting with a highlight dunk perfuming his play every 10 days or so. But give me more Jae Crowder, less Vince Carter. And soon, more Devin Harris as well.
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A native Texan who was born in Duncanville and graduated from UT-Arlington, Richie Whitt has been a mainstay in the Metroplex media since 1986. He’s held prominent roles on all media platforms including newspaper (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dallas Observer), radio (105.3 The Fan) and TV (co-host on TXA 21 and numerous guest appearances, including NBC 5). He currently writes a sports/guy stuff blog at DFWSportatorium.com and lives in McKinney with his fiancee, Sybil, and two very spoiled dogs.
