Still scrapping to fill their center position in the wake of being left at the altar by DeAndre Jordan, the Mavericks have signed their most animated, unpredictable player since the days of Dennis Rodman.
Welcome to the Mavs’ carnival, Javale McGee. Life without Jordan might not be as fruitful, but it shouldn’t be short on entertainment.
The Mavs signed McGee to a two-year contract last week. And on a lot of levels, he fills voids. He’s a 7-foot athletic freak who can run like a deer and jump out of the gym and play above the rim. Dallas had no one on its roster that could do that.
McGee, of course, is also one of the NBA’s most notorious knuckleheads. He’ll deliver an eye-popping blocked shot at one end, then issue headaches at the other with irrational decisions totally oblivious to the game’s situation and score. The Mavs were led to a championship by one of the league’s all-time highest basketball IQs in Jason Kidd. At the other end of the spectrum is McGee, who in the last few years attempted to throw a lob pass to himself in a game in which his team trailed by six points with two minutes remaining.
General managers salivate over natural talent like McGee. Coaches lose jobs because of his lack of understanding of the game. And, yes, there’s a reason he’s been dumped by lottery teams Denver and Philadelphia in the last 12 months.
Whereas Plan A was to have Jordan be the best center in Mavs’ history, Plan B is to fill the position by committee with Zaza Pachulia, Samuel Dalembert and now McGee.
Early prediction: McGee will produce both the Mavs’ best – and worst – plays of 2016.
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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 lives in McKinney with his wife, Sybil, and two very spoiled dogs.
