Dallas Mavericks Blog – Page 34 – NBA Blog

Mavericks sign Maurice Ndour

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have signed free agent forward Maurice Ndour.

Ndour (6-9, 200) is a native of Senegal and recently had a successful run at the Las Vegas Summer League as a member of the New York Knicks. While with the Knicks Summer League team, Ndour averaged 9.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.0 block, 1.0 steal and 28.3 minutes in 5 games (4 starts). He scored a team-high 23 points in New York’s victory over Philadelphia.

Ndour spent two years at Monroe College where he was a two-time National Junior College Athletic Association All-Region selection before transferring to Ohio University. In his first season at Ohio, Ndour averaged 13.8 points and 7.0 rebounds while starting 31 of his 36 games. As a senior for the Bobcats, he increased those averages to 16.0 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game on his way to being named All-Mid-American Conference Second Team.

The Senegalese National Team member played his high school basketball in Japan where he was a standout at Okayama Gakugeikan High School.

His last name is pronounced n-DOOR.

Longtime Mavs exec Terdema Ussery to resign

Longtime Mavs executive Terdema Ussery to resign

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that Terdema Ussery will resign his position as President and CEO after 18 years of leadership effective August 30th to join Under Armour as President of Global Sports Categories.

In Ussery’s first season with the Mavericks, he led a successful campaign that resulted in $240 million in public funding for the construction of the American Airlines Center and actively participated in the architectural selection, design and construction of the building. Ussery was also intimately involved in securing the naming rights partnership with Dallas/Fort Worth based American Airlines for the downtown facility.

Under his direction, the club has more than tripled revenue and exponentially increased its media and digital footprint by establishing new and expanding existing media partnerships across multiple platforms. Additionally, the Dallas Mavericks Foundation has distributed over $1 million to over forty agencies whose aim and mission is to improve the lives of those in need in the DFW metroplex.

“It’s been an extraordinary honor to have sat in the CEO’s chair for the past 18 years. I want to thank Ross Perot, Jr. for the opportunity to come to Dallas and especially thank Mark Cuban, who invited me to stay. Working alongside him these past 15 years has been nothing short of amazing. I know the fans agree with me that we are extremely lucky to have him as the owner and steward of our Dallas Mavericks. Finally, I want to express my gratitude to the fans, our sponsors and most importantly, the incredible staff I’ve had the privilege of working with in Dallas. Our objective has always been to be the best organization in sports and I have full confidence that they will continue in that pursuit under the leadership of Floyd Jahner and the rest of the executive leadership team,” Ussery said.

Mavericks re-sign Jose Juan Barea

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have re-signed guard Jose Juan Barea.

Barea (6-0, 185), who began his NBA career with the Mavericks, returned to Dallas in 2014-15 after spending the previous three seasons with Minnesota. He averaged 7.5 points, 3.4 assists and 17.7 minutes in 77 games (10 starts) with Dallas during the 2014-15 campaign.

In 392 games (55 starts) with Dallas, Barea has averaged 7.2 points and 3.0 assists in 17.4 minutes. He has also reached the playoffs in each of his six seasons with the Mavericks, accruing averages of 8.1 points and 3.5 assists in 45 postseason games (nine starts). Barea helped lead the Mavericks to their first title in franchise history in 2011.

The nine-year veteran holds career averages of 8.2 points, 3.4 assists and 18.8 minutes in 586 games (69 starts) with Dallas and Minnesota. He has shot 79.9 percent from the foul line for his career.

The Mayaguez, Puerto Rico native went undrafted in the 2006 NBA Draft and was signed by Dallas as a rookie free agent on August 17, 2006. Barea attended Northeastern University where, as a senior, he averaged 21.0 points, 8.4 assists and 4.4 rebounds for the Huskies.

Mavericks sign Deron Williams

The Dallas Mavericks announced Tuesday that they have signed free agent guard Deron Williams. According to multiple reports, the deal is for two years, $10 million.

Williams’ time with the Brooklyn Nets came to a disappointing conclusion. His play seemed to get worse as time went on, and he didn’t look like the same player that quite rightly earned high praise in the past. But now Deron begins a new chapter, at a very affordable cost to the Mavs.

Williams (6-3, 200) is a 10-year NBA veteran with career averages of 17.0 points, 8.5 assists, 3.2 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 35.1 minutes in 716 games (664 starts) for two teams (Utah and New Jersey/Brooklyn). Overall, he has shot .447 (4,290-9,589 FGs) from the field, .358 (996-2,780 3FGs) from three-point range and .819 (2,609-3,187 FTs) from the free throw line.

Williams was a member of three All-Star Teams (2010, 2011 and 2012), made the All-NBA Second Team in 2008 and 2010 and won gold medals as part of Team USA at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing and the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. He also was a member of the All-Rookie First Team in 2006 and became only the third player in NBA history to have 1500+ points and 800+ assists while shooting .500+ from the field in a single season in 2007-08 (also Magic Johnson-1986-87 and 1988-89 and Kevin Johnson-1988-89).

He spent last season with the Nets and averaged 13.0 points, 6.6 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 31.1 minutes in 68 games (55 starts).

A familiar face to Dallas/Fort Worth, Williams played high school basketball for The Colony before attending the University of Illinois. He was selected by the Utah Jazz in the first round (3rd overall) of the 2005 NBA Draft. On February 23, 2011, he was traded to New Jersey in exchange for Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, two first round draft picks (Nets 2011, Golden State 2012) and cash considerations. He re-signed with Brooklyn on July 11, 2012.

Mavs reportedly have interest in JaVale McGee

Mavs reportedly have interest in JaVale McGee

JaVale McGee has an interesting personality. He also makes lots of questionable decisions on the court during games. He does have talent, though. But nobody is sure what to make of him or if he’ll ever emerge as a player that can be relied upon whtn the stakes are high. The Dallas Mavericks reportedly felt that a conversation with the center was worth having. Here’s ESPN.com reporting:

The Dallas Mavericks are on the hunt for a rim protector in the wake of DeAndre Jordan’s decision to stay with the Los Angeles Clippers and interviewed former Washington and Denver big man JaVale McGee for the vacancy over the weekend, according to sources.

Sources told ESPN.com that the Mavericks’ interest in McGee, at this stage, is best described as “exploratory,” but McGee could potentially fill an undeniable void on the Dallas roster after Jordan’s about-face.

Bucks trade Zaza Pachulia to Mavs

The Dallas Mavericks announced yesterday that they acquired center Zaza Pachulia from the Milwaukee Bucks for a future second round pick.

Pachulia (6-11, 270) was originally drafted 42nd overall by the Orlando Magic in the 2003 NBA Draft. The 12-year veteran has played a total of 815 games (317 starts) for three teams (Orlando, Milwaukee and Atlanta). He has career averages of 7.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 21.0 minutes.

In 2014-15, he averaged 8.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 23.7 minutes in 73 games (45 starts) in his second stint with Milwaukee.

A native of Tbilisi, Georgia, Pachulia has played with the Georgian National Team seven times. He left Georgia in 1998 for Turkey to pursue his basketball career when he was 15 years old. He appeared in 73 games during parts of four seasons for Ulker of Istanbul, the top level of Turkey, and averaged 6.0 points and 3.8 rebounds per game (1999-2003). He helped Ulker win the Turkish National Championship in 2001.

Mavericks sign Wesley Matthews

The Dallas Mavericks announced yesterday that they have signed free agent guard Wesley Matthews.

And on this signing, ESPN Dallas reports something very interesting: “Shooting guard Wesley Matthews will make a lot more money from the Dallas Mavericks because of DeAndre Jordan’s decision to back out of his verbal commitment to Dallas and return to the Los Angeles Clippers. Matthews’ financial agreement with the Mavs was flexible based on whether Jordan also joined the Mavs, a league source confirmed. The contract Matthews signed is worth $70 million over four years, a source said. He would have made $57 million over four years if Jordan also signed with Dallas.”

Matthews (6-5, 220) is a six-year veteran with career averages of 14.3 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.1 steals and 32.2 minutes in 441 games (381 starts) with Utah and Portland. He has shot 44.3 percent from the field, 39.3 percent from 3-point range and 82.5 percent from the line for his career. Matthews is the Trail Blazers’ career leader in 3-point field goals made with 826.

Last year, Matthews averaged 15.9 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.3 steals and 33.7 minutes in 60 games (all starts) with Portland before suffering a torn left Achilles tendon that caused him to miss the remainder of the season.

The San Antonio, Texas, native played four seasons at Marquette where, as a senior, he averaged 18.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.2 steals in 35 games (35 starts) en route to earning second-team All-Big East honors. He went undrafted in the 2009 NBA Draft and signed with Utah as a rookie free agent.

Matthews is the son of Wesley Matthews Sr., a former NBA guard and two-time NBA champion with 1987 and 1988 Los Angeles Lakers.

DeAndre Jordan reneges on agreement with Mavs, re-signs with Clippers

DeAndre Jordan reneges on agreement with Mavs, re-signs with Clippers

Here’s the Dallas Morning News reporting on a massively frustrating turn of events for the Mavericks:

Maybe it wouldn’t hurt so much and set up so many potential ramifications if it weren’t so tantalizingly close for the Mavericks.

Even if you have no love for owner Mark Cuban or his team, you have to admit it’s cruel and unusual the way they lost DeAndre Jordan.

He was poised to become the biggest free-agent acquisition in franchise history. It doesn’t come any closer than having a commitment in hand.

Then, after a hard-fought recruiting battle the likes of which even Michael Jordan never got, DeAndre Jordan on Wednesday evening switched his commitment from the Mavericks and returned to the Los Angeles Clippers, who announced that it was official on a social-media platform sent from the team’s account minutes after the moratorium on free-agent signings was lifted at 11:01 p.m. (CDT) Wednesday. The deal was four years for more than $87 million.

Report: Clippers trying to convince DeAndre Jordan to reverse decision to sign with Mavs

For now, we will assume DeAndre Jordan will still sign with the Mavericks

Here’s ESPN.com reporting something pretty surprising. Let’s see if this thing actually materializes:

Report: Clippers trying to convince DeAndre Jordan to reverse decision to sign with Mavs

The Los Angeles Clippers are trying to persuade DeAndre Jordan to reconsider his decision to sign with the Mavericks after Jordan verbally committed to join Dallas last week, according to league sources.

Free agents are traditionally considered off-limits once they strike a verbal agreement with a team during the NBA’s annual moratorium period. Sources, though, said Clippers president Doc Rivers and owner Steve Ballmer have scheduled a meeting Wednesday in Houston to make one last face-to-face pitch to Jordan in an attempt to persuade him to walk away from the four-year, $80-plus million max deal he committed to with the Mavericks and instead stay with L.A.

Mark Cuban fined for free agency comments

Look. Maverick owner Mark Cuban gets fined by the NBA for saying what they feel is the wrong thing sometimes. It happens. Here is ESPN.com reporting:

The NBA has fined Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban $25,000 for publicly confirming the team’s upcoming free-agent deals with DeAndre Jordan and Wesley Matthews, league spokesman Tim Frank said Tuesday, confirming an ESPN.com report.

Mark Cuban addressed the Mavericks’ agreements with DeAndre Jordan and Wesley Matthews during interviews last week. Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports
Sources said the Mavericks were informed of the fine Tuesday.

Teams and players are allowed to strike verbal agreements on new contracts during the league’s annual moratorium period in early July while the league’s salary cap and luxury tax figures are being calculated for the coming season, but team officials are not allowed to openly discuss those deals.