BROTHER VS BROTHER
Here we are! Week 1 of the 2016-2017 NLL season and already things have gotten
feisty between GMs. Poor trade offers have gotten under a handful of GMs skin
and others are holding their foot firm in the sand. One thing that never
changes though is the friendly, but competitive, spirit between brothers Smokey
of the Dallas Mavericks and Leeroy of the San Antonio Spurs. In what is an
annual event for the NLL, the Brother Vs Brother is showcased and paraded as a
game of the week event. Both teams sport solid outfits and are normally
expected to make the playoffs year in, year out. The Mav’s are a mainstay in
the playoffs and haven’t missed in years (2009-2010 for those that are
wondering) and even though the Spurs stocked up on young talent and had a mini
rebuild to go around Davis, they’ve only missed the playoffs once in the last 5
years. This new season is a clean slate for all teams, but I expect the past to
resume and see both these sides battling for spots. Anthony Davis staying
healthy is key for the Spurs and for the Mav’s the development of Mudiay and
surrounding him with a supporting cast that plays to his strengths will be
important.
LAST TIME OUT
In preseason, we seen the Spurs get the early bragging rights with a 108-106
victory on the road. Reggie Jackson had 26pnts 8asts and 5rebs in this one to
lead the way.
MATCHUP AT A GLANCE
DAL
56-26 (2015-2016)
2nd in West
0.0 PPG (N/A)
0.0 RPG (N/A)
0.0 APG (N/A)
SA
47-35 (2015-2016)
6th in West
0.0 PPG (N/A)
0.0 RPG (N/A)
0.0 APG (N/A)
PROJECTED STARTERS
DAL: Holiday, Mudiay, Hollis-Jefferson, Young, Jordan
SA: Beverley, Johnson, Harkless, Davis, Biyombo
INJURY & ROSTER
NOTES
DAL: Doug McDermott (Concussion), Ivica Zubac (Ankle)
SA: Reggie Jackson (Knee), Will Barton (Ankle), Delon Wright
(Shoulder), Bruno Caboclo (D-League)
DALLAS SCOUTING
REPORT
The Mavericks have a great mix of offense, defense and playmaking. DeAndre
Jordan is an animal in the paint, grabbing any miss and sending anything soft
back into the stands. Mudiay, Thad Young and Lou Will inject a powerful punch
of putting the ball in the bucket and then you have Mudiay who has the
potential to be one of the best playmakers in the NLL and he’s joined in the
back court by Jrue Holiday who is a solid all round guard. The Mav’s biggest
problem might be what is the right mix? Is Mudiay and Young enough in the
starting unit to provide offense? It’s a very defensive looking starting five
with limited shooting capabilities, but we check the bench and its full of
exactly what the starting unit is missing. It’s a great problem to have, so
much talent that the possibilities and combinations are endless, but it may
take a few weeks until we see the real Maverick’s step up. Once they get
comfortable, I expect the the Mav’s to be very dangerous.
TEAM LEADERS
(Pre-Season)
DAL
PTS: Mudiay (16.1)
REB: Jordan (14.5)
AST: Mudiay (7.4)
SA
PTS: Davis (25.3)
REB: Biyombo (12.3)
AST: Jackson (10.8)
SAN ANTONIO
SCOUTING REPORT
That front court…. *shudder* Joel Embiid has looked great in pre-season, but
Leeroy is going to take it slow and bring him off the bench. When he’s
comfortable, Embiid and Davis are going to terrify the NLL. For now, its
Biyombo’s position to lose. Anthony Davis is the pillar to the Spurs though and
he’s going to be an even scarier offensive player knowing he doesn’t have to
carry the team defensively either. Other than the changes injuries will force,
I don’t think the Spurs have the same problem of not knowing what works for
them yet and what doesn’t, other than Embiid, there starting unit pretty much
names itself. Starting PG Reggie Jackson will be missing for the first few
weeks though, Pat Bev will be relied upon to fill the void and he will be
declared healthy to start the NLL season. Do they have the depth to cover the
other areas? Add Barton to that list as well and things are just getting worse
unfortunately. Who comes in for Barton, looks to be newcomer Timothy Hardaway
but is he good enough yet to cover the loss of Barton? Guess we’ll find out.
PREDICTION
Because of injuries to
Jackson and Barton, I’m picking the Mav’s by 9 in this one.
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Young has a huge task in this one. This is the reason he is listed. While it was mentioned that the rest of the Mav's defenders will have to help out, it's still up to Thad to call the help and hold his own offensively. Thad has always been a solid scorer in the NLL and I think this is where he should look to make AD work the most. Be aggressive and force AD to make defensive plays that can maybe get in some sort of foul trouble. Big task for Young, but I feel his experience and NLL ability could see him cause a couple of problems if he's aggressive. 
Would it be anyone else? I mean Embiid may play a big factor off the bench, but Anthony Davis is THE man. I'm sure if you ran a poll of one guy to start a franchise with today, he'd be top of the list. Inside, outside, jumpshots, hook shots, swat shots, pick passes, grab any missed shots, I mean what can't this guy do? Stay healthy is probably it, but when he's on the court he makes such a big impact in multiple areas. I feel Thaddeus Young is going to have his hands full here and it will be up to the rest of the Mav's players to help out in having any shot at shutting down AD.