24/7 Sports Talk

"I took time off" Kyrie Irving Gets Honest About His Slow Start In New Season

 



--Dallas

The Dallas Mavericks fall to the Toronto Raptors last night 127-116. Although NBA superstar, Kyrie Irving, had 22 points (8-19 from the field) we have yet to see the offensive explosion this young NBA season from the potential hall-of-famer. 

Episode 1011: Jim Irsay and the Colts, CFP Rankings, TCU, Alabama, Dallas Cowboys vs Green Bay Packers

 



Episode 1011: Jim Irsay and the Colts, CFP Rankings, TCU, Alabama, Dallas Cowboys vs Green Bay Packers

  • Jim Irsay is full of surprises!
  • Why Jeff Saturday?
  • What about the Rooney Rule?
  • CFP Rankings
  • TCU has a shot!
  • Is Alabama over?
  • Preview Dallas Cowboys vs Green Bay Packers

Mavs Rookies on Display In Win Over Bucks, 112 - 102

Drew Hinton/Dallas Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks beat the Milwaukee Bucks to open the NBA preseason 112-102. Two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo led all scorers with 25 points. Maxi Kleber led the Mavericks with 13 points.

11U DFW Elite vs ATL Seminoles - 7:30pm - National Showcase Bowl Series






10U DFW Elite vs ATL Welcome All Panthers - 6pm - National Showcase Bowl Series








10U SS Ducks vs Outlaws - 4:30pm - National Showcase Bowl Series








9U DFW Elite vs Extreme - 3pm - National Showcase Bowl Series





8U DFW Elite vs SW Marlins - 1:30pm - National Showcase Bowl Series





8U PAC Prime vs Havoc - 12pm - National Showcase Bowl Series






National Showcase Bowl Series Will Be LIVE


You can watch the National Showcase Bowl Series LIVE right here on NTXGame.com

Should Mavs Fans Really Be Excited?

Jalen Brunson, Luka Doncic, and Rick Carlisle. Photo credit Jerome Miron
The Dallas Mavericks made a bigger splash than past summers with the 2018 NBA Draft. The leveraged this year's 5th pick and a first-round pick next year to acquire the most polished player available. Luka Doncic, a 6 '8 point-forward-shooting-guard Slovenian with professional experience, was the Mavs target from the beginning. Their second pick, Jaren Brunson, won the John R. Wooden and Naismith Men's College Player of the Year awards. More importantly, they both bring a winning background to a team that has lost that feeling.

As a fan first, even I sipped the kool-aid of what adding two young accomplished players with Dennis Smith, Harrison Barnes, and Dirk Nowitzki to the starting five could give the Mavs the fractional chance of having a winning season and getting back to the playoffs. Boston was able to do it young talent. Utah and Philadelphia both were lead by young, rookie talent.

For full disclosure, I was content knowing that Dallas would select the freakish Mo Bamba from Texas, by way of Harlem, New York. I was set that we would do the obvious and select this kid on pure upside alone. If he could become an outside shooter with inside presence, we would have a building block piece with Dennis Smith for a fastbreak offense.

I also relegated that with the pick of Bamba, our best hope was to get back in the NBA lottery next year and add young talent to a young roster. But, it typical Mavs fashion, we tend to think we are only one or two players away from winning. This was clearly a last attempt to use the 40-year old legs of Dirk to carry our hopes in the playoffs. The additions of two young accomplished rookies, one budding star, with a hall-a-fame coach and hall-of-fame player, are just enough to get MFFL's excited. Perhaps, too excited.

Let's let the excite prevail for a minute. If the Mavs want to make a run this upcoming season it will take some obvious gambles in free agency? DeMarcus Cousins, returning from a ruptured Achilles, or DeAndre Jordan or Dwight Howard, may not interest you at all if you have the future of the franchise in mind. It will take a lot of money to woo any free agent to come here, especially any current or past All-Star. Yet, the Mavs front office will not have the same reservations as us fans.



There is no doubt that the Mavs will pay top dollar for any of those three players. The other option is to offer Houston Rockets stand out Clint Capela a huge offer with the hopes that it will not be matched by his current employer. After all, they have to re-sign Chris Paul and woo LeBron, perhaps. Dallas area native Julius Randle has become a name to look for if the Lakers become the landing spot for two max players to join forces.

Either way, Cuban has the cap space to spend so he will spend if it offers him the chance to get back in the playoffs one more year with Dirk.

This "all in" strategy has its own share of consequences. In order to move up in the draft to acquire their next foreign superstar, we gave up next year's first-round pick unless we finish near the bottom of a bottomless league. Tanking in the NBA to get a top-5 pick has become an art form. This is the most heated race of the year, not getting a top 5 playoff seed.

Here lies the proverbial line in the sand for us. Do you want them to win at all costs? A nod to the aggressive nature we have been groomed to accept from a franchise that wouldn't let a championship team have the chance to repeat simply because they wanted to be different.

Or, do you want to truly see the team rebuild? Are you comfortable with 33 win seasons, marketing around the inevitable departure of Nowitzki, and the promise of a process?

The truth is I haven't decided myself. I suspect other Mav's fans feel the same way.

CCE All-Star Game: 8U Witness vs Honor




CCE All-Star Game: Class of 2023 Game 2




CCE All-Star Game: Class of 2024 Witness vs Mamba




CCE All-Star Game: Class of 2024 Honor vs Greatness




CCE All-Star Game: 10U Greatness vs Mamba




CCE All-Star Game: 10U Witness vs Honor




CCE All-Star Game: Class of 2023




CCE All-Star Game: 9U Greatness vs Mamba




CCE All-Star Game: 9U Honor vs Witness





DFW 6A High School Football Rankings Week 2

DeSoto Eagles still ranked #1.
Our weekly 6A DFW Area High School Rankings for Week 2 are here folks! Did we get it right?
1. DeSoto (1-0)
2. Allen (1-0)
3. Duncanville (1-0)
4. Sachse (1-0)
5. Southlake Carroll (1-0)
6. Rockwall (1-0)
7. Coppell (1-0)
8. Arlington Martin (1-0)
9. Mansfield (1-0)
10. Denton Guyer (1-0)
11. Plano (1-0)
12. Flowermound Marcus (1-0)
13. Cedar Hill (0-1)
14. Euless Trinity (0-1)
15. Jesuit (0-1)
16. Rockwall Heath (1-0)
17. Hebron (0-1)
18. Arlington (1-0)
19. Mesquite Horn (1-0)
20. Arlington Bowie (0-1)



DeSoto Head Coach Peterman Show Episode 1

DeSoto Eagles head coach Todd Peterman set to open the season.


MAVERICKS SIGN CENTER NERLENS NOEL

Image result for nerlens noel mavericks
Nerlens Noel will remain in Dallas for one more year. Photo credit: Scout.com

MAVERICKS SIGN CENTER NERLENS NOEL


DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have signed center Nerlens Noel. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Noel (6-11, 220), who was acquired by the Mavericks from the Philadelphia 76ers in a trade-deadline deal on Feb. 23, averaged 8.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 1.0 steal, 1.1 blocks and 21.9 minutes in 22 games (12 starts) with Dallas last year.

For the 2016-17 season, Noel posted averages of 8.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.0 assist, 1.3 steals, 1.0 block and 20.5 minutes in 51 games (19 starts) with Philadelphia and Dallas. 

The three-year veteran out of Kentucky holds career averages of 10.0 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.6 steals, 1.5 blocks and 27.6 minutes in 193 games (152 starts) with the Sixers and the Mavericks. He has shot 51.1 percent from the floor for his career.

A native of Malden, Mass., Noel was originally selected by the New Orleans Pelicans with the sixth overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft. His rights were later traded to Philadelphia along with a future first-round pick in exchange for Jrue Holiday and Pierre Jackson.

As a rookie in 2014-15, Noel averaged 9.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.8 steals, 1.9 blocks and 30.8 minutes per game in 75 games (71 starts) while garnering NBA All-Rookie First Team honors. 

In his lone season at Kentucky (2012-13), Noel averaged 10.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 2.1 steals, 4.4 blocks and 31.9 minutes en route to earning First Team All-SEC, SEC Defensive Player of the Year and SEC Rookie of the Year honors. On Jan. 29, 2013, Noel set the UK single-game record with 12 blocked shots in a victory over No. 16 Ole Miss.

Noel suffered a torn ACL in a game against the Florida Gators on Feb. 12, 2013, ending his 2012-13 season. Despite the injury, Noel declared for the 2013 NBA Draft following his freshman year. He missed the entire 2013-14 NBA season recovering from knee surgery.

The 23-year-old was the top-rated player by both ESPNU recruiting and Scout.com coming out of high school and was rated the second-best prospect by Rivals.com

The Mavericks’ 2017-18 training camp roster is now set at 20 players.   


© 2017 Dallas Mavericks

SWAC Preview: 2017 Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils

Courtesy HBCU Sports
Courtesy: HBCU Sports

Football Preview: Mississippi Valley State

Courtesy SWAC.org
Thu, August 24, 2017
With less than a week before the first game of the 2017 Division I college football season, the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) will be releasing team previews for all 10 SWAC schools each business day for the next couple weeks in the lead up to the kickoff opener between Texas Southern at Florida A&M on Saturday, August 26 at 11 a.m.scheduled be to broadcast on ESPNU. 
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Mississippi Valley State head football coach Rick Comegy isn’t shying away from a road-heavy start to the season against battle-tested teams from around the nation.
The Delta Devils (1-10 overall, 1-8 SWAC in 2016) will open with five of their first six games on the road away from the friendly confines of Itta Bena, Miss. and mixes in some challenging non-conference opponents including a huge test at FCS national powerhouse No. 2 ranked North Dakota State in the season opener on Sept. 2 that will be aired on ESPN3.
“They’re a good football team,” Comegy said. “There’s no doubt about it.  The only thing that we can do is try this thing out and see if our formula works because I know they’ve got a great formula.  But, I want to see if our formula works rather than having to prepare for what they’re doing all the time.”
The schedule continues with a trip to Southern Illinois of the Missouri Valley Conference in week two and then will host the defending SWAC Champions and Celebration Bowl winners Grambling State (ranked #21) in week four.
“That’s the way the schedule is,” Comegy added. “The only thing that I can say right now is we got to get our kids prepared to play football.  And, if we can prepare our kids correctly, then we’ll be alright.  Hard work is the only way that I can answer that.”
In 2016, the Delta Devils ranked ninth in scoring offense with 14.0 points per game, was 10th in total offense (245.3 yards per game), and finished 10th in rushing offense by running for 25.0 yards per contest.  The Delta Devils passing offense was more toward the middle of the pack with 220.3 passing yards per game (fifth in the SWAC).
New quarterbacks have entered the fray at Mississippi Valley State and there could be open competition between transfer Jett Even, senior James Crosby, and freshmen Dewayne Betts and Christopher Fowler.
Running back will be a position of note as the Delta Devils will look to find a dependable option to take some pressure off their new quarterback.  Charlie Crenshaw, Stavonski Wilkes, Kyuntrae Bell and Tyler Brewer could all share that responsibility.  None received more than 32 carries a season ago (Crenshaw).
The offense should also be aided by senior offensive lineman and All-SWAC Preseason Second Team selection Alvin Solomon, who offers some size and skill up front at 6-2 and 305 pounds.
Lining up at receiver will be returning senior Jesse Bryant, who averaged 19.4 yards per catch in 2016.  But again, there will be plenty of opportunities for others to step into a larger role with the departure of top receiver Joshua Banks, who led the team with 48 receptions for 652 yards and five touchdowns.
Mississippi Valley State will have work as a whole in improve in all areas, but should key in on the turnover battle as a way to alleviate some of their troubles.  The Delta Devils were a conference-worst minus 11 in that category as the team forced 20 turnovers, but turned it over on 31 occasions in 2016.
Last season, Mississippi Valley State ranked 10th in scoring defense (45.8 points allowed per game), eighth in total defense (446.1 yards allowed per game), eighth in rushing defense (200.7 yards allowed per game) and eighth in passing defense (245.4 yards allowed per game).
The Delta Devils defense will have to improve their red zone defense as the team allowed opposing teams to score a league-high 37 touchdowns in that situation and tied for the worst red zone defense as it allowed teams to come away with points 89.6 percent of the time. 
The secondary has the potential to be a strength of the team.
Senior defensive back Everett Nicholas leads the Mississippi Valley State defense as he is coming off a season in which he totaled 24 tackles and four interceptions.  Additionally, Mark Pegues shifts to the defensive back position after recording a returning team-high with 63 tackles.
The Delta Devils had two players in all named to the All-SWAC Preseason Team including one First Team selections in defensive back Everett Nicholas and one on Second Team in offensive lineman Alvin Solomon.

Head coach: Rick Comegy; Record at Mississippi Valley State 4-29 (fourth year); Overall 177-115-2 (27th year).

2016 record and finish: 1-10 overall, 1-8 SWAC (fifth in the SWAC East Division)

Returning statistical leaders
Passing: Will Dean (8-of-15, 30 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INTs)
Rushing: Charlie Crenshaw (32 carries, 62 yards, 0 TDs)
Receiving: Jesse Bryant (17 receptions, 194 yards, 2 TDs)
Tackles: Mark Pegues (63)
Sacks: Willie Clay (three)
Interceptions: Everett Nicholas (four)
Potential game breaker: Nicholas.  The redshirt junior ranked in the top 20 in the conference in both interceptions (tied for second with four) and also ranked 17th in passes defended with seven to his credit.  With Pegues shifting to assist him in the secondary, the Atlanta, Ga. native has an opportunity to make even more plays in 2017.
2017 schedule
Sat, Sept. 2 @ North Dakota State, 2:30 p.m. (ESPN3)
Sat, Sept. 9 @ Southern Illinois, 6 p.m.
Sat, Sept. 16 Open
Sat, Sept. 23 Grambling State, 6 p.m.
Sat, Sept. 30 @ Charleston Southern, 6 p.m.   
Sat, Oct. 7 @ Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 6 p.m. 
Sat, Oct. 14 @ Alabama A&M, 3 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 21 Virginia Lynchburg, 2 p.m. (Homecoming)
Sat, Oct. 28 Jackson State, 2 p.m.
Sat, Nov. 4 Texas Southern, 1 p.m.
Sat, Nov. 11 @ Alcorn State, 2 p.m.
Sat, Nov. 18 Alabama State, 1 p.m.
SWAC Football team preview schedule 
Monday, August 14: Alabama A&M
Tuesday, August 15: Texas Southern
Wednesday, August 16: Alabama State
Thursday, August 17: Southern
Friday, August 18: Alcorn State

Monday, August 21: Prairie View A&M
Tuesday, August 22: Jackson State
Wednesday, August 23: Grambling State
Thursday, August 24: Mississippi Valley State
Friday, August 25: Arkansas-Pine Bluff