Of all of the Dallas Mavericks’ assets, Rick Carlisle may very well be the most valuable. He’s a championship-caliber coach, a master tactician and a terrific strategist. It makes sense, then, that the Mavericks would want to lock up their coach for as long as possible, which is exactly what they’re trying to do, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein.
The Dallas Mavericks have advanced negotiations on a contract extension with coach Rick Carlisle, according to league sources.
Sources told ESPN.com that Carlisle and the Mavericks are nearing an agreement on a five-year extension that will extend Carlisle’s stay in Dallas well beyond a decade.
The coming season is the last on Carlisle’s second four-year contract with Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. But the Mavs’ desire to keep him in place with another long-term deal has been an open secret around the league, with president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson memorably announcing in April that he and Mavs owner Mark Cuban regard Carlisle as “our Jerry Sloan.”
For the Mavericks, this is a no-brainer. For Carlisle, it’s actually a little puzzling.
The Mavericks aren’t going to be good this year. They’ve consistently punted on the draft, leaving them bereft of promising young pieces. Dirk Nowitzki is nearing retirement, and once he’s gone, their two best players will be Chandler Parsons and Wesley Matthews, both of whom are coming off injuries. Parsons and Matthews could both return to form, but two great perimeter players do not a championship make. They’re good pieces for the future, though not necessarily pieces around which one should build a team.
That leaves Carlisle with a whole bunch of scraps for the future. Mark Cuban is always going to chase free agents with endlessly deep pockets. but his results undermine his process. It’s surprising that Carlisle would want to stick around for what will likely be an arduous rebuilding project when he’s so accustomed to playoff appearances. The Mavs could surprise everyone by landing a top free agent or hitting in the draft; the problem is just that they haven’t shown the ability to do either of those things in the past few years.
Perhaps it’s a family matter, or maybe Carlisle truly believes in Cuban’s vision for the future of the team. Either way, Carlisle looks set to stay in Dallas for the foreseeable future, come hell or high water.
(ESPN)
