The dreamers out there truly believe that the Mavericks blew it in
the trade with Golden State when they got Antawn Jamison, Danny Fortson,
Jiri Welsch and Chris Mills.
They wonder why Erick Dampier couldn't be part of the package.
There's an easy answer: The Warriors weren't interested in letting him
go.
Now that Dampier has been leading the NBA in rebounding for most of the
first month of the season, it's easy to see why his team put him in the
off-limits category when any trade talks got hot and heavy.
"It wasn't going to happen," says Donnie Nelson, the Mavericks'
president of basketball operations. "That would have been a
deal-breaker."
The Mavericks still made out smartly. And you can take it to the bank
that they inquired about Dampier. That's the way trades happen. You ask
for the galaxy and settle for a star and a moon or a planet.
Admittedly, it's hard not to fantasize about Dampier. At 6-11, 265
pounds, he's the inside presence that the Mavericks have never had under
Don Nelson.
It's true that the Mavericks are still searching for a big man, and
there may or may not be a trade coming somewhere down the line. But if
Dampier continues to stay atop the league in rebounding, the price of
poker will go up, probably higher than the Mavericks are willing to pay.
But keep dreaming. Perhaps there is a perfect fit for the Mavericks out
there. Just don't expect it to be Dampier.
E-mail esefko@dallasnews.com
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