Rick Carlisle Reportedly Close to Leading Dallas

According to this report , Rick Carlisle is the top choice of Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and GM Donnie Nelson to take over head coaching duties.  While listening to the radio on the way home from some family fun today, I heard a couple of sports talkers discussing Carlisle and remarking that he might not fit because he would stifle all of the Mavs' offensive fire power. I don't agree.

Carlisle has proven to be a very good NBA coach and actually having some proven offensive talent to guide will only make Carlisle better. Yes, Jamaal Tinsley and Ron Artest among others, used to hate the way RC relied on calling offensive sets in a controlled offense. But, those two were also flakey decision makers to say the least, so of course they were on a short leash. In fact, RC tried to adjust and loosen up the offensive reins while in Indy, but the talent couldn't consistently deliver.

Jason Kidd and Dirk Nowitzki are seasoned offensive All-Stars. Carlisle will set up a system to take advantage of the talent he has on the roster. He's smart, so he'll want to give his stars the freedom to do what they do.

I really hope the Mavs are fully healthy and able to give Carlisle a chance to coach a stable, talented roster. While talented, the Mavs still need to improve their front-court depth to find a way to get it done on the defensive end. More importantly, they need a healthy and motivated Dirk and Kidd. If they do their part, I have no doubt, Carlisle will do his.