| New Kid On The Block Authored by Jeff Stotts - October 12, 2005 - 1:39 am
Imagine yourself as the new kid in school. The principal decides to introduce you to the entire new school by having you sit next to the most popular guy in school. Obviously not the best of scenarios to be put in when you are trying to establish yourself in a new environment. Unfortunately for DeSagana Diop, he was placed in a very similar situation at the Dallas Mavericks’ recent Fan Jam.
At an autograph session for Mavericks fans on Sunday, October 9 the recently acquired Diop found himself sharing a table with the face of the franchise, Dirk Nowitzki. Ecstatic fans eager to meet the Wunderkid often passed by Diop failing to recognize him, a few even moving on without an autograph. Little did these fans realize they may have bypassed the Mavs’ most important offseason acquisition.
Diop was drafted in the 2001 NBA Draft at the eight spot ahead of the likes of Richard Jefferson, Zach Rudolph, and Gilbert Arenas. Cleveland, desperate for a backup to their often injured center Zydrunas Ilgauskas, gambled on the Oak Hill Academy product only to see him play a mere 18 games that season. Minor injuries and lack of production marred Diop’s next three seasons with the Cavaliers and this off season he entered free agency. After private workouts with Coach Avery Johnson the Mavericks had apparently seen enough and signed the 7-footer to a 3-year $6.48 million deal.
A glance down the depth chart and you can see why Diop was so sought after by Dallas. With the recent retirement of Shawn Bradley (it still isn’t official but should happen any day now) the Mavs had nothing but a two headed project as backup center with Pavel Podkolzin and DJ Mbenga. Critics may be quick to label Diop a project as well but the truth is he is further developed than both Mbenga and Podkolzin. The athletic center from the Senegal is a deadly shot blocker that will be called upon to serve as a defensive presence if center Erick Dampier needs a breather or picks up quick fouls. Diop’s numbers hint that this is a strong possibility. In the only season that he played more than 60 games, Diop averaged a healthy 1.01 blocks and 2.7 rebounds in only 11 minutes. Translate that over to the 20 minutes he will likely see and the numbers climb to 2 blocks and almost 6 boards. Diop’s offensive game is still weak but he will not be called upon to score points. The Mavericks have Dirk for that. And Jason Terry. And Josh Howard. And Jerry Stackhouse. The list goes on and on.
Last offseason the Mavs acquired their long lost center in Dampier. This offseason they added an athletic backup with Diop. Now the Mavs have four 7-footers on their roster, the most in the league and this almost guarantees that Dallas will always have a big man hovering around the basket altering shots. Couple this with a perimeter defense that will consist of Doug Christie, Howard, and Daniels and the Mavericks suddenly have a much improved defensive line.
The newest Maverick is excited about his arrival in Big D and is looking at this as a much “needed change” saying that “what I've been through in Cleveland makes me hungrier.” So far Diop is backing up these words. He reported to training camp 20 lbs lighter and considerably quicker.
In the intersquad scrimmage that followed the aforementioned autograph session Diop did his best to make the fans that skipped him in line regret that decision. He played well and finished with 3 blocks. Two nights later he followed that performance with a team high 8 rebounds and 2 blocks in 20 minutes of action in the Mavericks’ first preseason match up with the Sacramento Kings. Coach Johnson and Mavericks fans alike will be thrilled if these numbers become a regular occurrence and Diop develops into a reliable backup center. Besides anything is better than Shawn Bradley. |
