For all the feelings, good and bad, that flow between the Mavs and Rockets, would you believe this is the first playoff meeting between the two clubs in 10 years?
In a league that seems almost deprived of genuine, heated rivalries, Dallas and Houston might be the hottest one going right now. The Mavs and Spurs have six playoff series worth of history, but if Dallas and San Antonio are an aging couple with skeletons in the closet, the Mavs and Rockets are a young couple filled with nothing but passion and all it implies. Heck, even the cities don’t really get along.
But as it relates to basketball, let’s start from the tip of the pyramid and work our way down. Chandler Parsons, the Mavs’ prized free-agent acquisition last summer, spent the first three years of his career with the Rockets before joining Dallas. In addition to getting a raise and an expanded role in the offense, he’s rumored to like the city better, too. That’s certainly rubbed Rockets fans the wrong way, and they’ve been more than willing to boo him during his visits since leaving. That’s all in good fun.
Across from Parsons on the floor will be Jason Terry, whose No. 31 might very well end up in the AAC rafters some day. JET was an indispensable part of the team for eight seasons, including the 2011 title run. I seriously doubt a single person will boo Terry, but that doesn’t mean he’s a friend once the game begins. Terry’s knack for knocking down big shots in big moments will not go unnoticed by his former head coach, and I’m sure the JET would love nothing more than to unfurl his wings after knocking down a late three-pointer. Corey Brewer was another Maverick on that 2011 team now with Houston, and he’s been a huge factor in several of the meetings this season. Brewer is very similar to Al-Farouq Aminu in that he’s long, athletic, and he’s an engine of chaos on the floor.
Speaking of Rick Carlisle, he’ll be coaching against a former teammate of his own. Carlisle was on the 1986 Celtics title team with Rockets head coach Kevin McHale. The Mavs coach frequently tells stories from his time with the Celtics, reverently viewing those years as some of the most important of his life, both as a player and as a basketball mind. This is the first time the pair have met in the playoffs, and you’d be fooling yourselves if you didn’t think their connection doesn’t add a little extra spice to the matchup. Carlisle is considered one of the best tacticians in the game, while McHale has only coached in two playoff series in his career. While the Mavs boss might have the experience advantage, McHale played on so many good teams during his career that he’ll have plenty of his own experience to pull from.
Then, of course, there’s Dwight Howard, who chose the Rockets over the Mavs and a couple other teams in free agency before last season. Carlisle said the Mavs worked hard to bring Dwight to Dallas, but now that he’s a Rocket, there aren’t many friendly feelings left. It’s especially ironic, however, because Parsons was reportedly the Rockets player who tried hardest to woo Howard during his free agency. Now Parsons is playing for the “enemy,” so to speak.
In addition to being buddies with Parsons, Howard is also very good friends with Rajon Rondo. Rondo, too, is extremely close with Rockets forward Josh Smith, and the Mavs point guard reportedly tried to persuade Smith to sign with Dallas after he was waived by Detroit earlier this season. Rondo and Smith were teammates at Oak Hill Academy for a season before Smith leaped to the NBA and Rondo went to Kentucky.
Finally, Mark Cuban and Daryl Morey have had their fair share of spats through the media, as the teams have targeted so many of the same players both in free agency and on the trading block over the years. There’s certainly been no love lost between the front-office execs, that’s for sure. It was the risky offer sheet Cuban and Mavs decision-maker Donnie Nelson offered Parsons last summer that forced the Rockets into an extremely tricky salary cap situation, where they ultimately missed out both on Parsons and on Heat forward Chris Bosh. Instead, they signed wing Trevor Ariza, who will be the player defending Parsons for the entire series.
Choose whichever storyline you want as your favorite, but you’re not short on choices. The seeds of a contentious relationship have already been planted, and this seven-game series will only serve as a healthy dose of water and sunlight to make this thing sprout into perhaps the league’s signature rivalry. And who wouldn’t want it that way? It’s what makes sports fun. Between all the connections, old and new, friendly and otherwise, it’s easy to consider this series about more than just basketball. And while that might be true, ultimately it’s up to the former teammates, Carlisle and McHale, to keep their teams away from the distraction of the theatrics. As we know, there’s enough for a seven-act play. And hopefully it’s what we get.
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