J.J. Barea has never had a problem being 5-10 in a profession where a lot more people are 6-10.
It hasn’t stopped him from doing anything on a basketball court. At one time, he could even dunk, although those days are long gone.
And even at age 36, Barea is finding that being 5-10 has its advantages.
Especially in Spikeball.
For the uninitiated, Spikeball is a hybrid game that is as much strategy as it is physical ability. And being close to the net, which is less than a foot off the ground, probably helps.
Barea has had a spirited Spikeball rivalry, teaming with Luka Doncic to go against Tim Hardaway Jr. and Maxi Kleber.
Hardaway said Wednesday that the Doncic-Barea team is stacked.
“Luka’s good at everything, geez,” Hardaway said. “Luka’s really really good at Spikeball, and he doesn’t even play it that much.
“And I’d say the one (other) person that’s really good is J.J. because he’s lower to the ground, I guess, and when you try to tap it off the net he can still get to it. And he’s still agile for his age. So it makes his life a lot easier.”
Agile for his age? Kind of a backhanded compliment, but Barea no doubt will take it.
Spikeball has become a bit of a near-daily routine for the Mavericks. It involves two teams of two players who slap a ball off a small net less than a foot off the ground. The other team has to bounce it back off the net before it hits the ground. They get two “passes” to each other if they choose to do so.
“We played Spikeball a couple times at the facility during the year,” Hardaway said. “It’s fun. I enjoy it. It’s a great way to do team bonding, build that chemistry off the court.
“We do it as a way to get people warmed up and get a sweat going before we actually get into practice. It’s fun. And the guys compete, they really try to go out there and win.”
Reaves among those available for scrimmage: The Mavericks were expecting to welcome Trey Burke to Orlando Wednesday afternoon. If he clears quarantine, he should be able to rejoin the Mavericks for practice Friday.
So for Thursday’s 6 p.m. scrimmage against the Lakers, the Mavericks will be without Burke and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who coach Rick Carlisle said is not ready to play in an NBA game. Dwight Powell (Achilles), Jalen Brunson (shoulder), Courtney Lee (leg) and Willie Cauley-Stein (birth of a daughter) also are unvailable.
Everybody else will be able to play and Carlisle said he expects to split up time, hopefully, among all the players.
That includes two-way player Josh Reaves, who spent virtually all of the season with the G-League Texas Legends in Frisco. He was one of the first players the Mavericks targeted after last summer’s draft.
The 6-4 guard out of Penn State, averaged 13.8 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in 37 games with the Legends. And he’s thrilled to be with the Mavericks, an opportunity that presented itself because of the assortment of injuries.
“It’s a learning experience,” Reaves said Wednesday. “I’m grateful to be here and grateful to have an opportunity to play in such a rare event. I just want to pick everybody’s brain as much as I can and try to get better from there and help the team any way I can.”
Reaves shot just under 33 percent from 3-point range at Frisco and said that has been a major focus for him during the season and in the NBA restart practices.
Said Carlisle: “Josh had a really good training camp for us and went to the G-League for the entire year. He had a productive run there. I think he learned a lot. He’s been a very consistent competitor. I see his shooting has improved. So he’ll have a chance to get some minutes tomorrow night (against the Lakers), for sure.”
Twitter: @ESefko
Share and comment