Tim is reporting live from camp on somethings he noticing...

But Rick Carlisle's Mavs have the bar set high. There's still a championship-or-bust tone coming from Mark Cuban's employees at the AAC.

"You know, everybody's writing us off," Dirk Nowitzki said, "but I think we're a lot closer than everybody thinks."

"We've got a training camp with everybody together," Dirk said. "That's definitely something we missed last season - getting everybody on the same page with Jason [Kidd], him knowing all the plays by heart and the defensive calls. I don't think all the time we were on the same page. If you want to be one of the best, everybody has to pull on the same string."

Nothing really new here, as this stuff was being spit out by the Mavs FO even before the playoffs started last year.  They still are stuck on that theory though heading into camp, which is good given that no major moves were made this off-season.

My question is though, if things dont turn out as planned, how long before they realize we are a still a SG short of a championship contender, and if that move is made how long before we see a repeat of the "well, we need a full training camp together" statements again should the Mavs get knocked out in the first round?

Um... hell no.

New York Daily seems to think differnt though...

The Heat seems to have the most interest, although Dwyane Wade needs to dominate the ball as much as Marbury does. The Spurs might not see Manu Ginobili until late December as he recovers from foot surgery, so if Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich think they can get Marbury to buy into their system, San Antonio is a possible destination.

Then there's Dallas, which is already worried about when Jason Kidd is going to wear down.

The Warriors might be another fit since Monta Ellis was stupid enough to ride and crash his moped, meaning the team is stuck with Nets reject Marcus Williams as a starter.

I'm not even gonna say anything, but just the thought of this has made me upset.

Well, better late than never I guess, Josh comes out and says he is sorry for pretty much everything that has gone south with him over the past 7 months...

I love this country and I appreciate this country and if it wasn't for this country, I wouldn't be playing basketball and wouldn't be talking to you,'' Howard told the overflow media crowd. "I'm sorry. ... I'm sorry. ... I'd like to state that I truly and really am sorry for everything that's happened in the past five months with me. This is not the way I carry myself. This is not how I want to be portrayed, and I really and truly am sorry to everybody that I offended. I'm upset with myself and the way I've acted the past months. I truly and really am sorry."

 The Mavs really have a lot riding on this. Its amazing how persistent they have been in thinking that a training camp together will get Josh and Jason on the same page to push us over the top.

This statement will probably get some of his critics off his back through camp until he starts playing meaningful games again.

Kevin Sherrington from the DMNews has pointed out that Josh is the only one to not fully benefit from the Kidd trade, and this seems to be what the Mavs organization is resting the season on...

Most members of the media who favored the Kidd trade - guilty - figured no one would benefit more than Howard.

And why not? He's the most athletic player on the roster, an energetic, opportunistic talent...

Here's why: Instead of filling a lane and looking for a signature Kidd pass, Howard seemed content to drift on the ripples of a break. Maybe he was simply used to his role as an innocent bystander while Harris took off on another mad one-man dash.

The Mavs really have a lot riding on this. Its amazing how persistent they have been in thinking that a training camp together will get Josh and Jason on the same page to push us over the top.

 Cuban has now come out and said that about half the team was asking to be traded last year because of Avery...

"I knew after I had so many people asking to be traded," Cuban said. "I mean, I had to deal with either the players and moving them or the coach and moving him."

 "As you started looking deeper and deeper and deeper into things, we didn't have a choice," Cuban said. "I didn't want to fire him. That wasn't my goal."

via blogmaverick.com...

As much as I felt posting my "Thanks for the Advice on Josh Howard" post was the right thing to do, I have had an upset stomach all day because of it.

I thought it was important to point out the hatred and ignorance of so many who quickly judge people they have never met, based purely on soundbites and headlines. If you think you know any public figure based on what you see on TV or read on the internet or in newspapers, you are sadly mistaken.

I wanted to point out the irony of them experiencing the onslaught of attention from suddenly and unexpectedly being placed in the media spotlight from a throwaway comment.

Try being in a position of always having to be "on" and checking for cameras, because if you let down your guard, any soundbite, even one as short as 11 seconds, can turn into headline news across the country, no matter what the context. Its not always easy. Nor is it easy to just accept that its part of being a "public figure" .

I also knew that because of the email addresses being included, they would be receiving the same level of hate, ignorance and judgment that Josh and I had. They would get the same type of ignorant email threats of "I wont do business with your company again", from people who have never done business with their company. The "I’m going to email your boss and all your sponsors" threats, because that’s the way people try to shout down other people these days.

That’s what bothered me all day. So I have removed the post.

Hopefully something good came from it being posted.

Hat tip to DerekSTheRed, in the comments of Ron's two cents.

via sacbee...

"I think josh howards comment is a reflection on education. I think the schools need to teach deeper in the history classes and make the students aware of racism but also teach them that all people are not bad. "I can relate to not feeling wanted by my own country at times but as I dug deeper I realized that America is divided and we need leaders to bring America closer together. An example where I felt unwanted by my country was when I didn't get a chance to tryout for my national team. I believed it was because of my history.

I hope he overcomes this.

Family 1st"

Such an inspiration...

Even the guy WHO NEVER SEEMS TO STOP YELLING weighs in...

But what Howard doesn't seem to get -- and he's joined in this by some members of the hip-hop and entertainment community, or anyone black willing to disseminate and perpetuate perspectives devoid of facts -- is the damage their moments of exasperating expression ultimately costs the very people they believe they're looking out for.

It has to stop now.

Speaking of which, all you SAS lovers out there, make sure to check this out!

I know most of us around here are pretty upset with what is arguably the last straw for Josh here in Dallas, but some have chosen to take at look at it from a different perspective.

Freedarko.com lists 10 points to defend Josh. Here are 3 of the 10 points...

-I am not suprised that some African-Americans have some animosity toward the United States of America. Are you?

-Millions of dollars doesn't change certain feelings, at least in people who cared deeply about them beforehand. If Howard had been angry, and wasn't now, we'd call him a sell-out.

-There are some things that you say among your own, that you wouldn't necessarily say in mixed, or more formal, company. Are we all non-stop liars and deceivers, hiding our true selves and living under frost?

Mike Fisher responds to each one of those points.

Add your other suggestions in the comments below...