Wow, these Dallas Mavericks are pretty good — they could even be Finals contenders if they... nah, not even worth it.
The skeleton Mavs did look like a legitimate playoff team on Wednesday night, though, handling the Sacramento Kings and advancing to what should be a very fun play-in game against the Memphis Grizzlies, with the winner of that advancing to play the Monstars — er, the Oklahoma City Thunder. Same idea.
Updated NBA Playoffs bracket after Mavericks advance
Neither of Wednesday's play-in games were fun to watch. But if the Mavs play how they did tonight, and the Grizzlies play how they did on Tuesday against Golden State, then Mavs vs. Grizz could be a blast! You can choose to view it as the "who gets to lose to OKC" bowl, or you can enjoy an elimination game with real stakes. I'm taking that option!
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Mavericks fans are understandably conflicted
I'm usually of the mind that, in the NBA, you should always cheer for your team to win, but Mavs fans have a pass to cheer against their team (and a lot of them are). So tonight, after a fun and complete beatdown in the postseason, it's not surprising that the vibe among Mavs fans is pretty indifferent.
I think most Mavs fans think the same way; they're happy for the players still on the team, but would rather see the franchise at large lose, and that likely has to include the actual basketball team.
Kings head home as another sad offseason looms
The Beam Team is dead and I don't know where the Sacramento Kings turn next. Do they run out the same roster next season? It's not a talentless roster, but it's the most 38-win team imaginable, and it's hard to envision any result other than one similar to what we just watched.
Does the team get ahead of the curve and start to rebuild early? That's a question for new Kings GM Scott Perry.