Wizards Mavs 7-player trade swaps Howard & Butler

The city of Dallas is looking ahead to the 2010 All-Star game to be played Sunday, but meanwhile the Mavericks swung a trade Saturday while not many were looking. It was speculated that Caron Butler would be dealt from the Wizards and he was on Saturday. Dallas traded away Dwight Gooden and Josh Howard as well as two other players in exchange for Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood, DeShawn Stevenson and cash. The Mavs are looking to build up momentum for their 2010 playoff run by bringing in Butler, who president of operations Donnie Nelson calls a good fit for their team. He also admitted it was a tough decision to give up Howard, but said you've got to "give quality to get quality".

The Wizards meanwhile are hurting with a record of 17-33 and low expectations since losing Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton for the season following their gun incident in the locker room. The team president expressed their needs in the current season:

"We're all disappointed in how our season has gone. We need some freshness and we're getting proven players who will help us, and it gives us some flexibility down the road," Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld said. "We want to remain competitive and maybe this group can provide a spark. The group had gotten stale, and we needed a change." (NBA.com)

Also involved in the deal were James Singleton and Quinton Ross who the Wizards acquired. This marks the 8th new team for Drew Gooden who is becoming a journeyman of sorts, while Howard has spent all his career since 2003 in Dallas. The Mavs will now acquire the additional skills of Butler who is averaging about 17 points and 7 rebounds per game, while Haywood was averaging around 10 rebounds a game.

There may be more moves in the days ahead, as the NBA Trade deadline officially hits on February 18, 2010.

Read more about today's trade at NBA.com

Jason Kidd passes Magic for Assists

On Sunday, Dallas Maverick point guard, Jason Kidd, moved past Earvin Magic Johnson for the third spot in terms of All-time assists for the NBA. A pass from Kidd to Josh Howard for a jump shot was the milestone during a Mavs game against the Phoenix Suns.

Jason Kidd now has a career total of 10,142 assists, playing for three teams during his career thus far (Phoenix, Dallas, New Jersey). In Dallas for his early career, Kidd spent time alongside Jimmy Jackson and Jamal Mashburn, racking up assists. Once he was sent to New Jersey, he had even more teammates to dish to, including Richard Jefferson, Kenyon Martin and eventually high-flyer, Vince Carter. Last season, a trade saw Jason Kidd sent to the Mavs for multiple players including Devin Harris. Now in Dallas, Kidd has enjoyed having guys like Jason Terry, Josh Howard and former league MVP, Dirk Nowitski to pass for layups and jumpshots.

When Kidd's latest accomplishment was announced in Dallas, Mark Jackson was one of the spectators on his feet who at the time was serving as one of the commentators for the game. Kidd now takes third place behind Mark Jackson (10,334) and Utah Jazz great John Stockton (15,806) for overall assists.

Howard Apologizes, Will America Forgive?

There's been some offseason controversy surrounding Dallas Mavericks All-Star forward Josh Howard. Howard recently apologized for a July rant he made regarding the Star-Spangled Banner at a charity event. Howard was caught on video saying he doesn't celebrate the song "because he's black". A 4 minute video of Howard's remarks/incident is available at YouTube. Now in the aftermath, Howard made the right move and issued a public apology on Monday for his remarks and behavior over the past 5 months.

From DallasNews.com:

"I know that's not me," he said. "I love this country. If it wasn't for this country, I wouldn't be out here playing basketball. For me to have that opportunity is the greatest.

"That's not me. That's not Josh Howard. That was an idiot."

The apology is considered heartfelt by most in the media, but maybe not so much by the American people. CNN Headline News ran a viewer poll with 69% saying they didn't believe Howard's apology was sincere, while only 31% said they felt it was. It could be a sign of the times, or the general bias against the NBA and athletes. NBA players have always been viewed in a poor light, as if they are all thugs or hooligans. Recent policy changes supposedly highlighted this by forcing players to dress up for games, rather than arriving in any outfit, such as doo rags, throwbacks, etc. Regardless, this is an isolated incident from just one player, who's allowed forgiveness. Let's move on and get to the regular season.

Full DallasNews.com story on Josh Howard's Apology

Dirk Nowitzki Out for 2 Weeks

An unfortunate injury came to Dirk Nowitzki in Sunday's Dallas Mavericks vs. San Antonio Spurs game. The 7 footer went down awkwardly on his left leg with just 3:18 remaining in the 3rd quarter. According to Mark Cuban the forward/center will be out of action for 2 weeks time.

From Sporting News:

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has confirmed that superstar forward Dirk Nowitzki will be out about two weeks after suffering a lower leg injury Sunday afternoon, the Dallas Morning News reports.

The Mavericks lost the game to the Spurs, 88-81. Nowitzki was injured with 3:18 remaining in the third quarter when he came down awkwardly after blocking a shot by Ime Udoka.

"I fell awkwardly, and my left leg got caught underneath me," Nowitzki said in a news release.

Sources close to Nowitzki indicated Sunday night that a post-game MRI exam, like earlier X-rays, turned up no immediate issues with the knee, ESPN.com reported.

The Mavs will need to rely on a "step-up" in play from Josh Howard and Jason Kidd now as they'll be facing some tough upcoming games. According to ESPN Sportscenter, they may get some relief from 2 games against the LA Clippers though..

No Nonsense NBA Suspensions

From the Boston Herald:

"An NBA spokesman confirmed last night that the league is reviewing Paul Pierce [stats]’s grab of Jamal Crawford during the Celtics [team stats]’ exhibition loss in New York Monday night.

The C’s captain, rushing to the aid of teammate Ray Allen after the guard crashed to the floor following Crawford’s foul, grabbed the Knick under the chin.

Pierce later said he thought Crawford was about to “stand over” Allen. Asked about the league’s investigation before last night’s 82-71 loss to New Jersey, Pierce said, “Well, the league will look into it then.”

---

Pierce's fate is unknown as of right now. Last week, Josh Howard was suspended for a fight with Sacramento's Brad Miller. This brings up how the NBA is being less tolerant of just about anything these days from its players and yes, even its referees.

Suspensions prior to the 2007-08 season:

10/20/07
Denver suspended J.R. Smith for the first 3 games of the regular season
for conduct detrimental to the team.

10/19/07
The NBA suspended Josh Howard (Dal) for 2 games for throwing a forearm at
the back of Brad Miller (Sac) after Miller intentionally shoved Devin
Harris (Dal) to the ground during Tuesday's Dal-Sac game.

9/17/07
The NBA reinstated suspended referee Joey Crawford. Crawford had been
suspended since 4/17/07 for improper conduct and a lack of
professionalism and for being a repeat offender following a Dallas-San
Antonio game where Crawford ejected Tim Duncan (SA) for simply
laughing while Duncan was on the bench.

8/31/07
The NBA suspended James Posey (Bos) for 1 game for his no contest plea
regarding a charge of reckless driving.

8/23/07
The NBA fined Seattle co-owner Aubrey McClendon $250,000 for his comments
from 2 weeks ago about the new owners' plans to move the team to Oklahoma.

7/14/07
The NBA suspended Ron Artest (Sac) for 7 games for his no contest plea in
May to a misdemeanor domestic violence charge.


7/14/07
The NBA suspended Stephen Jackson (GS) for 7 games for his guilty plea in
June to a felony count of criminal recklessness for firing a gun outside a
strip club last fall.

You can review a great listing of all publicized NBA suspensions dating back to 1994-95 here