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I'm not going to sit here and say that Rick Carlisle does not know the game of basketball because he does. As an avid Pacers fan, I remember how Larry Bird was the motivator for the team as a coach, but Carlisle was the brains behind the Pacers 3 trips to the Eastern Conference Finals and a trip to the NBA Finals. The problem I have with Carlisle is his ability to crack down on unruly players. The good news for the Mavericks is they don't seem to have very many idiots who want to quit playing because of a rap record label (Ron Artest) or guys who embarrass the city by getting in trouble off the court (Jamaal Tinsley, Jermaine O'Neal, Marquis Daniels, you get the idea). He is a pretty good X's and O's coach, but he doesn't clamp down on players when they are misbehaving. I remember how Stephen Jackson would yell at Rick all the time when he didn't get what he wanted. Rick gave Jackson a starting spot over a much more deserving Fred Jones who was more athletic and a better defender. He did this out of fear of a mutiny from Jackson rather than making the move that would help his team. He didn't ever have control over Ron Artest either. Let's be honest no one did. He has a great deal of knowledge about the game and if the players don't challenge his authority, the Dallas Mavericks could be a championship contender in a couple of years, but it will be very difficult because it looks like their window of opportunity is closing (some would say it's already closed). I like him as a coach and a person and I wish him the best of luck.
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