If Calvin Booth and Drew Gooden had a love child ... Alex Ajinca He just got outplayed and outeverythinged by two French guys that barely make it off the bench in a 30-point blowout.
With Tyson Chandler out with tummy troubles, Haywood was pressed in to the starting line-up, but fortunately Alex Ajinca and Ian Mahinmi were there to save the day for a win over the still-hated Golden State Warriors, 105-100 at the American Airlines Center. It was the Mavericks' 10th straight win.
The numbers are awesome:
Brendan Haywood
17 min. - 4 pts - 1 O-rebound - 6 rebounds - 3 TOs - 3 blocks - 2 fouls
Mahinmi-Ajinca Power Duo
30 min. - 15 pts - 10 O-rebounds - 16 rebounds - 0 TOs - 3 blocks - 3 fouls
The stats aren't done! Look at these numbers!
Haywood -- $6.9 million
Mahinmi-Ajinca Power Duo -- $2.1 million
Yes! It gets better:
Haywood -- 31 years old
Mahinmi-Ajinca Power Duo -- 23 years on (average)
I realize I'm being a twerp here. I know that Mahinmi and Ajinca have their place on this team and it's on the bench, where they should spend most of their time.
But I think it speaks volumes about the Mavericks' ability to evaluate talent. They hardly ever develop young talent outside of Devin Harris and, we assume, Roddy Beaubois. If these guys can't play, fine. But why draft them in the first place?
I don't think Mahinmi and/or Ajinca bought themselves a ton of more playing time; however, I think they showed that they have a place, that they can succeed under circumstances. They are young (24, 22) and are essentially rookies with time already accrued.
Moreso, we've learned that Haywood is absolutely awful and, for my money, the worst free agent center this team's ever paid for.
Notes:
1. Ten-game win streak? Sorry. Still in second place. A half game behind the San Antonio Spurs. Ridiculous.
2. The Mavericks are now 9-3 at home.
3. I kind of thought J.J. Barea was having a pretty bad season. Jason Kidd's may be worse. Shooting an awful 35 percent from the field and three-point range on the season. Rebounds are down as are assists.
4. Dirk Nowitzki's shooting 55 percent from the field. All the while, he's taking about one less shot per game over last season. He's my favorite.
5. Alex Ajinca's big French toe is already more productive than Antoine Rigaudeau.
