Bernard James, Doron Lamb and Ivan Johnson were the odd men out for the Dallas Mavericks when cuts were announced before their season opener versus the Spurs. Bernard James had a $915,243 contract for the upcoming season, almost all of which was guaranteed and was still cut.
Why?
Charlie Villanueva. Yep, Charlie Villanueva.
Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has previously stated he wouldn’t be afraid to cut a guaranteed deal and eat the money if he felt another player was more deserving of that spot on the roster. Cuban then stayed true to his comments and choose Charlie Villanueva for the final spot on the roster. Villanueva has a diverse way to score, no doubt about that but will he actually contribute to the team that is already so deep?
The following from Dwain Price of the Star-Telegram.
In an Oct. 12 game against Indiana, Villanueva played all 11 of his minutes in the fourth quarter and contributed 16 points and four rebounds during the Mavs’ 106-98 victory.
In that game Villanueva was 6-of-8 shooting from the field, including 4-of-6 from behind the 3-point line.
Even owner Mark Cuban, who repeatedly said he would eat a guaranteed contract if it made his team better, was impressed with what Villanueva accomplished against the Pacers.
“He’s been instant offense,” Cuban said. “When you score 16 points in a quarter on like eight shots, that’s ridiculous. In the NBA anybody can get hot. But that’s who he is.”
Villanueva’s non-guaranteed deal is worth $1.3 million so it’s not really breaking the Mavericks bank but still, the fact that multiple players were cut, including a guaranteed deal makes for a interesting story going forward. Let’s see what Charlie is capable of.
