Mo Ager

Maurice Ager is going to be the death of me.

Ager is a second year swingman for the Mavericks. Though he was a late first round pick, the Mavs (and Avery Johnson in particular) had high hopes for him. He started 4 years at Michigan State, one of the premier college basketball programs in the country, and he OOZES athleticism. The thought was with great players around him and an old school coach he could turn into a solid NBA player. Not a star, but a good, contributing player on a good team. Ager can shoot, he finishes with flair when he drives, he has the tools to be a lockdown defender, he even rebounds well.

The problem is he can't put it all together when he gets in the game. At least not on a consitent basis. And the lack of consistency is the problem.

I really, really want to like Ager. I rout for the guy to connect the dots. For one thing the Mavs need a young, athletic swing man. All of the players in the rotation at the shooting guard and small forward spots are grizzled old veterans (minus Josh Howard). A young guy who can contribute would be a huge asset. More importantly, Mo seems like a great guy. He listens intently to the coaches and you can tell he's really TRYING to do what he's supposed to do. He just exemplifies the qualities of a guy you want to like. The fans go crazy when he actually does something because it gives just a little hope that the light is going to go on.

And yet he struggles. He is as streaky from the outside as John Starks ever was. He is extremely effective on the drive but will often go 2 or 3 games without ever seeing the paint. On defense he does well man to man but you can almost guarantee that he will get lost on a screen. His passes are often ill advised. And maybe the most important thing is he doesn't play with INSTINCT. He's thinking far too much.

Yet he shows enough talent, enough will power to keep me thinking "Maybe he does have something worthwhile." And so he leaves me extremely frustrated.

This frustration has been illustrated in the last couple of days. The Mavs have played 2 games in the last 2 nights. Ager started Thursday's game and played only 10 minutes of garbage time on Friday. Against the Rockets he looked TERRIBLE. He was slow coming off screens, gave up 2 three point plays while committing 3 fouls in 5 minutes, and gave almost nothing but missed shots on offense. He looked lost the entire game. Against Detroit, however, he looked AMAZING. 14 points in 15 minutes. He had three MONSTER dunks. He had 3 steals and all of them were just perfect "anticipate and go" plays. His outside shot was flowing and there was no hesitation.

On Thursday I was yelling "Get rid of him right now while we can still trick some team into taking him." On Friday I'm wondering if he just might be the perfect fit as the 8th man on a team that really could use competent athleticism. This, I am sure, is the true definition of frustration. I would love him to contribute but if Ager cannot be relied on for CONSISTENT contribution then he should at least have the decency to suck all the time, not just some of the time. And if I am frustrated I can only imagine what Avery Johnson is going through. From Avery's comments I get the impression that like me and like the rest of the fans, Avery really likes Ager. But how can he depend on him when he has no idea what he's going to get? Almost everytime Avery has put him in for meaningful minutes, it's been a disappointment and yet everytime you think Avery is about to give up on the kid he goes and has a 14 points in 15 minutes type of night.

It's time for Ager to put up or shut up. Either get it together and help the team or get ready to be that scrappy practice player who never sees the floor. Because let's face it, athletic 2 guards are a dime a dozen and eventually Avery will find someone who he can count on.

I'm pulling for you Mo but it's put up or shut up time.