Finally had a chance to watch most of Dallas’ big win over the Lakers last night, and the findings were interesting.

80 percent of Dallas’ offensive sets can be reasonably classified as one of two things:

• Pick-and-roll
• Dirk Nowitzki

There’s some overlap here, but Nowitzki — at least Friday night — was employed most frequently as a post-up threat, or in isolation on the wing. Occasionally, Rick Carlisle would spot up Nowitzki on the weak side, run some action low in an effort to lure Dirk’s defender into the play, then whip the ball over the Dirk before the defense could recover.  More...

The Clippers spent a good part of Tuesday’s practice working on defensive rotations. During the team’s 5-on-5 scrimmage, the coaching staff would have one practice squad run a high pick-and-roll, with a direction by Mike Dunleavy to go left or right off the action. The defensive unit was then ordered to trap or “red” the point guard, which means the PG’s primary defender would crowd him directly on his shoulder, with the screener’s defender joining his teammate out on the perimeter.  More...

ESPN’s “Outside the Lines” revisits the circumstances surrounding Cuttino Mobley’s retirement due to a heart condition. What seems evident at this point is that [a] Mobley has been aware of his condition, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, since he was 23. [b] Each of the four teams Mobley has played for were aware of his condition and had him sign a liability waiver to suit up. [c] The Knicks may or may not have known about Mobley’s condition when they dealt for him, but any notion that they acted altruistically to save  Mobley’s life by pushing into retirement is silly. As Larry Coon explains in the segment, the Knicks had only one concern — unloading Zach Randolph onto any willing buyer. If the Knicks could acquire a player in return whose contract not only expired in 2010, but who might also fetch them an injury exemption and an insurance claim, all the better.  More...

Disheartening words, regardless of what line of work a person is in.  Everyone wants to go out on their own terms.  But with each passing day, it appears less likely that Cuttino Mobley will have that privilege.  From Frank Isola at the New York Daily News:

Mobley is due to arrive in New York today, and there is a strong possibility that the veteran guard will be forced to retire due to a heart condition. Mobley has been meeting with specialists since being acquired from the Clippers in the Zach Randolph trade three weeks ago.  More...

From David Aldridge:

The trade between the New York Knicks and Los Angeles Clippers involving forward Zach Randolph, forward Tim Thomas, guard Cuttino Mobley and guard Mardy Collins is currently in limbo because of a physical concern raised by the Knicks about Mobley, according to a source. As a result, Randolph was not in uniform for Monday’s Clippers game against New Orleans.  More...