The Only Mavericks Podcast

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The only podcast about Dallas Mavericks basketball, featuring Tim Cato of The Athletic, Mike Piellucci of D Magazine, and Austin Ngaruiya.

The Only Mavericks Podcast


    • Jul 2, 2024 LATEST EPISODE
    • weekdays NEW EPISODES
    • 39m AVG DURATION
    • 41 EPISODES


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    Latest episodes from The Only Mavericks Podcast

    Mavs get Klay Thompson & more

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 2, 2024 47:34


    Tim Cato, Austin Ngaruiya and Mike Piellucci dive into everything we've seen through the team's first two days of free agency, including Klay Thompson, how it shows the difference of this front office compared to the past regime, the strange (but not bad) Derrick Jones Jr. for Naji Marshall swap, Quentin Grimes optimism and caution, and everything else Dallas has done and could still do.

    What the Mavs playoff run taught us

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 21, 2024 39:19


    Tim Cato, Austin Ngaruiya and Mike Piellucci talk about the best moments and lessons learned from the Mavericks' Finals run that ended earlier this week.

    Mavs-Celtics Game 5 preview

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 17, 2024 40:34


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya talk about what's real from Game 4 and what might not be in Game 5: the rim protection, Dereck Lively II's reemergence, Kyrie Irving, the rotation, and Luka Doncic.

    How the Mavericks can win Game 3

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 11, 2024 33:35


    Tim Cato, Austin Ngaruiya, and Mike Piellucci talk about the Mavericks' 0-2 hole in the NBA Finals, what's led to them being here, and what things need to change — things that absolutely can — for Dallas to get back into this series.

    Why the Mavs' offense had a Game 1 problem

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 8, 2024 32:41


    Tim Cato talks to Locked On Mavs' Nick Angstadt about the Mavericks' Game 1 defeat in the NBA Finals, where we think the offense was much more of a problem than the defense. We discuss why Boston took away the lob dunk so effectively without conceding corner 3s and what rotation changes or other tweaks might be coming to change that in Game 2. We both ended up in a more optimistic place about Dallas' chances than we were immediately after Game 1. Want Tim's instant reactions? I'm recording after every game on The Athletic NBA Show feed with our Boston Celtics beat writers Jay King and Jared Weiss.

    The ONLY Mavs-Celtics preview

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 4, 2024 50:56


    Tim Cato, Austin Ngaruiya and Dave DuFour tell you how the NBA Finals is about to go down. We break down both sides of the court, the Kristaps Porzingis questions, how the rotation might change, Theoretical Maxi Kleber and his potential importance, and what paths we see for Dallas to win this whole thing.

    The Mavs are in The Finals!

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 2, 2024 36:35


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya talk about the Mavericks' five-game series win against the Minnesota Timberwolves, what we learned, when we realized this team could be a finals contender, and how this journey has felt. We'll be back early next week with a full Finals preview.

    One win away from The Finals

    Play Episode Listen Later May 27, 2024 28:08


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya are rejoined by Mike Piellucci to talk about Dallas' Game 3, which truly felt like a win of destiny as the team overcame the absence of Dereck Lively II to win a game they had to win. They also talk about what it'll take to win Game 4.

    Luka is him

    Play Episode Listen Later May 26, 2024 36:55


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya talk with The Onion's Ben Collins about Luka Doncic's stepback game-winner vs. Rudy Gobert and whether this series is over.

    Mavs win Game 1!!

    Play Episode Listen Later May 23, 2024 28:18


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya talk about the Mavericks winning Game 1, how they did it with just six made 3s, how historic it is, and why the Timberwolves should feel sick. They also talk about what could improve from Minnesota that Dallas must be aware of going forward.

    The Mavs vs. Wolves preview

    Play Episode Listen Later May 21, 2024 47:45


    Tim and Austin talk with Dave DuFour about what we expect to see from the Mavericks' offense against Minnesota, Dallas' defense vs. the Anthony Edwards-led attack, how both teams may end up using very shortened rotations as the series wears on, and how much fun Luka vs. Ant should be.

    The Mavs are in the WCF again!

    Play Episode Listen Later May 20, 2024 47:36


    We (Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya) talk how Dallas beat the Thunder in six games to advance to the Western Conference Finals and what this series win taught us about this team and its future, which is awfully bright right now. Then we briefly touch on the upcoming matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Stay tuned for a full preview episode of that series coming Tuesday.

    What the Mavs' Game 4 loss means

    Play Episode Listen Later May 14, 2024 32:34


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya record live from the American Airlines Center after a miserable defeat in Game 4. They discuss why it happened, what they've thought of the series so far, and what comes next.

    5 questions for Mavericks-Thunder

    Play Episode Listen Later May 6, 2024 50:14


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya talk about the Mavericks' semifinals series against the Oklahoma City Thunder, covering Maxi Kleber's injury and how the rotations adjust, what advantage Dallas will see from its big men vs. a smaller Thunder rotation, and which players we're watching most closely to see how they look in this series.

    Mavs-Clippers is tied 2-2

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 29, 2024 35:37


    Tim Cato talks with Locked On Mavercks' Nick Angstadt about the Mavericks' agonizing Game 4 loss and where the series goes from here. This is the first part of an hour-long discussion, with the other half posted on the Locked On Mavericks feed.

    Deep dive on a 1-1 Mavs-Clippers series

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 25, 2024 68:20


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya break it all down: the missed opportunity in Game 1, the brilliant Game 2 win, Luka Doncic's defense and his mostly superb but slightly weird offensive execution so far, both him and the entire team's brilliant defending, the role players we think can be trusted for the series, where they work best (and why), and what our expectations are, optimistically and pessimitically, for the rest of what looks to be an all-time classic between two incredibly good basketball teams.

    Mavs vs. Clippers, part 3

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 20, 2024 34:17


    Tim Cato and new dad Mike Piellucci talk to The Athletic's Law Murray, who covers the L.A. Clippers, about the upcoming first round series and what to expect from it.

    Looking back on the Mavs' season & Clippers preview

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 16, 2024 47:37


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya look back at the Dallas Mavericks' regular season with The Athletic's Dave DuFour, sharing some of our favorite moments and which aspects of the year really snuck up on us. Then, we each share three big questions we have for the team's upcoming first-round series vs. the L.A. Clippers. We'll be back later this week with a full preview.

    A serious look at Luka's MVP case

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 10, 2024 69:56


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya talk to their old friend from The Athletic, Dave DuFour, about the surging Mavericks, what criteria really should matter for the MVP voting, and whether Luka Doncic can usurp Nikola Jokic. We agree they're the best two players in basketball this season, and that one of them deserves it. Will it, and should it, be Doncic?

    Ranking the Mavericks' playoff matchups and rotation

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 2, 2024 45:39


    With Dallas cruising toward a top-six seed, Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya rank which postseason opponents are most favorable and then draft rotation players by playoff importance.

    The new-look Mavs are here

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 28, 2024 33:07


    Tim Cato talks to Mavs.com's Bobby Karalla about the Mavericks' new offense, its deliberate paint-pounding approach, how the center position might be the team's third-best “player”, the way that the team's Tuesday win against Sacramento showcased another way for the team to play, and what's needed for this defense to be good.

    Kyrie Irving's unbelievable game winner

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 18, 2024 30:06


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya talk about whatever THAT impossible shot was from Kyrie Irving that gave Dallas its best win of the 2023-24 season, and more about what this win represents for the Mavericks' season.

    6 things we'll learn in the GSW/OKC/DEN stretch

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 13, 2024 37:38


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya look forward to the Mavericks' next three games, ones where we can potentially learn a lot about whether Dallas has improved defending the corner 3 and five-out lineups, what the postseason rotation might look like, and what Dante Exum's effect on the team really is.

    Let's have a Hardaway & Kidd convo

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 5, 2024 46:27


    Tim Cato, Austin Ngaruiya, and Mike Piellucci talk deep on the team's most polarizing player, Tim Hardaway Jr., who is hurting Dallas. There's more nuance than the discourse has given him to the player he's been in Dallas and the actual mechanics of taking him out of the rotation if this continues. Then we talk about Jason Kidd, and whether he's the right person to solve this.

    Cautious Mavs optimism & the Tim convo

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 28, 2024 36:00


    Tim Cato, Austin Ngaruiya, and Mike Piellucci link up to chat about what we expect from the Dallas Mavericks for the rest of the season — and what we expect from Tim Hardaway Jr., his role going forward, and whether Jaden Hardy makes more sense in the rotation over him.

    5 Mavericks questions for the season that remains

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 22, 2024 35:53


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya cover the questions — it felt like it was about five, but honestly we weren't counting — we have for what remains of the Dallas Mavericks' regular season and the postseason that will (almost certainly) follow. We covered: the rotation; Lively's postseason impact; which defensive matchups make sense for potential postseason opponent; and a few other topics.

    The Good Vibe Mavs are back

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 13, 2024 50:12


    Tim Cato, Austin Ngaruiya and Mike Piellucci talk about the new-look Mavericks after last week's trades for P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford, and what it cost to acquire them.

    Trade deadline talk with Jake Fischer

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 6, 2024 26:03


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya talk to Yahoo Sports' Jake Fischer about the Dallas Mavericks' outlook heading into the NBA trade deadline and the league's perception of the Nico Harrison-led front office. Check out Jake's book, Built to Lose: How the NBA's Tanking Era Changed the League Forever.

    Mavericks' ceiling + belated Luka 73 thoughts

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 1, 2024 38:10


    Tim Cato talks to Mavs.com's Bobby Karalla about what Dallas' healthy starting five might be able to achieve when they FINALLY get on the court together, maybe as soon as this weekend. Then, we debate whether Luka Doncic's 73 point game actually was bad and sucked like SOME folks have said.

    Mavericks < Celtics, any trade targets we still like?

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 24, 2024 48:07


    Tim Cato, Austin Ngaruiya and Mike Piellucci chat about the Mavericks' defeat to the Boston Celtics, what it represents in the grander scheme of the team's roster construction, and Luka's emotions still sometimes affecting him. Then, we briefly chat about rumored trade targets — and there's really none we like enough that we believe Dallas should send out its one available first-round pick.

    The Mavs' fantastic 5-2 homestand

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 16, 2024 33:50


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya talk about the Mavericks beating the Pelicans in the harder game thanks to Kyrie Irving and Tim Hardaway Jr. combining for 83 points, and then discuss some broader themes from that game & the 5-2 homestand at large.

    Mavs' best/worse games, Siakam talk

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 10, 2024 26:09


    Tim Cato and Mike Piellucci record live from the American Airlines Center to discuss the Mavericks' best and worst case scenarios as the team continues missing Dereck Lively II (and Dante Exum), and then think about what Pascal Siakam might look like in Dallas, even if it still seems a bit too soon to get your hopes up.

    The Luka-Kyrie-Exum-Lively Mavs

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 5, 2024 32:30


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya talk about the Dallas Mavericks' most important question for the second half of the season: Is their best lineup one that hasn't even played together? If so, how far can it take them? Email us at theonlymaverickspod@gmail.com!

    Luka's Christmas game was absurd

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 27, 2023 53:00


    Tim Cato, Mike Piellucci and Austin Ngaruiya are back to talk about the Mavericks' Christmas win against the Phoenix Suns, where that Luka game ranks within his career performances, and chat about some players trending up and down. Email us at theonlymaverickspod@gmail.com!

    What will the Mavericks look like healthy?

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 20, 2023 34:25


    Tim Cato talks to Nick Angstadt from the Locked On Mavs podcast about the team's current vibes, what the team's starting lineup and rotation will look like once they finally get healthy, and whether this is Luka Doncic's best start yet to a season. Email us at theonlymaverickspod@gmail.com!

    Why Luka's too good for defenses

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 14, 2023 35:02


    Tim Cato talks to old friend Dave DuFour from The Athletic and 77 Minutes about how good Luka Doncic has been, what defenses opponents are using against him, and what we might see next. Dave literally had to gameplan against Doncic this summer in the FIBA World Cup, so he would know. Then they talk about the team's improving defense and other observations Dave has had.

    We answer your Mavs questions

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 6, 2023 32:16


    Tim Cato and Mike Piellucci talk through the team's biggest recent news: Mark Cuban's decision to sell the team and what it means, practically, for the coming years. Then we answer more questions that we solicited from Reddit about who's tradeable and what we think of Luka's play style.

    Why Dereck Lively II's the third-most important Maverick

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 28, 2023 32:45


    Tim Cato, Mike Piellucci, and Austin Ngaruiya talk about the Mavs' split in Los Angeles, how good Kyrie Irving has been, and why Dallas has become so reliant on Dereck Lively II.

    What's wrong & what's fixable with this Mavs defense?

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 22, 2023 38:49


    Tim Cato, Mike Piellucci, and Austin Ngaruiya talk about the team's obvious defensive problems from their two losses to Milwaukee and Sacramento, which players share the most culpability for the struggles, and what might make it better.

    WTF was that Luka game?

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 15, 2023 24:31


    Tim Cato and Austin Ngaruiya talk about what might have been Luka's worst game ever, and why the Mavs have been good enough, with a deeper roster than ever before, that it doesn't really matter.

    We're back, and the Mavs are, too

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 10, 2023 37:00


    Welcome to the first episode of The Only Mavericks Podcast hosted by The Athletic's Tim Cato, D Magazine's Mike Piellucci, and Austin Ngaruiya. We have many, many plans for what this podcast could be, but it's past time we relaunched in a new feed. In this episode, which was recorded Tuesday evening prior to the team's loss to Toronto, we go around and discuss some of our early season observations.

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