Shawn Marion will accept being a bench player
Not every NBA player takes too kindly to coming off the bench after having been a starter. Just ask Allen Iverson, 35, who claimed last year that he would rather retire than become a bench
player when the Detroit Pistons decided he wouldn’t start. He is currently unemployed.
But Shawn Marion, the 32-year-old small forward for the Dallas Mavericks, is saying all the right things about his likely role as sixth man this season.
"It's an adjustment," he said after coming off the bench last night in a pre-season win against the Chicago Bulls. "It was interesting, but at the same time, it was cool. We've got to
come in with energy and do what we've got to do to get the team back on track. We did that."
Last night marked the first time Marion has not been a starter since joining the Mavericks last season. In fact, of the 820 career games Marion has played, he has come off the bench a
mere 15 times. While nothing has been confirmed, all signs point to Marion joining the second unit to give more playing time to emerging 22-year-old guard Rodrigue Beaubois.
"This can work," Marion said. "We've just got to work on it more so I can get comfortable with it and adjusted to it, because I've never done it before. But whatever it takes to win, that's
what it's about."
One of Marion’s team-mates, Jason Terry, knows a little something about making the best of losing a starting position. A few years ago with Dallas, the 33-year-old point guard was forced
to adjust to the life of a reserve when the team acquired Jason Kidd. Unlike Iverson, he embraced the role and ended up winning Sixth Man of the Year for the 2008-2009 season. Terry sees no reason why Marion can’t also make the transition.
"Mentally, you just have to be willing to come in and get it going right away," he said. "You don't have time to run up and down two or three times. You've got to impact the game right
away, and I think it's something that he can do. That's his type of game. He's an energy player."
The Mavericks should have one of best second units in the NBA this season, highlighted by Terry, Marion, and Tyson Chandler, all three of whom have been starters in the league.
"Right now, we have the best bench in basketball," Terry said.
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