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The Dallas Mavericks announced today they have signed forward Renaldo Balkman. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Balkman (6-foot-8, 208 pounds) was selected by the New York Knicks with the 20th overall selection in the 2006 NBA draft. He holds career averages of 4.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 13.9 minutes in 221 career games with New York and the Denver Nuggets.

The Staten Island, N.Y., native is a Puerto Rican-American who most recently played professionally for Brujos de Guayama in Puerto Rico. Balkman played collegiately at South Carolina, where he was named to the Southeastern Conference all-tournament team and National Invitation Tournament (NIT) Most Valuable Player in his final season with the Gamecocks.

With the signing, the Mavericks’ current roster stands at 20 players.

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Regular-season single-game tickets for the Dallas Mavericks will go on sale Saturday at 10 a.m., the team announced.

Tickets will be available at the American Airlines Center Box Office, online at mavs.com, via phone by calling 214.747.MAVS, and at all Ticketmaster outlets.

There is a four ticket limit for all game purchases until noon, and tickets are sold on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Mavs open the 2013-14 season at home Wednesday, October 30 vs. the Atlanta Hawks at 7:30 p.m.

In the Olympic summer of 2016, Dirk Nowitzki will be 38 years old.

But Nowitzki says he'll indeed consider a return to international basketball that summer if he thinks his return to the German national squad can clinch a spot for his homeland in the 2016 Olympics in Brazil.

"If I'm still healthy enough and we have a chance to qualify, then I'd consider it," Nowitzki told ESPN.com late Monday.

Nowitzki was responding to statements made earlier Monday by Germany coach Frank Menz, who told ESPN.com's Mark Woods after Germany's elimination from the EuroBasket tournament in Slovenia that the face of the Dallas Mavericks has left open the possibility of a national-team return if the squad continues to progress.

Germany failed to advance past the group stage of this month's EuroBasket but turned heads with an upset of heavily favored France in its Group A opener. The Germans also prevented Israel from advancing out of the group with a narrow win in Monday's Group A finale despite playing without Nowitzki, NBA veteran center Chris Kaman and Atlanta Hawks rookie guard Dennis Schroeder.

Nowitzki, to this day, regards qualification for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing -- with Kaman's assistance -- as an achievement on par with the NBA championship he won in Dallas in 2011. It's Menz's belief that adding the likes of Nowitzki and Schroeder to the promising cast of unheralded shooters Germany has assembled would put the Germans back in Olympic contention.

(Click here to read the full story.)

ARLINGTON, Texas – Jerry Jones showed a lot of love for LeBron James, inviting the NBA MVP to be his guest at the Cowboys’ season opener Sunday night, when James roamed the field during pregame warmups and watched the win over the Giants from a luxury suite.

Cowboys fans, on the other hand, didn’t exactly give King James a warm welcome.

The AT&T Stadium sellout crowd, which obviously included a lot of Mavericks fans, booed when James was shown on the massive video boards during a timeout in the second half. James playfully took off his Cowboys cap and pointed to it in a I-come-in-peace kind of gesture, but that didn’t do much to quiet the boos.

Apparently the 2011 Finals – and the mocking of a sick Dirk Nowitzki by James and Dwyane Wade – are still fresh on folks’ minds in the Metroplex.

The boos didn’t seem to spoil the night for James. His Cowboys won, and he celebrated the victory by running pass routes with his friends on the field after midnight.

James, a former high school football star, posted a picture on Instagram of him dunking over the crossbar.

Would definitely be my 1st TD celebration! #DreamChasing #LetsFly http://t.co/OiuAzpn4Mx

— LeBron James (@KingJames) September 9, 2013

 

The thought of James’ NFL potential has certainly crossed the Cowboys’ mind. Dez Bryant said this summer he thought James could be “a beast” in the NFL with a couple of weeks to prepare. On his KRLD-FM radio show Friday, Jones joked that he wished he could get James suited up to play tight end.

Maybe that’s the only way James could win over fans around here. Heck, these folks cheered for Terrell Owens when he wore a star on his helmet.

The NBA is about competition on the floor, but it’s also about dollars and cents. Teams now must find players who can outperform deals they’re signed to and use them as assets on the floor or as assets to flip in order to acquire a game-changing piece. ESPNDallas.com will grade how the Dallas Mavericks fared in terms of contracts of their new acquisitions.

Brandan Wright: Re-signed to a two-year, $10 million contract. Wright will be paid $5 million in 2013-14.

The deal for Wright proved to be extremely economical for the Mavs. After a strong performance in the final 24 games of the season for the Mavs (11.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.7 blocks and .578 percent shooting from the field), Wright emerged as a prime target to get a healthy contract in free agency.

While he was flirting with other teams, he proved to be committed to staying with the Mavs. He was patient through the process as he knew the Mavs would be able to go over the cap to sign him with Early Bird rights. As the Mavs continued to get to the salary cap number, he easily could have signed with another team, but he stayed with the Mavs as they gave him a fresh start after the early portion of his career.

With job security and momentum from last season uniting, Wright has an opportunity to carve out a consistent role for himself as the first big man off the bench.

At 25, the versatile big man still has time to have his game develop and grow. The Mavs had Brandon Bass and Ian Mahinmi develop in their system only to see them depart. They decided Wright was too good to let go.

Grade: A+

The NBA is about competition on the floor, but it’s also about dollars and cents. Teams now must find players who can outperform deals they’re signed to and use them as assets on the floor or as assets to flip in order to acquire a game-changing piece. ESPNDallas.com will grade how the Dallas Mavericks fared in terms of contracts of their new acquisitions.

Gal Mekel: Signed to a three-year minimum contract that is fully guaranteed. Mekel will make $490,180 in 2013-14.

Similar to that of Ricky Ledo, the investment in the Israeli guard is low risk in the big picture. Speaking to him in Las Vegas during the summer league, Mekel wanted to land with a team that would give him a multi-year deal to provide security as he adjusted to the NBA. The Mavs were the team that ultimately stepped up and offered that to him.

While he is in a platoon now at the backup point guard position with Shane Larkin, Mekel is the more polished of the two. His court vision and passing ability make him a unique option off the bench. Bench players have flaws and his will be the learning curve he has to go through to develop as a shooter, along with his size.

Mekel was quite impressive in Vegas and his numbers would have been better with more NBA talent around him. While Larkin and Mekel see time with the Texas Legends as rookies, it’s not out of the realm of possibilities that the Israeli guard emerges as the better option between the two.

Grade: B

The NBA is about competition on the floor, but it’s also about dollars and cents. Teams now must find players who can outperform deals they’re signed to and use them as assets on the floor or as assets to flip in order to acquire a game-changing piece. ESPNDallas.com will grade how the Dallas Mavericks fared in terms of contracts of their new acquisitions.

Ricky Ledo: Signed to a four-year minimum salary contract with a slight bonus in the first year. Ledo will be paid $544,000 in 2013-14.

The 43rd pick of the draft will make $1,360,482 in guaranteed money over the next two years. The third year of his deal becomes fully guaranteed if he’s not waived on or before July 15, 2015. The final year is fully guaranteed if he’s not waived on or before July 15, 2016.

Before his time in Vegas with the summer league team, Ledo went roughly a year without playing organized basketball. The fact that the Mavs were willing to give the amount of money they are in the first two years shows a sign of good faith and belief in the second-round prospect. The nuances of the deal allow the Mavs to have a low-risk look under the hood of a potentially strong prospect -- and a possible bargain in the final two years of the deal.

Grade: B

The NBA is about competition on the floor, but it’s also about dollars and cents. Teams now must find players who can outperform deals they’re signed to and use them as assets on the floor or as assets to flip in order to acquire a game-changing piece. ESPNDallas.com will grade how the Dallas Mavericks fared in terms of contracts of their new acquisitions.

Shane Larkin: Signed to a four-year, $7,395,002 contract. Larkin will be paid $1,536,960 in 2013-14.

The rookie guard signed to 120 percent of the rookie scale deal this season. Players drafted in the first round have to be signed to within 80 percent to 120 percent of the salaries based on the slot in which they were drafted. Dallas has contractual rights to Larkin up to the next four years.

While fellow rookie Gal Mekel provides more control and facilitating from the point guard position, Larkin presents more dynamic scoring potential and the ability to stop on a dime off a pick-and-roll situation and pull up for a jumper.

A fractured ankle prior to the Las Vegas Summer League derailed Larkin’s adjustment period into the NBA. It’s a speed bump, but it likely won’t take away from his outlook on the big picture.

Grade: B

The NBA is about competition on the floor, but it’s also about dollars and cents. Teams now must find players who can outperform deals they’re signed to and use them as assets on the floor or as assets to flip in order to acquire a game-changing piece. ESPNDallas.com will grade how the Dallas Mavericks fared in terms of contracts of their new acquisitions.

Bernard James: Re-signed to a one-year, $788,872 contract.

With the Mavs needing to create a little more wiggle room to complete the signing of Monta Ellis, they had to put James on waivers. Many fans were left wondering why the Mavs didn’t do anything they could to at least get an asset back in return for James before letting him go. Even if it was a second-round pick, that was perceived to be better than nothing.

Having legitimate big man size and some mobility, many expected that James wouldn’t clear waivers, especially based on the fact that any team could put a claim on him. Fans were then shocked to see that James was able to clear waivers and he was immediately re-signed by the Mavs. That sheds some light on why the Mavs might not have been able to consummate a deal in exchange for the big man.

Project player or not, the dollar value fits for the Mavs. He’ll likely maintain his role as the third option at the center position.

Grade: B-

The NBA is about competition on the floor, but it’s also about dollars and cents. Teams now must find players who can outperform deals they’re signed to and use them as assets on the floor or as assets to flip in order to acquire a game-changing piece. ESPNDallas.com will grade how the Dallas Mavericks fared in terms of contracts of their new acquisitions.

Devin Harris: Signed to a guaranteed one-year, $884,293 contract.

Much like DeJuan Blair, the Mavs were able to take advantage of acquiring Harris as a veteran minimum signing. Harris is actually being paid $1,272,797, the salary for a nine-year veteran, but the league is paying the remaining amount over the $884,293 total due to the collective bargaining agreement.

Harris comes back to Dallas slightly more polished on offense and more versatile on defense. His progression in Atlanta, where he played alongside point guard Jeff Teague, provided some unique flexibility as he defended the shooting guard position with moderate success.

Injuries have plagued most of Harris’ maturation process. Taking out the 66-game lockout season of 2012-13, Harris averaged 65.2 games played in a five-year span leading up to this season. Unlike Rodrigue Beaubois, Harris has been able to bounce back from his injuries and show signs of consistency.

Harris originally agreed to a three-year, $9 million dollar deal, but he settled for a one-year minimum contract after a pre-signing physical screening revealed he needed surgery to repair a dislocated toe. The only downside to this deal is the Mavs will have to hope Harris truly wants to stay in Dallas if things go well this season. If things go according to plan, he’ll be in demand in free agency next summer.

Grade: A+

The NBA is about competition on the floor, but it’s also about dollars and cents. Teams now must find players that can outperform deals they’re signed to and use them as assets on the floor or as assets to flip in order to acquire a game-changing piece. ESPNDallas.com will grade how the Dallas Mavericks fared in terms of contracts of their new acquisitions.

Monta Ellis: Signed to a three-year, $25.08 million contract. Ellis will be paid $8 million in 2013-14. The final year of his deal is a player option.

Ellis declined a player option that would have paid him $11 million to stay in Milwaukee next season. He also turned down a three-year, $36 million extension
offer from the Bucks. He settled for a significantly lower offer from the Mavs.

Dallas was looking for an opportunity, someone to slip through the cracks in free agency. Like last year in O.J. Mayo, they found someone who slipped in Ellis.

There is a radical sense of the unknown when it comes to how Ellis will mesh with Dirk Nowitzki and Rick Carlisle. That will easily be the most fascinating thing to watch over the course of the season. If he can work off Nowitzki in the two-man game, they could be a very deadly combination. If they don’t work out, it will be very disjointed but still has the chance to be relatively potent on offense just based off of talent.

As for his defense, offense could be the best form of defense. Being able to get back after a made basket and getting back into position would certainly help versus having to defend in transition.

Mayo is making relatively the same amount of money (three years, $24 million) in Milwaukee. With Ellis being two years older and having three more years of experience over Mayo, the Mavs are getting more bang for their buck.

Grade: A-

The NBA is about competition on the floor, but it’s also about dollars and cents. Teams now must find players that can outperform deals they’re signed to and use them as assets on the floor or as assets to flip in order to acquire a game-changing piece. ESPNDallas.com will grade how the Dallas Mavericks fared in terms of contracts of their new acquisitions.

Wayne Ellington: Signed to a two-year, $5,423,340 contract. Ellington will be paid $2,652,000 in 2013-14. He was signed with the “room” exception.

“3-and-D” guys make a huge difference in the league now. If you can be a factor on defense and stretch the floor with your range, you can find your way onto the floor. Just think of the value DeShawn Stevenson brought to the Mavs when he was on the championship roster. He saw spot minutes on the floor where he took on a large defensive assignment and made the opposition pay with his ability to drill a 3-point shot.

Ellington could be a player that helps provide additional depth on the bench. Playing with multiple scoring options could allow a potentially deadly perimeter shooter more room than he’s used to having.

Based on how the shooting guard and small forward positions are currently set up, there is a strong possibility that Ellington could get his fair share of DNP-CDs over the course of the season, much like Stevenson did. The Mavs on the bench must be ready to step up at the drop of a hat. Mavs coach Rick Carlisle demands that of his players. If Ellington acts accordingly, he could be a valuable asset.

Grade: B

The NBA is about competition on the floor, but it’s also about dollars and cents. Teams now must find players that can outperform deals they’re signed to and use them as assets on the floor or as assets to flip in order to acquire a game-changing piece. ESPNDallas.com will grade how the Dallas Mavericks fared in terms of contracts of their new acquisitions.

Samuel Dalembert: Signed to a two-year, $7,568,030 contract. Dalembert will be paid $3,700,748 in 2013-14.

Dalembert’s contract is a high-value deal. The major reason for that is he’s well below market value for a player who can be a starting center.

But there is a sense of buyer beware when you look at Dalembert. They’re getting a vagabond big man, as Dallas will be the fifth home in five years for Dalembert, who has been hampered by nagging injuries and inability to mesh within different cultures. Dalembert is looking to stick in Dallas.

The question: Will this well-traveled big man be more Tyson Chandler or Chris Kaman? The answer to that question likely falls somewhere in the middle. He does provide the team a defensive-minded center, a necessity next to Dirk Nowitzki.

Another reason it is considered a high-value deal: The second year only has $1.8 million guaranteed with no guarantee date. His contract also contains a 15-percent trade kicker. That percentage would have to be paid by the team that is acquiring him.

Dalembert, if motivated, should fill the Mavs' need for a defensive presence. With Brandan Wright, DeJuan Blair and Bernard James in the mix, the Mavs don’t have to push Dalembert very hard in terms of demanding heavy minutes. If he works out, it’s a great bargain for the Mavs. If it doesn’t work out, they keep going down the trail and didn’t break the bank or cripple themselves with excessive years with him.

Grade: A-

The NBA is about competition on the floor, but it’s also about dollars and cents. Teams now must find players that can outperform deals they’re signed to and use them as assets on the floor or as assets to flip in order to acquire a game-changing piece. ESPNDallas.com will grade how the Dallas Mavericks fared in terms of contracts of their new acquisitions.

Jose Calderon: Signed to a four-year, $29 million contract. Calderon will be paid $6,791,570 in 2013-14. There are neither player or team options nor partial guarantees to his deal.

The Mavs likely outbid the market on Calderon, but they needed a pure point guard in the worst way based on how last season played out at the position.
Calderon would have been an option for the Mavs whether they won the Dwight Howard sweepstakes or not. It’s hard to imagine that it would have been a hard sell to Calderon to suggest he come to Dallas to finish his career directing traffic for Dirk Nowitzki and Howard.

The way the roster has been set up, defense is a major question mark. Calderon doesn’t exactly provide comfort in the department, either. The Mavs weren’t a juggernaut on defense last year as they were classified as below average in terms of defensive rating with a rating of 106.5.

They were considered to be average in terms of offensive rating last season with a rating of 105.9. Healthy or not, a team with Nowitzki on it shouldn’t be considered average on offense. If they’re already going to be troublesome on defense, they needed to upgrade on offense. Calderon represents one of the better options they could find in terms of getting their flow offense going again.

There is a concern based on the fact that all four years of Calderon’s deal are guaranteed. Age may be a concern as Calderon will be 35 in the final year of his deal, but he still has the ability to facilitate on offense and shoot the lights out. Based on how last season played out, the Mavs were willing to extend themselves to acquire a talented point guard.

Grade: B+

The NBA is about competition on the floor, but it’s also about dollars and cents. Teams now must find players that can outperform deals they’re signed to and use them as assets on the floor or as assets to flip in order to acquire a game-changing piece. ESPNDallas.com will grade how the Dallas Mavericks fared in terms of contracts of their new acquisitions.

DeJuan Blair: Signed to a guaranteed one-year, $844,293 contract.

With nothing left to offer to players other than veteran minimum deals, Dallas found a nice surprise in Blair. The exiled Spur is actually being paid $947,907, the salary for a four-year veteran, but the league is paying the remaining amount over 884,293 due to rules in the collective bargaining agreement.

On its own, that amount of money saved really doesn’t make much of a difference, but it’s a sign of a Maverick-like move in the sense that the team made the most of the resources they had left.

It’s been discussed that Blair’s minutes were down last year in San Antonio, but Dallas hopes a chip on his shoulder and bitter feelings lead to a nice one-year bargain as the Mavs continue to reload.

The Spurs are an organization that rarely makes mistakes. The Mavs are hoping their rivals down south made a big one. At 24 and with experience under his belt, it’s still possible that the best days of basketball for Blair are ahead of him. At the league minimum, this is a lottery ticket that you can feel relatively good about purchasing.

Grade: A-