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Mavs coach Carlisle wants Parsons to cut weight
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said he was concerned that forward Chandler Parsons put on too much weight in the offseason.
Parsons, who signed a three-year, $46 million deal, bulked up over the summer to get stronger. However, Carlisle believes Parsons added too many pounds.
Parsons, who is 6-foot-9, had been listed at 215 pounds but reported to camp at 235 pounds.
Carlisle wants Parsons to lose weight because he believes it is affecting his conditioning. Parsons had nine points on 4-of-12 shooting, with six rebounds and six assists in 20 minutes Friday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
“He looked tired out there tonight to me, and his shot is short,” Carlisle said. “He’s working on losing some weight. He’s a little bit heavier than he’s been. He’s up over 230, and we want to see him get down to at least 225. That’s a work in progress, and tonight’s one of those nights where I think the extra weight was a hindrance.”
Parsons lifted weights during the summer and did not play basketball to prevent getting injured. He wanted to add the necessary strength to make the transition from small forward to power forward when star Dirk Nowitzki rests during games.
Parsons said he disagrees with Carlisle’s assessment of his weight.
“His opinion of heavy is different than mine,” he said. “We kind of go at it every day about it. At the end of the day, I respect his opinion. After training camp, my weight fluctuates. I’ll get it down.”
