The Dallas Mavericks have seen their fair share of ups and downs since
the season started in The National Basketball Association. The Mavericks
entered the season as defending NBA Champions, but the afterglow was
cut short due to The NBA Lockout and a very slow start. The Mavs started
the season with a record of 1-4. In a shortened 66-game season,
victories in the regular season are even more important for the playoff
push. Since that bad start, Dallas has gotten it going as they are
currently sixth in The Western Conference.
Since Rick Carlisle became the coach in 2008, the calling card of The
Mavericks has been defense. This stifling defense is the reason that
Miami Heat forward Lebron James is still without a title after Dallas
made him earn every point in last season’s NBA Finals. The Mavs are
currently tied for sixth in opponents points allowed and it is what will
make them viable in the postseason once again.
One reason why Dallas stumbled out of the blocks was due to a roster
overhaul. Center Tyson Chandler departed as a free agent and joined The
New York Knicks. Defensive specialist DeShawn Stevenson left as a free
agent to play for The New Jersey Nets, while forward Caron Butler is now
a member of The Los Angeles Clippers. It has taken forward Vince Carter
time to get adjusted to playing in Dallas, but he has become a solid
contributor chipping in with nearly 10 points per game. This has by far
been forward Lamar Odom’s worst season in The NBA. In his first year
with The Mavericks, Odom is only averaging 7 points per contest and he
only looks to be a shell of the player that helped The Los Angeles
Lakers with two consecutive NBA Championships. Physically Odom is in
North Texas, but mentally he appears to still be in Tinseltown.
With all of that said The Mavs will still be a tough team when The NBA
Playoffs begin in a few weeks. Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is only
interested in seeing his team qualify for the postseason as he knows
that the regular-season records will be thrown out of the window. The
last time that The NBA had a lockout shortened season was in 1999 which
saw The Knicks as an eighth seed make The NBA Finals.
This group is a veteran crew that is battle tested. As a head coach,
Carlisle is a winner. Before coming to Dallas, Carlisle was apart of the
turnaround for The Detroit Pistons that led to them winning a NBA
Title. While he was with The Indiana Pacers, they were always a
perennial playoff contender as well. Now Carlisle can rely on his
veterans to lead this team. The ageless point guard Jason Kidd is
currently out nursing a bad groin, but he should be ready for the
playoffs. Guard Jason Terry is the new version of Vinnie “The Microwave”
Johnson as he will continue to heat up as the game progresses. But the
success of The Mavericks begins and ends with forward Dirk Nowitzki. The
7-footer has been a match-up nightmare for opponents due to his outside
jump shot and at 33-years of age he has not shown any sign of slowing
down as he is still averaging 21points per game.
Dallas is facing the possibility of playing either The Lakers, Clippers,
or San Antonio Spurs in the first round. Dallas swept The Lakers last
year in the postseason while they have a deep playoff history with The
Spurs as each team has gotten the best of each other over the last
decade. The Clippers are an up and coming team that The Mavs could lean
on. Clipper forward Blake Griffin will be a newbie to the playoffs and
the intensity. Dallas will grind in on the defensive end to make Griffin
earn every point. If The Mavs qualify for the postseason as either a
four or five seed, The Oklahoma City Thunder could be lurking in the
second round. These two engaged in a great battle in last season’s
Western Conference Finals which saw Dallas triumph in five games.
Nowitzki and Kidd went blow-for-blow with the upcoming forward/guard duo
in the league in the form of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Age
and experience beat out youth last season and I am sure that The Thunder
have not forgotten. The Mavericks match-up well with Oklahoma City due
to their front court length.
If The Mavericks and Thunder were to clash, it would be imperative for
Odom to return to his Laker form. At 6’11”, Odom’s length and
athleticism could give the seven-foot Durant problems. The Mavericks
X-factor will once again be Terry. While at The University of Arizona,
Terry went to Wildcats head coach Lute Olsen and asked to come off of
the bench as opposed to starting. This was important for The Wildcats as
they went on to become NCAA Champions in 1997 with this philosophy. It
also helped Dallas become NBA Champions last season as well.
The playoffs will be here soon and once again The Mavericks will not go quietly.
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