SB Nation - Dirk Nowitzki

Game #16: Dallas Mavericks (15-7) vs. Miami Heat (11-9)

DolPhanDave — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 08:13:26 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

D-Wade was visibly upset when reminded of the Mavs win streak against Miami.

After a nice refreshing week off, the Heat will finally return to action tonight back at home against the Dallas Mavericks. The Mavs are one of the best teams in the league and got even better in their last game when they welcomed back Josh Howard after the forward missed 13 games with a sore left ankle. The Mavs are playing back-to-back games tonight and tomorrow (@ Charlotte), and the Dallas Morning News is reporting that Howard will play in only one of the two games, but its unknown which he'll play and which he'll sit out.

On the Heat's side of things, they could be without two of their starters. Jermaine O'Neal could miss his second straight game while dealing with family issues in South Carolina. He attended the funeral of his uncle on Thursday and could be back in Miami in time to play tonight, but nobody is sure. Even if J-O does make it in time, his minutes could be limited due to him being away from working out with the team all week.

Another likely game-time decision will be Quentin Richardson, who strained his right hamstring at the end of the third quarter of the Heat's win in Sacramento on Sunday. While there is no tear, the Heat intend to keep it that way which is why they are treating Richardson with ‘kid gloves'. I can't say I disagree...I'd much rather be without Q for a game or two instead of a week or two.

A key matchup will be at the power forward position. Dirk Nowitzki is having another great season, averaging 27.0 points and 8.5 boards, and has been even hotter of late. He's cracked 30 points in his last two games (32, 33) and in one of those games had four blocks and a pair of treys. Guarding Dirk will be a great test for Michael Beasley, who has been showing lots of improvement on the defensive side of the floor but will certainly have his hands full with Nowitzki. Of course there is always Udonis Haslem on the bench as an insurance policy, but if we have to put U-D on Dirk it will seriously cut into Beasley's minutes.

GAME NOTES

Outside of the 06 NBA Finals, the Mavericks have really owned the Heat the past several years. Dallas has swept the 2-game season series with Miami in each of the past 5 years (10 straight wins), and have won 16 of 18 overall.

Doesn't it seem like a long time ago that Shawn Marion was playing for the Heat? Not quite; a year ago he was still playing for the Heat. Now...he starts for the Mavericks.

I can't remember ever thinking to myself the night before a Heat game ‘I can't wait to see what Dorell Wright does tonight', until now that is. I'm honestly quite anxious to see how the not so youngster responds after his best game in years.

Dallas has the 10^th ranked offense in the league averaging 101.7 ppg.

The Mavs are 8-4 on the road, averaging 101.1 ppg. The Heat are 6-5 at home and give up 93.3 ppg.

Tipoff from the AAA is set for 7:30 and that place should be rockin' on a Friday night. The Heat haven't played a home game in almost 2 weeks (12 days to be exact), so the fans should have a lot of built up cheering to let out. Lets Go Heat!!

ALL-STAR VOTES: So Far, Kobe (& T-Mac?) Leads — Gasol & Bynum, Not So Much

Josh Tucker — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 20:53:13 -0000

The first round of All-Star Voting Results is in, and Kobe Bryant is leading all vote-getters in both conferences. Dwyane Wade is next, followed by LeBron James and Dwight Howard. Not all that surprising, of course — but click the jump for the more interesting bits...

For those of you looking for 2-3 Lakers in the All-Star game — well, you may get your wish, but if early returns are any indication, it may be up to the coaches (who pick the reserves) to make it happen. So far, Andrew Bynum trails Amare Stoudemire at the center position by nearly 150,000 votes. Meanwhile, Pau Gasol is about 86,000 votes behind Dirk Nowitzki for the second starting forward slot in the West (remember, the fans pick the starters, which means two guards, two forwards, and a center).

Pau's absence from the first 11 games of the season may have something to do with why he's 308,000 behind Carmelo Anthony and 86,000 behind Nowitzki — then again, Tracy McGrady is currently the second starting guard for the West, despite not playing a single game, edging out several other deserving West guards who have, you know, actually played this year ... like Steve Nash (by 9,000 votes), Chris Paul (by 33,000), Jason Kidd (by 74,000), and Chauncey Billups (by 150,000).

Thank you, China!

Hat tip: Gils

Orlando Magic News for December 9th: Vince Carter, Fun Facts, Stan Van Gundy's Three-Point Marksmanship, and More

Ben Q Rock — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 21:00:17 -0000

More photos » by Fernando Medina - NBAE/Getty Images

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First-Quarter Report: Teams' Identities Have Developed, for Better or Worse
The Sporting News' Sean Deveney, perhaps best known to Orlando Magic fans as the guy who picked them to finish behind the Washington Wizards in the Southeast Division this season, writes that the Orlando Magic's addition of Vince Carter has proven to be the best move of the offseason so far.

Offseason payoff: Vince Carter, Orlando. The Magic are still working Carter into the offense, trying to find the right balance between getting him to be aggressive and dominate, and getting him to be one of the cogs on a very talented team. But so far, things have gone well, as Orlando sits tied for the best record in the East.

"Vince is going to be fine," [Dwight] Howard said. "He's been great for us, and the more he gets used to what we do, he is only going to get better."

From Basketball-Reference: Carter leads the Magic in scoring at 19.3 points per game, has a Player Efficiency Rating of 18.2, and has connected on 35.1% of his three-pointers. And despite leading the Magic in Usage Rate at 29.2%, he turns the ball over on only 8.2% of his possessions, second on the team only to Brandon Bass. The only other players to exceed Carter's usage with fewer turnovers this year are Chris Bosh, Josh Howard, Kevin Martin, and Dirk Nowitzki.
Earlier this afternoon, the Magic distributed a list of notes to the media. Here's the first fact:

At 17-4, Orlando has equalled its best start in franchise history (1994-95, 1995-96). The Magic have never been 18-4.

To save space, I've posted the rest of the fact sheet after the jump.
Stan Van Gundy to get shot at 3-point contest trophy
J.E. Skeets makes an important announcement:

The Orlando Magic's Stan Van Gundy will seek to become the first NBA head coach to capture the Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout crown, which will be held on Saturday, Feb. 13, at American Airlines Center, as part of NBA All-Star Saturday Night.

No word on if Magic forward Rashard Lewis, last year's runner-up, will also take part.
The Biggest Aberration?
In a post concerning Gerald Wallace's incredible spike in rebounding this year, Kevin Pelton tries to figure out what the biggest statistical aberration in NBA History is. Former Magic guard Nick Anderson appears in his findings.

A better candidate of a very different kind is Nick Anderson's free throw shooting. Free throw percentage tends to be very stable, especially after a player's first couple of years, which makes what happened to Anderson so bizarre. He was never much of a free throw shooter for a guard, but settled in around 70 percent before inexplicably sinking to 40.4 percent during the 1996-97 season. The odds of a player of Anderson's true ability (about 70 percent) shooting so poorly are nearly 1 in 50,000.
Steve Nash Internet Day!
Visit our friends at Bright Side of the Sun as they honor Phoenix Suns guard Steve Nash with Steve Nash Internet Day.
Twitter / tribjazz
UPDATE: Former Magic training-camp invitee Morris Almond is headed to the D-League, reports Ross Siler, who covered Almond when he played for the Utah Jazz:

Former Jazz first-round draft pick Morris Almond will be joining the NBA D-League's Springfield (Mass.) Armor tomorrow.
Kendrick Perkins is core of Celtics' defense, low-post scoring
UPDATE 2 (from Eddy): Want to know why Kendrick Perkins has success defending Dwight Howard? Britt Robson of Sports Illustrated explains.

Perkins' mettle in the low block was validated by his yeoman effort in rooting Dwight Howard out of his favorite spots in last year's Celtics-Magic series in the second round of the playoffs. Unlike most players, Perkins doesn't use a forearm when guarding opponents who operate with their backs to the basket. "If you use the forearm, you don't have enough balance when they spin or fade away," he said. Instead, he uses hands for sensory information; the outside hand placed on an opponents' tailbone to determine where he's going (and, if possible, to guide him), while the inside hand stabs for steals.
NBA ticket revenue slides 7.4 percent (UPDATE)
UPDATE 3 (from Eddy): Ken Berger of CBSSports.com provides an update on the NBA ticket revenue for teams in the NBA.

The Atlanta Hawks (15-6), long challenged in the attendance department but off to their best start in a decade, have seen a league-high 26.8 percent increase in net gate receipts – to $468,036 per game, up from $369,157 at this point last season. Atlanta is selling an average of 10,573 tickets per game, up from 7,900 at this point last season. The other top gainers in net gate receipts are the Denver Nuggets (up 20.3 percent), Orlando Magic (up 17.7 percent), Portland Trail Blazers (up 12.3 percent), and Cleveland Cavaliers (up 11.8 percent).

Again, make the jump to read the rest of the fact sheet the Magic sent this afternoon.

Orlando has won eight straight on the road, the longest road winning streak for a single season. Overall, the record is nine (last two in April '07 and first sevent in November '07). Under Stan Van Gundy (two-plus years), the Magic are 64-30 on the road. At 10-2 on the road this year, the Magic will look to eclipse its seasonal franchise record for road wins (27 each of the last two years).

Orlando has won 23 straight games in which it has scored 100 points. The streak dates back to Feb. 24, 2009.

Orlando has had five or more players score in double-figures in 12 games this year (11-1 record when it happens).

Orlando has made 10 or more three-pointers 13 times this year and is 11-2 when it does so.

Orlando has had 20-plus assists nine times this year and is 9-0 when it does so.

When Orlando outrebounds its opponent the Magic are 13-0.

Over Stan Van Gundy's two-plus seasons Orlando is 91-20 (10-2 this year) when holding opponents under 100 points.

Over Stan Van Gundy's two-plus seasons Orlando is 114-34 (12-3 this year) when holding opponents to less than 50 percent shooting.

Dwight Howard now has 25 career 20+ point/20+ rebound games (two already this year). The Magic are 6-2 when Vince Carter scored 20-plus points this year. Rashard Lewis is averaging 18.3 ppg. over the last six games, while shooting over 50 percent from the field overall and three-point range, compared to 12.6 ppg. and a 33 percent field goal mark the first five games he played this season.

Perkins vs. Bogut Had an Old School Feel to It

Greg Payne — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 18:26:50 -0000

More photos » by Michael Dwyer - AP

Bogut wins the individual battle, but Perkins team takes the win.

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Heading into last night's game against the Milwaukee Bucks, rookie Brandon Jennings had my attention. It would be my first time seeing the kid play and after a rookie goes off for 55 points, it's difficult not to want to see him for yourself. I figured Rajon Rondo would present a formidable defensive challenge unlike anything Jennings had seen in his still very young NBA career and for the most part I was right.

While the plight of the point guards was entertaining (mainly due to Rondo being one rebound shy of a triple-double and finishing with 11 points, 13 assists, nine rebounds and five steals), the battle of the big men stole the show. Kendrick Perkins and Andrew Bogut did not appear to like each other on the court last night, but Perk was pivotal to Boston's success and Bogut was one of the main reasons Milwaukee kept it close for far too long.

The final lines for the pair:

Perkins: 7-8 shooting, 15 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 0 blocks, 2 turnovers

Bogut: 11-17 shooting, 25 points, 14 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 7 turnovers

Advantage to the Aussie, I suppose, and give him credit for playing so well against one of the NBA's premiere interior defenders. But the tussle itself between these two was worth watching, as the paint proved to be quite the battleground last night.

I missed out on the '60s, '70s and '80s when the vast majority of the NBA's big men actually played in the paint and brought legitimate offensive repertoires down there with them. Hook shots abounded, along with the five to seven-foot turn around and didn't the '80s serve as the 8-10 foot jumper's hay day? I've watched a ton of footage from the decade and I swear EVERYBODY had that shot, including the majority of the league's big guys.

Now come back to last night and with Perk and Bogut going at it, one might have felt like we had taken a step back in time with the moves we were seeing. Bogut was an absolute whiz with the hook shots, whether they be of the stop and pop kind or of the sweeping brand. It looks like he's turned that shot into his go-to move, although, when the Bucks needed him to utilize that go-to move when they were hanging on for dear life with minutes left, Bogut came up empty on two consecutive possessions, primarily due to outstanding defense by Perk (and a helping hand from Rondo the first time around). But despite Bogut's shortcomings in the final few possessions, he really does possess a nice touch down low, and in terms of old school post moves, he's right up there for tops in the league today (along with guys like Al Jefferson and Pau Gasol).

For Perk, has any NBA center in today's league mastered the short fade away jumper in the lane the way he has? He typically begins his move on the right block, backs his man down and buries him into the paint to the point where his defender is almost under the rim, then plants the right foot, turns, fades, and buries the shot. Speaking of go-to moves, Perk has shown he can fall back on this shot whenever he needs to, particularly early on in games when he's establishing his own rhythm.

I think it's fair to say Bogut is a naturally more gifted offensive player, meaning he did not need to develop as much of his offensive game as Perk did when he entered the league. When Perk first stepped onto an NBA floor, if a dunk wasn't an option, he pretty much wasn't going to score. But it's a testament to Perkins' work ethic, along with Clifford Ray's tutelage when we recognize how Perk has developed into a legitimate offensive threat.

But last night it was nice seeing two legitimate interior players really play where their respective games thrive. Bogut didn't drag Perk out to the perimeter, but instead went at him relentlessly down low, and even though I might be forced to say Bogut got the better of Perk for three and a half quarters, watching a skilled big man with legitimate post moves go up against an equally legitimate interior defender is arguably a rarity in today's game. Many of the 6-10 and up guys in today's league possess outside jump shots, or prefer the perimeter in general. But the paint really was a battleground last night and it was somewhat captivating seeing these two continue to go at it, with the hook shots and the up and unders and the reverses, especially when their teammates cleared the lanes and just let them play each other straight up.

I sure hope Perk treats Rondo to a nice dinner when this team heads off on its next three-game road swing, because of the 13 assists Rondo racked up, a bunch of them went through Perk in the paint. As much as we talk about the unspoken on-the-court chemistry between Rondo and Kevin Garnett when they're executing their alley-oops, the relationship Rondo shares with Perk is equally crippling to an opposing team. With Perk always parking himself down low, whenever Rondo slices through the defense and draws the help defender, he can usually count on Perk being wide open mere feet away from the basket. And if Perk isn't always in pristine position, he's usually lurking somewhere nearby, cutting to the hoop or battling for position for an offensive rebound.

I'm not entirely sure which big men helped spark the wave of the 15-18 foot jumper. Perhaps it was Hakeem Olajuwon or Karl Malone. Or maybe it was those drafted in the mid-to late '90s like Garnett, Rasheed Wallace and Dirk Nowitzki. Whoever was responsible for the transition, Perk's had to deal with a steady crop of perimeter based big men this season, including Channing Frye, Andrea Bargnani and Mehmet Okur, which takes Perk out of his natural defensive element.

But Perkins vs. Bogut proved the NBA can still go retro every once in a while, where the emphasis isn't necessarily on the pure athleticism, but rather on the quickness and the finesse, as well as the intelligence it takes to play quality low post basketball. It's difficult to tell whether the big men of tomorrow will resemble a Bogut or a Perkins as opposed to a Garnett or a Nowitzki, but regardless, games like last night's proved that we can still be treated and reminded of the NBA's low post glory days from time to time.

Nash's Heroics Fall Short, Mavericks Down Suns 102-101

Wil Cantrell — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 05:43:59 -0000

More photos » by Tony Gutierrez - AP

The Suns played much improved basketball, but couldn't grab a W versus the Mavericks. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

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The fun part of playing the Mavericks in Dallas is watching Steve Nash pull magic out of a hat. Without him tonight, we wouldn't all be sitting here saying, we should have just won that game.

This one stings. It stings because we had many, many, many chances to win down the stretch. One or two or three shots made here and there, and well...

The Suns came out ready to play. You could sense how much they wanted this one by the speed and aggressiveness of their play in the opening quarter. Jason Richardson was active early playing the full first quarter and bucketing 8 points and 5 rebounds. Steve Nash chipped in 8 of his own while Amare Stoudemire scored 6.

Early foul trouble led to early appearances from Lou Amundson and Jared Dudley. The Suns ended the first quarter led by Dudley and Nash on a 9-2 run.

In the second, the Suns continued to shoot over 50% and execute. A Dragic 3 led to a Suns 8-point lead at the midway point of the second period.

But Dallas fought back. Dirk Nowitzki made a variety of impossible shots and benefited by a clear ghost call on a three point play (he wasn't touched). For some reason the Suns either didn't recognize Jose Juan Berea asa member of the opposing team or couldn't make the rotation to cover him as he scored 12 early points, 3 of his baskets came on wide open looks. The Suns led 50-49 at the half.

In the third quarter, Nowitzki and Howard went to work on the Suns, scoring 13 points while Stoudemire and Nash kept things within striking range.

Down the stretch, the Suns had many chances to erase the Mav's lead. But every time they began a small run off of a defensive stop or Mavericks turnover, they couldn't make the shots. Down by 5, Channing Frye was left open for a three and bricked one from long range. Jason Richardson stole a Jason Terry pass and attempted to out run 3 Mavericks to the rim, but instead ran over Jason Kidd for a charge.

As much as this game should have been a win for the Suns, we have to give some credit to the Mavericks. Dirk Nowitzki (33 points, 8 boards) and Josh Howard (20 points, 6 boards) had huge nights. Nowitzki was virtually unstoppable, hitting his fade away and nearly everything else he lobbed into the air (12-20). Josh Howard was basically a game time decision to play. Coming off the bench Howard played 26 effective minutes.

The Suns never really recaptured the energy from the first quarter, but managed to stay in the game and keep it close in the 4th. That's when Nash decided he would not lose without giving Mark Cuban a little something to remember him by...:

Dirk Nowitzki hit a high arching two putting the Mavericks up 7 with less than 2 minutes to play. Jason Terry followed up with a layup to put the Mavericks up 9. But Stoudemire followed with a 3 point play and Nash hit a typical Nash-esque off-balanced three to pull to within 3 points with less than a minute to go.
With 45 seconds left the Mavericks had the ball and went right to Nowitzki with Jared Dudley in his grill. With nowhere to go Nowtzki passed out to Jason Kidd who drilled a wide open three. (LOUD SIGH)
After a time out, the Suns set up a nice inbound play for Jason Richardson, who rubbed off a Grant Hill screen and knocked down a three to bring the Mavs lead to 98-96. After two Jason Terry free throws, the Suns had the ball with 11 seconds left, and guess what happened??? Steve Nash swished another long range three to bring the Suns within one.

Jason Terry missed the first of his two free throws and purposely missed the second as the Suns had no timeouts left to stop the clock. GAME OVER.

Other Thoughts and Observations

Could this game have looked any more even from the boxscore?:

Suns 44.3% FG, Mavericks 44.7%

Suns 7-19 3PT, Mavericks 6-23

Suns 40 rebounds, Mavericks 42

Suns 24-25 FT, Mavericks 20-23

Suns 15 TO, Mavericks 13

In the second quarter Robin Lopez ripped a rebound away from Drew Gooden. Lopez is a strong man, but he simply wanted the ball more than Gooden. Even though play ended in a jump ball, the Suns ended up winning the tip. I like what I am seeing from Fropez.
It's strange watching Shawn Marion play for another team. I never watched him play for the Heat, but he clearly affects the game when he is on the floor. His outside shot looks more atrocious than ever, but his floater is still pretty sweet.
Josh Howard played great for a guy who missed the prior 13 games while rehabbing an ankle injury.
It was apparrant there is a major difference when Lou Amundson is on the floor, chasing down the ball, never quitting on a play.
I loved the Amare jump pass to J-Rich for the dunk in the first quarter. They must be working on that one in practice.
Has Jason Terry ever committed a foul? Better yet has he ever committed a foul on not complained about it? I loved him at U of A, but they guy needs to stop crying.
I liked the way the Suns played tonight. If we are not in the Lakers class in the upper tier of the Western Conference, we are certainly in the second tier, amongst the 4-6 seeds. I would think Leandro Barbosa could have helped out in this one
The next stretch of games will tell us a lot more about how the Phoenix Suns rank within the Western Conference:

Fri 12/11 vs Orlando

Sat 12/12 @Denver

Tues 12/15 vs San Antonio

Thurs 12/17 @Portland

FINAL - 12.8.2009	1	2	3	4	TOTAL
Phoenix Suns	29	21	20	31	101
Dallas Mavericks	23	26	28	25	102

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Mavericks Vs Suns: Game 22 Preview

Phillip Baggett — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 23:09:11 -0000

Suns vs Mavericks preview

Bright Side Of The Sun

Suns vs Mavericks coverage

The Match-ups:

Point Guard

Jason Kidd: The Mavericks will need a little extra from Kidd tonight. The Mavs will have to call on Kidd to try and penetrate in order to create better shots for the slumping Mavericks shooters. Normally this is not a very profitable idea but tonight Kidd will have the leagues other ageless wonder covering him, and this should allow Kidd to at least be on equal ground as far as quickness. However for everything that goes up must come down. Kidd will draw a very tough cover in Steve Nash, and that beautiful teardrop shot of his. It is imperative for Kidd to keep a tight handle on Nash and not allow him to get on one of his shooting streaks.

vs.

Steve Nash: How on earth did Cuban ever allow this guy to leave Dallas? Even though he plays for the enemy I still love to watch Nash. As tough a cover as Kidd will have all year (yes that includes CP3, and Tony Parker) he has the uncanny ability to create just enough space for himself to get a good look at the basket, and a good look for Nash is most assuredly a shot that most others would not have a chance at. Nash will create shots not only for himself but is unbelievably good at getting open looks for his teammates.

Edge: Suns

Shooting Guard

Rodrigue Beaubois: This is simply a guess on my part as to who the starter will be, it is very possible that the JET will get his second consecutive start. The Mavericks and Coach Carlisle must start getting Beaubois more time on the floor, and his length and athleticism would surely help tonight. However whoever gets the nod will have their hands full with the Suns dead eye shooter Jason Richardson. I believe that Roddy B would give the Mavs their best chance against Richardson.

vs.

Jason Richardson: Richardson comes into the night averaging 16.4 ppg and 4.9 rpg but it his FG% and 3P% that are most shocking. Josh is shooting 49.6%FG and 42.3% from beyond the arc, this is one guy that the Mavs can not afford to let run free.

Edge: Suns

Forward

Shawn Marion: Continues to play very solid offense but the Mavs will need more from him tonight. Shawn's offensive game will need to be in full swing tonight for the Mavs to be able to compete.

vs.

Grant Hill: Did I mention my extreme hatred of anyone from Duke?

Edge: Mavs

Power Forward

Dirk Nowitzki: Continues to struggle somewhat from the field, the Mavs cannot stand for Dirk to continue to struggle from the field, and settle for jump shots. Dirk will also need to be on top of his defensive game as well, as Channing Frye poses serious problems with his length and shooting prowess.

vs.

Channing Frye: While not on the same level as Dirk he does pose some of the same issues that Dirk does. He is a tall forward with a nice 3point shooting touch.

Edge: Mavs

Center

Drew Gooden: Drew Gooden should get the nod tonight ahead of Dampier simply because he is the more athletic option and should be able to stay with Stoudemire with much more consistency than Dampier. Either way though they will need to make sure that he is accounted for on every possession.

Vs.

Amare Stoudemire: Even after major surgery he still has most of the same abilities he had before the surgery, and continues to be Phoenix #1 option each time down the floor. Stoudemire is at his best in the open court and running, an extremely proficient finish around the basket.

Edge:Suns

Injuries/Suspensions

Phoenix Suns

OUT - Leandro Barbosa

Dallas Mavericks

OUT - Josh Howard

Prediction: If the Mavs starting 5 can stay close to the Suns the second rotation should be able to do some damage. Look for this game to be very competitive the whole way through, but the strength of the Mavs bench will come through in the end.

Dallas Mavericks: 118

Phoenix Suns: 113

Game Preview - Phoenix Suns vs. Dallas Mavericks

Mike Lisboa — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 14:07:04 -0000

More photos » by Tony Gutierrez - AP

"Trade me for a Shaqtus, will you?" Former Sun Shawn Marion plots his revenge. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

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So, after a creampuff of a schedule so far in terms opposition, the Suns finally get a chance to prove they belong in the discussion of Western Conference powers. Those 2 losses to the Lakers? Totally expected. It's going to be the rare team that gives that Laker squad a run for their money. Anyone who expected the Suns to do more than compete for 2 or 3 quarters in either of those games was probably a little delusional.

But the Mavericks? They're the proverbial "someone our own size." In addition to hoping for similar seeding in the Western Conference play-off picture, the Mavericks have even had some of the same early season challenges/knocks the Suns have:

The Mavericks have played 12 of their first 21 games on the road. The Suns have played 14 of 21 away from Phoenix.
The Mavericks have had an even softer schedule than the Suns. Opponents winning percentage is .457 vs. .487 for Phoenix.
The Mavs have only played 7 times against teams with a record better than .500. The Sun have only played 7 times against teams with a record better than .500.
The Mavericks are 5-2 in those games. The Suns are 3-4 in those games.

And that's where these two teams diverge in terms of early season success. The Mavericks even notched an early win over the Lakers (a 94-80 thumping at Staples Center) who have proved... how shall we say this... challenging to the Suns.

Let's go to the match-ups and see how else these teams stack up.

Guards

At the point, Steve Nash squares off against one-time benchmate Jason Kidd. Both long in the tooth and wizards with the ball in their hands, Nash is a better scorer and Kidd is a better defender. And according to a panel of basketball expert types, Kidd holds a slight edge in "basketball IQ." This is basically a push and should be a fun match-up to watch as the two veterans try to out-wile each other. Off the bench, it's J.J. Barea vs. Goran Dragic. Barea's been logging heavier minutes than Dragic, but serves the same role: holder of serve while the starting maestro catches his breath between virtuoso performances. Hopefully, confident Dragic shows up and can use his size and speed to over-match the smaller Barea. Again, there's no discernable advantage for either team here.

At shooting guard, the Mavs roll out French rookie Rodrigue Beaubois against Jason Richardson. Beaubois is fast as all get out and can leap tall guards in a single bound. Look for the Mavs to get him going early with their now-trademark alley-oop play they run for the little guy. Whatever. The real story at the 2 for the Mavs is Jason Terry, who notoriously lights it up against the Suns. J-Rich will have his hands full preventing Terry from getting his and better remember to pack his offense if he hopes to out-gun Terry. The Suns may miss Leandro Barbosa's scoring punch here.

Forwards

Well, well, well... if it isn't our old friend Shawn Marion. I expect to see a motivated Matrix against Grant Hill tonight. Off the bench, Jared Dudley versus Quinton Ross is fairly even match-up of hustle guys who trade on their defense.

At power forward, we have both teams big guns, men who, when playing at the tops of their games are virtually unguardable. Dirk Nowitzki is a one man wrecking crew from all over the court and while Amare Stoudmire doesn't have Dirk's range or ability to create off the dribble, he's a handful from 20 feet inwards. Slight edge to the Mavericks here. Off the bench, the Mavericks have Kris Humphries and former Sun Tim Thomas. Is tonight the night we finally see Lou Amundson back in the line-up? The Suns could probably use some of his energy on the road after a tough loss to the Lakers.

Center

True story: when Erick Dampier and Steve Nash were free agents a few years back, I wanted the Suns to throw gobs of money at Dampier after his career year at Golden State and nearly tore my hair out when they offered Nash his massive contract. Let's just say that was not my best basketball moment. That said, despite his tendency to mail it in from time to time, Dampier can do his damage down low. If he gets physical, Channing Frye could be in for another long game. While more athletically gifted, Robin Lopez needs to stay in control of himself and not pick up cheap fouls against Dampier or veteran back-up Drew Gooden. This is an opportunity for him to show his stuff against some veteran competition and a very manageable match-up if he can keep his wits about him.

Predictions

On paper, this is a good quality match-up for both teams and an opportunity to shed early season "soft" labels. As usual, the teams square up well against one another on a position by position basis. For the Mavs defensively, I expect we'll see a lot of Dampier and Gooden staying home down low with Amare while Dirk floats to the perimeter against Channing Frye.

Also, I expect the Mavs will continue the trend of switching longer defenders out on to Nash to disrupt his passing game. Nash will have to figure out how to shake his former partner-in-oop Shawn Marion to keep the Suns offense from stagnating.

It's at this time where I have to point out the one big discrepancy between the two teams. While the Suns hold the offensive edge, scoring 112.1 points per 100 possessions (1st in the NBA) versus 106.2 for the Mavericks (12th), Dallas is a much, much better defensive team, allowing only 99.9 points per 100 (5th) versus a whopping 107.6 (24th) for the Suns.

While the Suns can win this game if they can return to the terrifyingly efficient offensive game that tormented opposing teams earlier in the year, I see them struggling against the Mavs relatively strong defense and slow pace. The Suns haven't been able to push the tempo against quality opposition (Celtics game notwithstanding) and Steve Nash has yet to adjust his game to overcome bigger opposing defenders. Until the Suns improve their sieve-like porous matador thus far weak defense, they are reliant on an increasingly tenuous jump-shooting offense to pull them through.

It pains me to do it, but while the Suns should be much more competitive in this game than previous ones against quality teams, I see the Mavs pulling away on the strength of big games by Nowitzki and Terry and their superior defense. 107-96, Mavericks.

That said, it should be a fun game, and after a couple days of rest the Suns will be looking to prove me all kinds of wrong, so getcha popcorn ready! Head over to Mavs Moneyball to check out the view from the other side of the bleachers.

Game Day Links

Suns vs Mavericks coverage
Mavs Moneyball
HoopsHype.com NBA Blogs - Jorge Sierra » Most Valuable Tweeters
the former Bobcat is the clear Twitter MVP. His trade to a relevant team like Phoenix and his impressive activity with the social media website have made him a recognizable face for NBA fans – which wasn’t the case one year ago while still in Charlotte. Dudley reports news (calls himself JMZ), gives away tickets and interacts with fans, journalists, owners and fellow NBA players.
azcentral.com - members
They still might get there. But with the Lakers taking root in Los Angeles so far this season, the Suns playing a league-high 14 road games and "Phoenix at L.A. Lakers" coming up twice a night after a home game that was just a check-in from an East Trip, it's hard to make take any lasting impressions away other than that the Lakers are better.
Lakers rout Suns in LA again
"They bottle up everything you try to do," Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. "They switch, and they knock off. We could never really get anything going. We're not so much a fast-break team but a rhythm team and they just take you out of your rhythm."
Lakers 108, Phoenix 88: Second verse, same as the first | Lakers Blog | Los Angeles Times
I think we can all agree that if asked to create NBA kryptonite for this year's Suns squad, it would look a lot like the Lakers. Length, mobility, dominating post play, and so on. Generally speaking I like to avoid grand proclamations so early in the season, but I'm comfortable declaring that there is absolutely no earthly way Phoenix would beat a healthy Lakers team in a playoff series. None. Something under zero, really. But the Suns are 15-4 vs. the rest of the league. That's worth something, and Sunday night the Lakers beat them by 20. That's worth something, too.

This one is a must read. A true basketball poet lays the Suns bare

Hardwood Paroxysm » Blog Archive » What a Feeling, To Be Mortal
Maybe the hustle and the bustle of the Suns doesn’t quite fit your living style, but who could possibly claim that the exaggerated in-game highs and lows of the Suns — the 20-point lead built and swallowed by a 5-25 run, the 3-point barrages followed by defensive letdowns — aren’t basketball’s most fitting equivalent of life on the outside? It’s not about the 9-5 grind, and it’s not necessarily about winning all the time; the Suns’ existence is predicated on winning more than you lose, embracing who you are, playing by your own rules, learning to live through the ups and downs, and remembering that the line between work and play doesn’t have to be crystal clear. They work hard, they score points, and they play basketball like it’s a game worth playing. They may not have the talent of the Lakers or the convention of the Spurs, but this is a team of hard workers and ball players with a plan.
Suns hope to warm up in Dallas
Suns fans must yearn for those 14-3 NBA darlings they had a week ago - probably as much as the Suns now yearn to rediscover their offense. That Suns team had three four-game winning streaks, an unflappable road mentality and shot 50.7 percent from the field.
azcentral.com blogs - Coro's Suns dish - PaulCoro - A fair fight for the Suns
The Suns get some help with that tonight with Louis Amundson returning from his flu bout. His stomach still hurts but he going to play tonight and probably get to guard Nowitzki. Welcome back. His key is energy so we will see how much of it he has after a couple days in bed.

Mavericks Vs Hawks: Game 21 Preview

Phillip Baggett — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 19:50:29 -0000

Hawks vs Mavericks coverage

Hawks vs Mavericks preview

Peachtree Hoops

The Match-ups:

Point Guard

Jason Kidd: Well here we are again the second game of a back to back, and so far this year this has been the game that this team has struggled with. However typically the Mavs have been very good in the first game and they were awful last night. There defensive rotations were slow and they became once again very one demensional, as they shot zero free throws in the second half. This is Kidds job to get this team to move and attack the basket, one night after the team shot 35% from the field Kidd must now try and find a way to inspire his team, because the same lack of effort as last night tonight and they will get blown off the court.

vs.

Mike Bibby: Outside of CP3 by far my favorite PG in the league. Mike is just a gamer and has been for his entire career. The Hawks have a very athletic team but make no mistake Bibby is the leader of the team. When Bibby is penetrating and passing and knocking down the occasional deep ball the Hawks are lethal. The Key to beating the Hawks begins and ends with Mike Bibby.

Edge: Hawks

Shooting Guard

Rodrigue Beaubois: Finally after weeks of pissing and moaning coach Carlisle finally gave Roddy B some extended minutes last night. Even though the Mavs as a whole were awful last night I think everyone finally was able to recognize the difference in the flow of the team between Roddy B and the annexation of Puerto Rico. The difference is undeniable, when JJ is the game for longer than a 4 minute stint the flow of the game goes hay wire, but with Roddy B things seems more fluent. Rodrigue Beaubois athleticism will be needed tonight.

vs.

Joe Johnson: Yes he is a tad bit older now and maybe just a little bit slower, there is no doubting his shot skills. His FG% and 3point % are a little low this year, but he continues to lead a deadly cast in scoring at 21ppg. Joe Johnson has the ability to explode for large chunks of points, and this is what makes him very scary and a major point of emphasis tonight for the Mavs.

Edge: Hawks

Forward

Shawn Marion: I read lots of comments from people being upset that Marion was on the bench in the 4th quarter while Barea was on the court, and while i would agree the majority of the time, I also understand why that decision was made. Shawn Marion will have to devote more energy tonight on defense than probably any other game all year. I would not be surprised at all to see Shawn play more minutes than he has all year tonight. He will have his hands full with Josh Smith and Marvin Williams.

vs.

Josh Smith: Josh has been unbelievable so far this year, he comes in to tonights contest shooting a gawdy 54% from the field. The Hawks play with essentially 2 small gaurds, and 2 gaurd/ forward combos, and a PF in Al Horford. Both Joe Smith and Marvin Williams will be on the court at the same time and this causes serious match up issues not only with the Mavs but just about every other team in the league. Josh is the cutting, driving, havoc creating forward. Josh can also get a little wild at times and this is the Josh that we want to see as Mavs fans.

Edge: Hawks

Power Forward

Dirk Nowitzki: As poorly as he shot last night and as poorly as the team played Dirk still managed double figures in both points and rebounds. Tonight however the Mavs will not survive very long without Dirk being on top of his game. Dirk and the Mavs will probably use a lot of zone defense tonight to try and keep the high flying Hawks from getting easy baskets, and it is the Mavs defense and most notable Dirk Nowitzki's defense that will dictate the final outcome of the game.

vs.

Marvin Williams: Marvin is long and athletic with above average quickness for a player of his size, and these are the types of players that genuinely give Dirk and the Mavs trouble. Marvin has been known however to fall in love with his jump shot even when it is not going down. The Mavs need to be ruthless in their defensive pursuit of Williams and the Hawks tonight, slow and lethargic pursuit will not get the job done.

Edge: Mavericks

Center

Erick Gooden: This will probably be one of those nights that the Gooden half of the center combination sees the most minutes simply due to the extreme athleticism needed to cover the Hawks. However do not be surprised if the Mavs do not just slow the tempo down to a crawl in an attempt to pound on the smaller Hawks.

Vs.

Al Horford: Another in a long line of long, quick, and athletic Hawks. The Hawks get the most out of Horford when they are running. Al is very athletic, he moves more like a small forward, but he can finish close to the basket. However if the Mavs can slow the pace down and spend alot of time posting up, I am not sure Horford and the rest of the Hawks can handle that kind of treatment. The problem is that the Hawks simply do not let teams do that to them.

Edge: Even

Injuries/Suspensions

Atlanta Hawks

OUT - None

Dallas Mavericks

OUT - Josh Howard (will you please get better and come back?)

Prediction: Well I have been wrog most of the year with my predictions, and hopefully I continue that again tonight. The Hawks are just far to athletic for this version of the Dallas Mavericks to compete. The Mavs are just to inconsistent right now for me to be able to say which Mavs team will show up, but the only chance they have is if the "A" Team shows up.

Dallas Mavericks: 95

Atlanta Hawks: 110

God I hope I am wrong...

Turtle Time: Memphis Grizzlies upset Dallas Mavericks 98-82

djturtleface — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 18:26:53 -0000

More photos » by Nikki Boertman - AP

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It seems like I can't remember the last time I knew the Grizzlies were moving in the right direction. As I'm watching this game on League Pass, I can tell that the Memphis Grizzlies are starting to do something right.

The Mavericks played the Grizzlies hard during the first, and it actually looked like they outplayed them by a solid margin -- watching Rodrigue Beaubois, who I really like, dominate Mike Conley didn't help that.

But over time the Grizzlies began to adjust on defense. They started tipping passes. They began trying harder to exploit their advantages on the boards. They threw multiple looks at Dirk Nowitzki, which clearly frustrated him, and were smart enough to exploit Jason Kidd by matching him up against O.J. Mayo.

And Mayo killed the old man. He went 10-16 for 25 points, tipping and stealing several slow passes on the other end. Zach Randolph also played well and hard. Rudy Gay didn't stun anyone with his stat line, but had a team best +17 and was covering up whatever Maverick he was facing.

The bench gang were the real heroes though. Nobody's stats popped off the page, but Thabeet, Tinsley, Carroll, and Young all got into the game and logged meaningful minutes. Their play got the Grizzlies ahead in the second and helped them resolutely seal it off, something the young Grizz have trouble with in past wins.

The Grizzlies fired on all cylinders tonight, but it didn't feel lucky. Fans were in the Forum and these kids put on a show for them; how couldn't you feel good about that?

Rockness Monster: O.J. Mayo proved that as much as we like advanced statistics and should value other contribution, sometimes points are still king.

U-Turn: The Grizzlies three-point shooting tonight was spectacular, and it's something Memphis has really missed. Check out this chart by Ziller over at FanHouse; the Grizzlies shoot the three pretty inefficiently and also the least in the league. That's dangerous for a high-scoring, offensively-geared team. O.J. probably should shoot more, and so should Mike Conley once he finds his stroke.

Bitter Limon: Point guard is pretty much still a hole for this team. I know Mike Conley played the hero with 20 points in the win against Minnesota, but his defense is abysmal and he scored that many by forgetting about facilitating and only really pushing his offense. It worked that night, but it doesn't on most.

Saturday Roundup

Wes Cox — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 17:22:16 -0000

More photos » by Nikki Boertman - AP

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Dallas Mavericks misfire on the road with 98-82 loss to Grizzlies | DMN
"We shot no free throws in the second half, which meant that we basically became a jump-shooting team and a passive team offensively," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. "You're not going to win on the road in this league playing like that. We have to play with a lot more force." Zero free throws. That's what happens when you fall back to old, bad habits, like 18 3-pointers after halftime and plenty of other low-yield shots that contributed to a season-low 35.2 percent shooting.

Scatterhooping: Memphis 98, Dallas 82 | Jeff Wade - ESPN Dallas
The Grizz only shot 6 free throws in the second half, but it didn’t matter because their shots weren’t that hotly contested. In a game where nobody was really too committed to guarding anyone, the Grizz made their shots and Dallas didn't.

Grizzlies 98, Mavs 82: Dallas Throws In The Towel | Mike Fisher - DB.com
Every time the Mavs called a timeout, it seemed, Dirk Nowitzki stormed to the bench to abuse whatever stood in his way. He angrily threw a towel. He slapped a folding chair and sent it crashing to the floor. Overall, the Mavs were never a threat to the building Grizzlies, losing at Memphis 98-82 on Friday. But the Mavs were undefeated against inanimate objects.

Going long distance gives Dallas Mavericks no shot | Eddie Sefko - DMN
The Mavericks have averaged 18 3-point attempts per game. That's a sensible number. They had 29 on Friday, most of them before garbage time began