Dallas Mavericks

Without Nowitzki, Expect Anything

Well, Nowitzki collided with Landry of the Rockets early in the game, sending them both out of the game. Nowitzki made one of his free throws having to do it left handed as he banged up his right elbow, requiring stitches.

Landry wasn’t as lucky, losing several teeth when Nowitzki’s elbow hit him when fouled.

But the Rockets squeezed by barely. Up by 10 or so points late in the game with what looked to become a closeout after knocking our star out of the game, the Mavs pulled it together and tied it at 100, but then lost all such momentum in OT as the Rockets pulled away 116-108.

From the fans standpoint, most were not pleased with the officiating in the end of the game but expect anything when Dirk is out, like Little Jose being our leading scorer.

After the Nowitzki and Landry collision, the Rockets went on an 18-5 run if that tells you anything. That’s how this Rockets team has to beat the Mavericks, take out the star.

Nowitzki is questionable for Sunday nights game against the Cavs, but at least it’s not a serious injury that is taking him out for weeks or the season.

Rockets Tonight

The Mavs play the Rockets tonight at home. Hopefully we’ll see a repeat of their beatdown they had in Houston back around Thanksgiving.

The Mavericks are also on a 5 game winning streak, barely squeezing by the Hornets but I was surprised with their play against the Thunder. I know the Thunder are relatively young but they scare me as a potentially dangerous team, with Durant and company. Luckily for us, we spoiled Durant’s spotlight in this game where he introduced his new shoes, holding him around 12 points.

The next few games are going to be a good test for the Mavericks, going up against the Cavs again, with the Rockets lined up again, Lakers and Nuggets as well. It should be a entertaining holiday round up nonetheless.

The Mavericks are now 19-7 shooting for their 20th win of the season and well on their way to another 50 plus win season from the outlook so far.

Turkey Week Wrapup

So with their huge blowout in Houston, the Mavericks of course followed up with an easy win in Indiana and then a loss in Cleveland. I was expecting a loss against the Cavs but didn’t expect Mo Williams to hit all his 3 pointers to basically push them ahead.

Last night the Mavs almost blew a 17 point lead but with Terry hitting a 17 footer with 1.4 seconds remaining to secure their win 104-102 against the Sixers.

This puts the Mavericks at 13-5 and still on top in their division, although the Spurs seem to have gotten their momentum going in the win category this past week.

The Mavs next game is against the winless Nets. I hope they don’t lose to this team, that would just be embarrassing. If the Mavs win against he Nets, they’ll contribute the team in the worst NBA start in history.

On another note about the Sixers matchup, Jason Kidd had one of his best games to date, scoring 22 points, 11 assists and 6 boards.

Mavs Beat Rockets

Overcoming a 17 point deficit at one point, the Mavericks topped the Rockets to win 121-103.

They held Ariza to only 9 points with Dampier having a huge game, scoring 14 points, going 6-6, 20 rebounds and 3 blocks. This is how Dampier should play every game, but then again, without Yao, he made it look easy.

Of course Terry had a huge game as the top Maverick scorer with 24 points in which he always does well against the Rockets.

We’ll have to thank the defense that helped spark a 22-3 run. The Mavericks need to keep this momentum going into Wednesdays matchup against the Spurs. The Mavericks are averaging 119 points in their past 3 games.

The Rockets went scoreless in the last 3 minutes in the first half, giving the Mavs a 10-0 run and then the Rockets opening the 3rd quarter only making 5 of 22 shots, making it their lowest scoring quarter for the season with 13 points.

Terry has also been hot, going 27-38 over the past 3 games which is likely for the increase in the Mavericks overall offense.

Mavs Must Win

The Mavericks must win against the Rockets tonight when they host them at home. They must also win against the Spurs Wednesday night if they want to see how they’ll stand in their division in what will likely be another tight Southwest battle between the Texas teams that usually dominate the playoff picture.

It’s too bad they aren’t starting off playing the Rockets in Houston, Jason Terry usually does very well in the Rockets home turf.

The Rockets are off to a good start despite not having Yao. Ariza and Brooks are both picking up the slack, averaging 18 PPG plus for each. The Ariza pickup for Houston was a good choice so far.

As for the Spurs, I’m not as worried since the Mavs have sort of keeping them in check for the past couple of seasons, sending them off packing in the first round of the playoffs last season in just 5 games but they were Ginobililess.

But with Manu Ginobili coming back strong, with a recent 36 point game against the Raptors while Duncan was out, they feared this game but with supporting cast members Jefferson and Hill each scoring over 20 points, they’re lucky the Raptors play poor defense overall.

What the Mavs need to do is stop Ariza and Brooks to beat the Rockets. If they keep up with their strong 4th quarters they’ve been having, they should win this game if they step up their defense in the process.

As for the Spurs, stop Ginobili, especially if Duncan is out again. He’s their top scorer coming off the bench as their 6th man. If Parker is out as well, this should help the Mavs with a win away on the road in Spurland.

But these two games are crucial for the Mavs and their division standing since they lost to the Hornets.