The Mavericks came out on fire, yet got stale and stiff the rest of the way. The momentum of beating the Lakers never boarded the flight to Atlanta.
The young Hawks team ran, shot, and hustled their way in the second, third, and half of the fourth quarters, after the Mavericks ran all over them in the first quarter.
During the win streak, the third quarter is where the Mavericks pulled away. Outscoring their opponents in the third quarter during the win streak, the Mavericks were outscored by 11 in the third quarter.
All signs pointed towards a blow-out win for the Hawks.
Playing [...]

Caron Butler admitted last year that he had kicked his Mountain Dew habit. Butler slimmed down more than 15 pounds he told me simply by not drinking his normal 7-10 12-ounce bottles of Mountain Dew a day.
Now comes word that the NBA has outlawed Butler from chewing straws during games.
What seems like an easy couple of habits to kick in the grand scheme of things isn’t what it seems.
Caron told me that kicking the “Dew habit” was like kicking alcohol or drugs. He would wake up in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat, and shaking. He would have [...]

Like finding a $20 bill in your jeans, the Mavericks got a pleasant gift with the play of DeShawn Stevenson. For Mavericks fans, it seems the trade returns just keeps getting better and better.
With Caron Butler out with a reaction to medications he took, and Erick Dampier still in street clothes, the Mavericks were playing shorthanded.
They were able to rise to the occasion.
The AA Center came alive in the fourth quarter and made the game feel like a playoff-style atmosphere.
The marquee read Dirk vs Kobe.
Feeding off the crowd, Dirk Nowitzki provided a great show for the home crowd. The [...]

ESPN, Jaz-Z, Beyonce, Los Angeles, must be a big night of basketball in Dallas. A big night gets a halftime blog post.
With Caron Butler sitting out with what I’m told is a “terrible reaction” to some medication, the Mavericks are playing shorthanded.
I’ve hinted at it, and tonight I am convinced of it. A big key for the Dallas Mavericks will be the backup point guard position. Both Rod Beaubois and J.J. Barea got minutes in the first half, giving Jason Kidd some rest.
On a night when Kobe Bryant doesn’t score until 3:30 left in the half, the Mavericks were unable [...]

Josh Howard’s bad couple of weeks just got worse. Recently acquired Washington Wizards forward Josh Howard will miss the remainder of the season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.
Howard was injured Monday night in Washington’s win over the Chicago Bulls, only his fourth game with the Wizards since being acquired from Dallas in a seven-player trade on Feb. 13.
No decision has been announced on whether Howard would have surgery.
Howard was plagued by criticism off the court while a Dallas Maverick, and was looking forward to starting over in Washington. Accused of missing a game due to [...]

There are nights when things just seem dull and blah. Monday night was one of those nights.
The Mavericks beat the Indiana Pacers handedly 91-82.
The Mavericks were able to provide their starters with a half night’s workload. Jason Kidd was able to get some well deserved rest, as Rod Beaubois was able to get some experience. Monday night also was a night that the Dallas crowd was able to see DeShawn Stevenson play quality minutes.
Both looked good.
Brendan Haywood was outstanding, grabbing a career high 20 boards in really only two quarters of play. Who would have guessed that Haywood [...]

With the American Airlines Center almost half full, Mavericks officials might consider a special ticket price for the second half of the game.
The second half tickets might just sell out.
The intensity, the excitement, the hustle, the defense, the rhythm, and the physicality increase in the second half of recent Maverick games.
It is an exciting time to watch the Mavericks, yet judging by the attendance, the jury is still out on this team.
Let’s not start designing rings.
The Heat played without their star Dwayne Wade, yet managed to stay with the Mavericks all game long. They came in with the league’s [...]

“Wow” moments are special, and you really should appreciate them. I had one watching the Mavericks play Orlando.
I saw J.J. Redick and Jason Williams play. That’s like seeing Corey Feldman and Corey Haim out and about. You think to yourself, “Wow, I forgot about them.”
Got to love “wow” moments.
Dallas Mavericks came in underdogs against the Orlando Magic, but came out winners. Using Jason Kidd as the “double down” guy on Dwight Howard, the Mavericks played solidly on the defensive side of the court for the second straight game.
The belief that as Dirk goes, so goes the Mavericks was thrown out [...]

Racine, Wisconsin provides relief from thirst. Caught between Chicago and Milwaukee, Racine provides plenty of fast food restaurants, gas stations, and yes, a cheese store.
An oasis off of I-94, Racine, Wisconsin offers charm and history that few take time to visit or experience.
NBA players during All-Star weekend had a hard time pin pointing the time and place that they fell in love with the game of basketball. Most of them insisted that it was there when they were born. Brandon Jennings, rookie from the Milwaukee Bucks, talked about the feeling he felt when he was a young kid when he [...]

Dirk didn’t appreciate the forearm that Grant Hill delivered to him in the fourth quarter. Nowitzki and Hill briefly jawed at each other, double technicals were handed out, the game went on.
The game was won by the Dallas.
I’m reluctant to say Dallas Mavericks due to for one night, I saw a different team. I saw a team physical on both ends of the court. Use of some well-times zones, physical man-to-man defense, owning the paint with blocked shots and boxing out, Dallas provided a fun team to watch.
The American Airlines Center crowd cheered and screamed. They rose to their feet, [...]