Full-Court Press

Catching up with...the Phoenix Suns

It seems like forever since the Mavs last faced the Suns. Their paths have been very different since the clubs last met on April 1st, and the Mavs have played 40 games since they last sparred with their familiar foes from Phoenix. Many have picked the Suns as potential NBA champion, just like last season and so far, it's looked like business as usual for the Suns. The Mavs will look to buck the trend and get their first win in three tries against Phoenix.

Still all offense
The Suns aren't going to surprise you with intricate X-and-O play calling, and that's just the way they like it. Once again, they are the top scoring team in the league and average 109.16 points per game―just ahead of Golden State. Just as their offense has remained dominant, their defense remains just as porous. They are 26th in scoring defense and are allowing an average of two more points per game than they were last year at 104.16 per game.

Not quite over the hill
Many thought Grant Hill didn't have a lot left in the tank when Phoenix signed him to a one-year contract with a second-year player option this summer. It was a low-risk move with a potential high reward, and Hill has been proved the Suns smart so far. One of the biggest knocks on the Suns in the last few years was their lack of depth, and Hill provides that extra piece in the starting lineup that allows Leandro Barbosa and Boris Diaw to lead the second unit. After those seven guys, the playing time drops off dramatically with Brian Skinner and Marcus Banks riding in on the caboose occasionally. When the Suns paid to have Kurt Thomas leave, it left  a good chunk of playing time on the table, and Hill has been just what they were looking for. If he can stay healthy (and that's a mighty big 'if'), they'll be just fine. If not...well, just  imagine what Skinner and Banks would be like with extended playing time. Not pretty.

Diaw has been a letdown
Boris Diaw has been a solid contributor for the Suns since joining the team in 2005 and winning the Most Improved Player award that season. He had another solid season as the Sun's glue guy last season and performed whatever task needed to be done. He averaged 9.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists while shooting a very efficient  53.8 percent from the floor. This season? He's shooting his worst percentage since joining Phoenix at 45.7 percent and is only averaging 7.1 points and 3.6 assists and playing less. Grant Hill has surely had an effect on that, but it's disappointing for the Suns that he isn't flourishing in the reduced role as they thought he might.

Video evidence

• Even Ben Rothliesberger can outshoot the Matrix.
• Boris Diaw pours a mean Mai Tai.
• If you watch much NBATV, you've seen this 100 times. But it's still awesome.

Random useless fact
Amare Stoudemire's nickname STAT stands for "Standing Tall and Talented."

-Scooter Hendon, Hoops Nerd

hmm, interesting opinion

Adrian Wojnarowski of yahoo.com has a fantastic feature on the emergence this season of Portland HS-to-pro player Travis Outlaw, a member of the 2003 draft class that included some unheralded talents known as LeBron, Dwyane, Carmelo and J5.

What does any of this have to do with the Mavs? Well, in the middle of the story, Wojnarowski drops this line: "Behind the best young coach in the sport, Nate McMillan, [the Blazers have] won eight straight games to climb to 13-12, just a ½-game out of second in the Northwest division."

Guess Mavs coach Avery Johnson hasn't accomplished much in his short coaching career. Or maybe he is finally starting to take some heat for the Mavs' disappointments the past two years.

So let's hear it, Mavs faithful: Do you think Avery is the best young coach in the league?

-- Garza, Mavs Lite

What if...Steve Nash re-signed with the Mavericks

This ran a few days ago in print. With the Suns coming to town tonight, we figured we'd run it again in case you missed it.

In the summer of 2004, the Mavericks had some contemplating to do. They had just finished being demolished by Sacramento in the first round of the playoffs, and Mark Cuban was eager  to tinker with a team that looked as if it could use some tinkering. The Mavs ended up cleaning house, letting Steve Nash sign with Phoenix, trading Antawn Jamison for Jerry Stackhouse and the rights to Devin Harris, trading Antoine Walker for Jason Terry, and acquiring Erick Dampier by way of a sign-and-trade deal. Let’s go back in time for a bit of speculation.

2004-05 Mavs

Draft day: The Mavs trade Antawn Jamison to Washington for Jerry Stackhouse, Christian Laettner and the rights to the fifth overall pick. Steve Nash’s contract is up, and he’s an unrestricted free agent. The Mavs have a choice to make. Do they draft a point guard just in case a team offers Nash a large contract, or do they draft from an overall talent standpoint and deal with re-signing Nash in the next few weeks? In a move of solidarity toward Dirk Nowitzki and Nash, the Mavs take Luol Deng with the fifth overall pick.
One week later: The Mavs let Nash know how much he’s wanted in Dallas. The Suns offer a six-year, $65 million deal to Nash, but the Mavericks stick to their guns and  Nash re-ups for slightly more.
One month later: The Mavs shop Antoine Walker everywhere before settling on a swap with the Hawks for guard Jason Terry.
Results: The 2004-05 season finds the Mavs developing Deng and second-year player Josh Howard, while still doing quite well for themselves. The team still needs a legitimate center and is forced to play small ball, often rotating Nowitzki at center. The Mavs make the playoffs as the fourth seed and defeat Houston in the first round. The Spurs advance past the eighth-seeded Suns and beat the Mavs in six games in the semifinals en route to another title. Steve Nash finishes sixth in the MVP voting.

Starters

PG	Steve Nash
SG	Michael Finley
SF	Josh Howard
PF	Dirk Nowitzki
C	Shawn Bradley

Bench

G	Jason Terry
G	Marquis Daniels
F	Luol Deng
F	Jerry Stackhouse
C	D.J. Mbenga

2005-06 Mavs

Speculation: The Mavs sign centers DeSagana Diop and Zaza Pachulia in free agency.
Results: Pachulia gets most of the starts, but Diop shows a lot of promise and is much improved from his time in Cleveland. Deng is also much improved and starts most games. The Mavs still fail to get by the Spurs. The Heat  win the title behind Dwyane Wade’s 80 free throws.

Starters

PG	Steve Nash
SG	Josh Howard
SF	Luol Deng
PF	Dirk Nowitzki
C	Zaza Pachulia

Bench

G	Jason Terry
G	Marquis Daniels
F	Jerry Stackhouse
F	Keith Van Horn
C	DeSagana Diop

2006-07 Mavs

Speculation: Unsatisfied with their center situation, the Mavs trade Jerry Stackhouse and their first-round pick to the Bulls for Tyson Chandler.
Results: The Mavs win 66 games to go to the playoffs as the top seed. They steamroll the Don Nelson-led Warriors and beat the Spurs in five games in the conference finals. They manhandle Cleveland in the Finals for their first title. Nowitzki is fourth and Nash fifth in MVP voting.

Starters

PG	Steve Nash
SG	Josh Howard
SF	Luol Deng
PF	Dirk Nowitzki
C	Tyson Chandler

Bench

G	Jason Terry
G	Devean George
F	Austin Croshere
F	Greg Buckner
C	DeSagana Diop
C	Zaza Pachulia

-Scooter Hendon

Eye on J-Ho

Josh Howard seems to sprain an ankle every other day, so when he limps a bit at the end of practice, or sits out a final drill and hits the stationary bike, as he did Tuesday, it's usually not cause for alarm.

But, it would be a shame if Howard is not at full speed for Wednesday's big game against the Suns. Howard isn't one to miss games unless he's seriously hurting, and Howard at 80 percent is better than most guys at his position at 100 percent.

Just something to watch.

-- Jeff Caplan

George back in AJ's 9

Devean George made an early appearance, his first after not getting the nod from Avery Johnson for two straight games.

George hit his first two jumpers, a good sign. He played 5:29 of the first half with the four points.

-- Jeff Caplan

Jones starts

Hold onto your hats, but Eddie Jones is in the starting lineup, something like Back to the Future, or something.

And, wow, Dwight Howard is one solid dude.

-- Jeff Caplan

Fazekas gets company

Second-year guard Moe Ager was assigned to Tulsa, the Mavs' affiliate in the NBDL on Monday. Ager just hasn't been able to crack Avery Johnson's lineup, not with the glut of shooting guards on this team.

Johnson tried starting Ager earlier in the season, but the five-experiment didn't get past three.

So Moe will get some playing time in Tulsa and try to make it back. But, realisitically, with Devean George barely able to scratch out any time, it's going to be tough for Ager.

-- Jeff Caplan

George not in AJ's 9

Devean George, considered to be an intergral reserve, has found limited playing time in the rotation since recently returning from that stress reaction foot injury. In fact, in the last two games, he hasn't played at all.

When asked why he wasn't getting any PT, George said: "I don't know. You know what I call him -- The Boss."

Well, The Boss put it in simple terms Monday morning: "I've just been going with the nine that I've been playing the last couple of games. Like I told him, he's not out if it, just stay ready."

-- Jeff Caplan

Getting to know...the Orlando Magic

The Mavs return home tonight against Orlando Magic for the first of three games in Dallas. They have won two straight and are coming off an encouraging win in Houston. While the Mavericks have won four of their last five, the Magic have lost four of their last five and are almost even with the Mavs in record at 17-8. The Mavs have won 7 of their last 9 against Orlando and took both matchups last season. With wins in both their meetings this year, the Mavs could finally reach .500 as a franchise against Orlando. They currently sit at 18-20 all time.

Dwight Howard is embarrassing other players
Anybody doubting the Magic for drafting Dwight Howard ahead of Emeka Okafor now? Howard's dominance has been well documented this season, and most of the time, he makes it look easy when he's chin level with the rim and putting some unlucky defender in a bad place. It isn't even surprising anymore when he busts out with a 20-plus rebound game. LeBron James may be the only player in the league right now that is more valuable long term, and even that is arguable. Rest assured that Dampier and Diop will have than their hands full even staying in front of Howard tonight, much less trying to contain him once he's on the low block.

Offense is rain or shine
Lately, the Magic offense has either been off an running or grinding to a halt without much middle ground. They're either scoring over 100 or under 90 and haven't been nearly as consistent on the offensive end as they were through their first 15 games of the season. In their last five games, they've scored 119, 103, 86, 87 and 109. Despite a solid offensive showing Saturday night, the Magic defense couldn't stop a three-point barrage from the Pau Gasol-less Grizzlies.

Lewis is day-to-day
Rashard Lewis sat out Saturday's game with neck spasms, but is traveling with the team to Dallas and Houston over this two-game road trip. It sounds like a garden variety injury and most indications point to him playing. He's been consistent for the Magic so far this season after signing a max contract in the offseason and is a big key for Orlando. With him and Hedo Turkoglu scoring from all over, it helps open Dwight Howard up even more and give the other Magic players space to operate.

Video evidence

• This makes me sick at how much Dwight got robbed in the dunk contest. America was deprived of greatness.
• Dwight Howard is so dang likable.
• One of the sickest dunks I've ever seen.
• Does Florida Hospital treat mental instability also?

Random useless fact
Rashard Lewis' nickname is Sweet Lew. No relation to the Cubs manager.

-Scooter Hendon, Hoops Nerd

Sixth man back in role?

Tonight, Game No. 26, could be called the re-start of the season for the Mavs. It appears this could be the night that Eddie Jones returns to the starting lineup and Jason Terry heads back to the bench as the sixth man, where he really thrived earlier in the season.

But, this is the plan Avery Johnson's wanted all along. Now we'll see if it has legs. For Terry's part, he's continuing to be all about team and ready to do whatever it takes.

"I'm ready for whatever role they put me in. I embrace it," Terry said Monday morning. "You've got to go out there with a passion and a love for the game, especially where we're at now as a team, everyone's healthy now. We really want to put this thing together and get a good rhythm."

As far as tonight being the time Johnson reverts back to the opening-night lineup, Terry said: "You never know. Just keep your eyes open, stay prepared. We'll see, just don't be surprised."

-- Jeff Caplan