Full-Court Press

The movie was OK, but the ending was much better

At least that was the case for the Dallas Mavericks, who survived a spirited effort from the Washington Wizards, who are so bad this year that effort is the only thing they can do well.

The Mavericks struggled for much of the game, but never to the point of being significantly behind. In the fourth quarter, they took over with Jason Kidd keying a 27-18 quarter that enabled the Mavericks to win 97-86.

Jason Terry led Dallas with 25 points, Dirk Nowitzki had 21 and Josh Howard had 17.

The surprise of the game was James Singleton, ended the game with 13 rebounds in 29 minutes of play. Singleton had played six minutes in the last nine games but earned playing time with his work in practice.

-- Jan Hubbard

A little light

The Maveicks have built a six-point lead midway through the third quarter, and once again, they are relying on their two savvy veterans Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry.

Both players have 21 points and Josh Howard has added 127. Jason Kidd is not having a good night with one point. He's missed each of his six field goal attempts.

The big surprise right now is the presence of James Singleton, who has played the fewest minutes on the team. Rick Carlisle said before the game that he watched a three-on-three game yesterday between the six players who do not get to play very much and he was impressed by the intensity of the game.

He hinted that one of the players might be rewarded, and that player must have been Singleton, who so far has 11 rebounds in 20 minutes

Meanwhile Brandon Bass appears to be the odd man out right now. He has not played so far.

-- Jan Hubbard

Not a pretty site

If Rick Carlisle was looking for something special from his team tonight,it's going to happen in the second half. The Mavericks had a nondescript first half against a renondescript team. The 4-20 Wizards have a 44-42 lead at the half and if the Mavericks lose this one, Mr. Carlisle will not be a happy camper.

-- Jan Hubbard

Quiet and easy

The Mavericks are meeting the Wizards at this moment and the crowd is going wild.

Well . . . not really. This game was originally scheduled for noon but was moved to 6 p.m. Eastern time because the Redskins are playing the Eagles nearby and the Wizards understandably did not want to compete with the dominant team in the area.

But then the NFL moved the Redskins game to 4:15 and there was no way for the Wizards to change -- so let's just say it's not a huge crowd, although there are more people in the stands than there were in New Jersey Friday night.

Meanwhile on the floor . . . Josh Howard is up to his first quarter antics again. He has eight of the Mavericks' first 10 points and the Wizards have scored only six. So the Mavericks have an early lead.

-- Jan Hubbard

Devin goes wild

Devin Harris and the Nets handed the Mavericks their worst loss of the season, winning 121-97 Friday night. Harris had 41 points and 13 assists and was simply sensational. Vince Carter added 34 points.

Jason Kidd had a good night with 17 points and 7 assists, but on this night, he was the second best point guard on the floor.

-- Jan Hubbard

Kidd not overwhelmed

Although Devin Harris is having an excelent game with 30 points late in the third quarter, Jason Kidd is also playing well for the Mavericks. Kidd has 15 points, which is already is fifth highest total in any game this season.

But the Mavericks keep having stretches of not playing well defensively. They had cut a 13-point halftime deficit to seven, but have just given up seven consecutive points. Rick Carlisle called a time out with the Mavericks trailing 83-69.

-- Jan Hubbard

Not your best atmosphere

The New York area was hit with the first major storm of the year, but it wasn't bad because the temperature warmed during the day and the snow turned to rain. It did make for messy roads and many accidents and travel was slow.

One result of the storm was that it kept a big crowd from showing up at the Izod Center. The arean was only about half full and in the first half, fans in the upper deck were told they could come downstairs and sit in empty seats, But even that didn't fill up the downstairs.

One unfortunate result was that the crowd that was on hand to welcome Jason Kidd back to New Jersey was so small that not a lot of noise was made.

Another unfortunate result is that the Nets fans are missing a heck of game by Devin Harris.

Yet a third unfortunate result is Nets minority owner Jay-Z is not here, which means his wife Beyoncé is not here, either.

-- Jan Hubbard

Think Devin is trying to prove something?

Devin Harris has 26 points at the half and the Nets are leading the Mavericks 64-51. For those of us who watched Harris play in Dallas, the show is quite entertaining. Harris has total freedom, something he never had under Avery Johnson. If Harris had attempted some of the shots he took while playing for Johnson, he would have been on the bench. He is a totally different basketball player than he was in Dallas.

Harris has hit 9 of 16 shots and 4 of 6 from three-point range. Jason Kidd has taken only six shots and hit four of them. He's also 2 of 3 from three-point range and has 12 points.

But the Nets right now are playing with much more aggression, and most of that has been generated by Harris.

Told you

So with about six and a half minutes left in the first quarter, Devin Harris already has nine points and Jason Kidd has five, but that's not the best part.

Harris just went to the rack and scooped in an underhanded shot past Kidd.

Kidd responded by dribbling the length of the floor, going by Harris and scoring a layup.

That exchange was a draw, but in the time it took to write this, Harris has hit two three-pointerws. He's already taken eight shots and made six. He has 15 points and the Nets are leading 21-15.

This one is going to be fun.

-- Jan Hubbard

Harris vs. Kidd

You know, I don't care how diplmatic the two guys try to be. Devin Harris and Jason Kidd are great athletes and competitors and they are going to try and school each other tonight.

Harris was available only briefly before the game tonight, but he met NJ reporters yesterday and talked at length about Kidd. Like Kidd, he was nothing but complimentary.

When asked about Kidd's career, Harris said: "The proof is in the pudding. Obviously when they say he’ a Hall of Famer, that’s usually what you think of, those things that he’s done. A triple-double is one of the hardest things to do; he seems to be able to do it at his disposal and what-not. He’s been a great player for quite some time. It’s an honor being requested in a trade for him, you know. Obviously what he did here is tough to live up to. I look forward to the challenge.

Harris laughed when asked if it would be nice to score 38 against Kidd. "I'd be more delighted to win than anything. Whether it takes 12 points, 38, to get a win at home is more important to us as a team; that’s what I’m more concerned with."

-- Jan Hubbard