It's a small world after all for Mavs

It would behoove Eduardo Najera to grow three or four inches in the next eight hours.

The undersized backup center will be looking up tonight against Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom, all of whom push 7-feet or exceed it.

The Lakers' big men will have plenty of chances to go over the Mavericks whenever 7-foot starter at center Brendan Haywood is not in the game. It's going to be that way until the Mavericks get Erick Dampier back from finger surgery or bring in a short-term replacement.

"Tonight, the big challenge is their size on the inside,'' coach Rick Carlisle said. "With Damp out, we're thin on 7-footers. But you can't approach the game worrying about foul trouble. If you do, it will cut down on your aggressiveness.''