Full-Court Press

James brings a wealth of knowledge to the Mavs

LOS ANGELES -- Mike James believes his wisdom, maturity and general overall understanding of the game will be a bonus to the Dallas Mavericks.

James also believes he can be a leader in and out of the Mavs' locker room, and is ready to pitch in wherever coach Rick Carlisle puts him.

"Whether he wants me to be on the bench and be somebody that’s going to be able to help the young players, help the young guards develop, well that’s my job and I'm going to do that,'' James said. "If he wants me, when I go in the game, I've got to be ready to make plays, however that is.

"That’s mainly where I’m going to step in. Where I've been, that’s what I'm going to continue to keep doing and just be myself.''

The Mavs signed James to a 10-day contract Tuesday in hopes he can help bolster their inconsistent play at point guard. James will be in uniform Wednesday night at 9:30 -- and wearing his lucky No. 13 jersey -- when the Mavs play the Los Angeles Clippers at the Staples Center.

With that, Carlisle is optimistic James, 37, will fit in well with the rest of his players.

"There’s no substitute for experience,'' Carlisle said. "Our younger guys have been doing some good things and they’ve been making progress and they’re going to continue to make progress.

"This is just another look at a guy that might be able to help us.''

-- Dwain Price

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James signs a 10-day contract with the Mavs

LOS ANGELES -- Mike James met the Dallas Mavericks in Los Angeles today and officially signed a 10-day contract with the club this morning.

James will participate in the Mavs' practice today here in Los Angeles, and will be in uniform when Dallas (13-22) faces the LA Clippers (27-8) Wednesday at 9:30 p.m. CST.

The Mavs are expecting James to bring some stability at the point guard spot, much like Derek Fisher did during his 24-day tenure with Dallas earlier this season.

"When Fisher was here we did some really good things and it was really encouraging,'' said Donnie Nelson, the Mavs' president of basketball operations. "I think that kind of settling presence is one that's missed -- to a certain extent.

"Who knows if Mike James is going to step in and be effective in that area. But we’re going to give him an opportunity and see what he can bring to the table.''

In addition to playing in Austria, France, China and Turkey, James has made the Mavs the 11th NBA team he's played for since he joined the Miami Heat in 2001. The 6-2 playmaker played 11 games last season for the Chicago Bulls and averaged 4.8 points and 2.6 assists in 10.9 minutes per game.

In his two games with the Texas Legends of the D-League this year, James scored 37 points, grabbed two rebounds and dispensed eight assists.

James, 37, joins a very crowded point guard unit that includes Darren Collison, Rodrigue Beaubois, Dominique Jones and rookie Jared Cunningham.

By NBA rules the Mavs can sign James to a pair of 10-day contracts. After that they would have to release him or sign him for the rest of the season.

-- Dwain Price

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Mavs need to find a way to close out games

SALT LAKE CITY -- From Elton Brand's vantage point, the Dallas Mavericks can correct their losing tendencies if they learn how to close games.

"We're right there,'' Brand said following Monday's 100-94 loss to the Utah Jazz at the Energy Solutions Arena. "We're playing much better.

"We just can't close games. That's our next step.''

After a driving layup by Darren Collison, the Mavs held an 86-80 lead with 6:20 remaining in Monday's game. But the Mavs didn't score again until the 2:05 mark.

By then, the Jazz had seized control of the game by scoring 13 unanswered points to assume a 93-86 lead. That left the Mavs wondering what could have happened if they knew how to close out a game.

"Hopefully we'll go on the road and close out a few in a row,'' said Brand, who collected 11 points, nine rebounds and two blocks. "The last few games have been ours, to be honest.

"We lost them ourselves. Give the other teams credit, of course, but we had leads in the fourth (quarter) and opportunities.''

-- Dwain Price

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Nowitzki said mental mistakes hurt the Mavs

SALT LAKE CITY -- Through three quarters Monday night against the Utah Jazz, the Dallas Mavericks did a pretty effective job protecting the basketball.

At that juncture, the Mavs had turned the ball over just five times leading to only six points for the Jazz. Then came the fourth quarter -- and disaster struck.

In the fourth quarter alone, the Mavs committed six turnovers, which led to 11 points for the Jazz, who went on to defeat Dallas, 100-94, at Energy Solutions Arena. That lack of protection by the Mavs was critical in them suffering their 12th loss over the last 14 games.

"They started hacking and you have to protect the ball,'' said Dirk Nowitzki, who finished with 20 points. "It started with, I think, two turnovers.

"You just know it's coming and you have to be strong with the ball. I turned it over a few times, OJ (Mayo) turned it over twice, I think, in a row.''

Each turnover meant one less shot at the basket for the Mavs and one more shot at the basket for the Jazz.

"You've got to at least make a play and get a shot up,'' Nowitzki said. "It seems like its always coming back to the same things -- making mental mistakes.''

The Mavs did take solace in the fact that they only lost the rebounding battle, 47-45, to one of the most physical rebounding teams in the NBA.

"Defensively, I thought we battled,'' said Nowitzki, who played 32 minutes and grabbed five boards. "I thought we battled one of the toughest teams on the boards.

"We were right there all night and just down the stretch there's something always missing, unfortunately. I'm proud of the guys, how we battled -- it's just falling a bit short every time.''

And with each time the Mavs fall short, the frustrations continue to mount. But that won't deter Nowitzki, who continues to get in better condition with each game.

"I know one thing, we're going to keep on pushing, I'm going to keep on getting in better shape,'' Nowitzki said. "Coach (Rick Carlisle) is going to keep harping on the little things.

"In film session, we watched like an hour film session (Sunday) night. We're going to keep working and getting better and trying to fix it.''

-- Dwain Price

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Beaubois played a solid game

SALT LAKE CITY -- Looking for an opportunity to show that he can still be a factor for the Dallas Mavericks, backup point guard Rodrigue Beaubois played a soild floor game during Monday's 100-94 loss to the Utah Jazz.

In 18 minutes, Beaubois finished with seven points, three assists and one steal while converting 3-of-8 baskets. He also drew high praise from coach Rick Carlisle.

"I liked the way Roddy played and down the stretch decided to go with him (over starting point guard Darren Collison) and he did a good job of getting the ball places, and the ball kept moving,'' Carlisle said. "We've got two guys that are good players, and night-to-night it's going to be a (coach's) decision as to who finishes.''

Collison, by the way, played 29 minutes and had 11 points, two assists and one steal, and also was 3-of-8 from the field. But it was Beaubois who was on the floor running the Mavs' offense during the game's final 2:54 with Dallas behind 88-86.

-- Dwain Price

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Mavs lose again -- this time to Utah

SALT LAKE CITY -- The losing continued for the Dallas Mavericks.

The Utah Jazz got 27 points off the bench from Gordon Hayward and went on to defeat the Mavs, 100-94, Monday night at the Engery Solutions Arena. The Mavs (13-22) have now lost 12 of their last 14 games.

Dallas was in control early in the fourth period when it led, 86-80. But the Jazz went on a 13-0 tear to go up 93-86 with 2:18 left. From there, the Mavs got no closer than three points.

Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavs with a season-high tying 20 points.

-- Dwain Price

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Old players' minutes have increased

DALLAS -- The one negative about overtime games is that players wound up playing a lot of minutes. And that's not necessarily good for an older team like the Dallas Mavericks.

Such was the case during Saturday's 99-96 overtime loss to the Orleans Hornets at American Airlines Center.

Vince Carter played 36 minutes, Shawn Marion played 35 and Dirk Nowitzki played 34. At 30.1 minutes per game, Marion was the only one of that trio who went into the game averaging over 30 minutes a contest.

"These overtime are running our older players' minutes way up,'' coach Rick Carlisle said. "That's what concerns me.

"Vince should be at 30 and Dirk should be at 30. That's where those guys should be, but they're not, so this is where we are.''

-- Dwain Price

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Brand said Mavs fortunate they haven't been booed

DALLAS -- With the way the Dallas Mavericks have played lately, center Elton Brand knows he and the Mavs appreciate the fact that they're not based on the East Coast.

The fans in Dallas, Brand said, are much more cordial than the fans out East. In other words, had the Mavs lost 11 of 13 games while beaing an East Coast-based team, they would be hearing more than their share of boo birds.

"I was telling Dirk (Nowitzki) we have the best fans in the world,'' Brand said following Saturday's 99-96 overtime loss to the lowly New Orleans Hornets. "I appreciate all those 60-plus win seasons and the champions, because these fans are great sticking with us, because Northeast, New York, Philly we would have been booed off the court a few times for sure.''

The Mavs are 13-21 overall this season, including 0-7 in overtime games.

-- Dwain Price

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Cuban apologize to NBA fans

DALLAS -- Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban took to Twitter to voice his displeasure with the officiating following the Mavs' 99-96 loss to the New Orleans Hornets on Saturday night at American Airlines Center.

Cuban tweeted: "Im sorry NBA fans. Ive tried for 13 yrs to fix the officiating in this league and I have failed miserably. Any Suggestions ? I need help."

-- Dwain Price

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Dirk Nowitzki will start tonight

DALLAS – Dirk Nowitzki will get his first start of the season tonight at 7:30 when the Dallas Mavericks host the New Orleans Hornets at American Airlines Center.

Coach Rick Carlisle made the announcement after Saturday morning’s shoot-around.

“We’re going to start Dirk tonight,’’ Carlisle said matter-of-factly. “We just feel it’s time for him to do that.

“We have to watch his minutes and all that.’’

Nowitzki has played six games since undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right knee on Oct. 19. The Mavs are 1-5 in those games, with the 11-time All-Star averaging 10 points in 22.2 minutes per game.

Carlisle was certainly encouraged when -- on the second night of a back-to-back this past Wednesday in Miami -- Nowitzki played a season-high 29 minutes and poured in a season-high 19 points. And since the Mavs are just 13-20 and are scrambling to extend their playoff streak to 13 years in a row, they knew it was high time to get their superstar in the starting lineup.

“He just continues to do better physically and rhythm-wise,’’ Carlisle said. “Things are going in the right direction.’’

After Friday’s practice, Nowitzki said whether he starts against the Hornets was not the question.

“I finished the other game (against Miami), felt decent for the 30 minutes I was out there,’’ he said. “That’s really the major thing.

“Whether I’m starting or not really doesn’t matter.’’

Even with Nowitzki starting, the Mavs are not going to run up his minutes. And they know it doesn’t automatically mean they’re getting ready to go on a long winning streak

“Again, it’s a 48-minute proposition,’’ Carlisle said. “Starting him doesn’t guarantee anything.

“It’s just part of the process of re-integration, and we just feel like we’re at the point where it’s time to do that, and he feels the same way. “It’s a decision that’s a team decision based on where we’re at.’’

With Nowitzki starting, this will be the Mavs’ NBA-high 15th different starting lineup tonight.

-- Dwain Price

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