Houston Rockets (4-2) at Dallas Mavericks (4-2)
While there is still a lot of basketball still to be played, the Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets meet with first place in the Southwest Division on the line on Tuesday night.
For Dallas, an offseason of wheeling-and-dealing has helped Dallas reverse their early-season failure from last season, when the Mavs started 2-7. In Houston's case, the Rockets have overcome the absences of Tracy McGrady (knee) and Yao Ming (foot) to sprint out to a surprisingly quick start behind hard play on a nightly basis.
(Photo by Bill Baptist/NBAE via Getty Images)
Slowing down Trevor Ariza will be on Dallas' priority list
"They don't have the two All-Stars," Mavs sixth man Jason Terry said. "When you don't have the two guys that are explosive players then your team has to play hard. If you look at their wins and losses, that's why they've played well, because they've played hard."
With the two high-profile stars out of the Houston lineup, the team has succeeded in playing balanced, well-rounded basketball. The Rockets have also transitioned into a high-octane offensive juggernaut.
"It's not that hard to predict," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. "They're going to have a bunch of guys in double figures. They're going to push the ball up very quickly and the 3-point shot is a deadly weapon for them."
"You have to be smart on offense and make sure you can get back to guard them. And you have to take away penetration and deal with the 3-point shot, which isn't easy."
One player that has emerged for the Rockets is new addition Trevor Ariza. After playing as a role player for the Los Angeles Lakers last season during their title run, Ariza has come to Houston and become a go-to scorer and lock-down defender. The forward's length on defense and his ability to knock down the three ball has fit in perfectly with Houston's new brand of play.
"With their present personnel situation, he's (Ariza) one of their main scorers. Right now he's tied for the league lead in fastbreak points with LeBron James, so that tells you something. He's shooting well over 40 percent from three, and defensively he's one of the best players in the league. He's one of many challenges that they present."
To counter Ariza, the Mavs will feature the shooting guard-small forward combination of Josh Howard and Shawn Marion. Howard, who debuted this season in the Mavs' blowout win over Toronto, is still making the transition to the shooting guard position. But while the swingman is learning to defend quicker guards, Carlisle wants Howard to stick to his strengths on the offensive end and not fall into the mold of the prototypical shooting guard.
"Josh is a veteran player, and he knows what his strengths are and he's going to play to those. Really, the two (shooting guard) and three (small forward) positions are kind of interchangeable on our team and in this league. You use the skill set that you have, you use the physical tools that you have, you use your experience and you play your game to the best of your ability. He'll do that, whether he's a two or a three," Carlisle said.
With Howard back into the fold, the Mavericks are patiently awaiting the return of forward Drew Gooden, who has been sidelined with a strained rib cage. Gooden is a game-time decision.
"We'll see where things are tonight," Carlisle said of Gooden's status. "He got through practice yesterday. He's made progress."
The Mavericks begin a stretch of five games in eight nights when they host the Rockets on Tuesday night, with the game airing on KTXA 21 and KTXA 21 HD at 7:30 p.m. CT. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling (214) 747-MAVS.
Before the game, the Mavericks and the NBA introduced the official NBA All-Star game ballot, featuring Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, Josh Howard, Shawn Marion and Jason Terry. For more on how to vote for your favorite Mavs for the All-Star game, to be held at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, visit Mavs.com.
Follow Mavs.com’s Earl K. Sneed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/EarlKSneed.
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