Earl K. Sneed, Mavs.com
Portland Trail Blazers (27-21) at Dallas Mavericks (30-16)
Saturday night's matchup between the Dallas Mavericks and Portland Trail Blazers figures to look much differently than the first time the two teams met this season.
(Photo by Glenn James/NBAE via Getty Images)
Losing a hard fought Dec. 22 contest 85-81 on their home floor, the Mavericks understand that they can not drop both home games against the Blazers. Fortunately for Dallas, the two teams look a little differently these days.
"They're different," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said of the Portland squad. "In the last eight to 10 days, they've kind of redeveloped a style."
The Blazers are certainly different because they are playing without leading scorer Brandon Roy (right hamstring), who scored 23 points in the December meeting. Roy took over that game late, scoring 10 points in the fourth quarter to help his team escape the American Airlines Center floor with a win. Meanwhile, the Mavericks have inserted guard Jason Terry into the starting lineup, getting instant scoring from last season's Sixth Man of the Year. Dallas' newly appointed starter says it is important that the Mavericks come out and send a message early on Saturday.
"For us, it's all about how we come out and play. We're a beast if we can come out and jump on a team early," Terry said.
With no Roy in the lineup, Portland has had other players step up and rally in the All-Star's absence. After battling through an early season injury-riddled stage, the Blazers are proving that they are more than a one-man show.
"They're a little different (without Roy), but they play harder," Terry said. "This is another opportunity for guys to step up in his absence...These guys are basically hired guns. They come out and shot to kill. And you never know what to expect out of them."
Still, the Blazers have dropped three straight games, and the Mavericks would love to hand them their fourth consecutive loss.
"They're a team that's going to play a precise game, not matter who they have. And you better play a precise game, both defensively and offensively, and bring the effort or they're going to be tough to play."
(Photo by Glenn James/NBAE via Getty Images)
The Mavericks will be looking to combat Portland's versatile style with a more assertive effort coming from the Dallas bench. The reserves have struggled since Terry moved to the first unit, taking with him the vast majority of the scoring from the Mavericks' second-stringers. It is certainly an area of concern for Carlisle and his coaching staff.
"We've just got to make sure that whoever is in the game, we're playing with the right level of intensity and the right disposition. With JET (Terry) in the starting lineup, it's taken a little bit of our scoring away from our bench, obviously.
"But, you know, we've got Josh (Howard), J.J. (Barea), (Drew) Gooden, Roddy (Beaubois) and a bunch of other guys sitting over there that are good players. Whoever goes in the game, we need them to play the game -- when the shots are there you step into them, when they're not you move it again...We've got to have everybody playing at a high level."
The Mavericks host Portland on Saturday night, with the game will airing locally on TXA 21, TXA HD and HD NET at 8 p.m. CT. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling (214) 747-MAVS.
For up to the minute news on the Dallas Mavericks, visit Mavs.com. Follow Mavs.com’s Earl K. Sneed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/EarlKSneed.
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