Earl K. Sneed, Mavs.com
Los Angeles Clippers (26-44) at Dallas Mavericks (46-24)
As the playoffs approach, the Dallas Mavericks are trying to keep from making the same mistake that a lot of veteran teams make in the final month of the season. The squad doesn't want to look ahead to mid-April just yet.
But after dropping three of their last four games, the Mavs may need to redirect their focus back to what's happening on the hardwood.
(Photo by Tim Heitman/NBAE via Getty Images)
"It's disappointing," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. "(The players) clearly have a focus problem that we must look at and fix before the postseason. And we have the ability to do it."
Now the Mavericks are in a unique position. Though they have a stranglehold on the Southwest Division, they certainly aren't happy with their recent play.
Monday night didn't make things any better. The Mavs watched a 16-point first quarter lead end in a 115-99 loss to the New Orleans Hornets. The loss snapped the Mavericks' five-game road winning streak.
"We got up 16 points and then basically called it quits," forward Shawn Marion said after the loss. "I think we just took it on the chin. We stopped everything we were doing. We got relaxed, and they got aggressive and started getting comfortable and making shots. That was basically it."
The loss was just the latest blunder since the team's 13-game win streak ended in a 34-point home defeat to the New York Knicks on March 13.
"I think the big thing is we're being inconsistent. Maybe a little bit too relaxed. We understand how important these games are," point guard Jason Kidd said.
But the Mavericks don't have much time to sit around and mope over the loss to the Hornets. Just 24 hours later the Mavericks have to play host to the Los Angeles Clippers in the second game of a back-to-back. L.A. might be the perfect remedy, entering the game losers of nine out of their last ten contests.
Still, Carlisle knows just how feisty the Clippers are capable of being, after his team escaped the Staples Center with a 93-84 win on Oct. 31. The coach is hopeful that his team won't take L.A. lightly.
"We have a quick turnaround, and everyone has to bounce back. The Clippers are a very talented and healthy team. We are going to have to do a lot better than we did (Monday night)," Carlisle explained.
But if the Mavericks are also going to take the second of three meetings between the teams then they are going to have to put together a quality 48-minute performance. It's something the team has failed to do in the past four games, according to Kidd."For the last four games, we've played one quarter each game -- we've won games because of that and lost games because of that. It's something we have to look at," the future Hall of Famer added.
The Mavs will also try to cut down on turnovers, as miscues have allowed their opposition to capitalize with easy scores at the other end. The Hornets did just that, scoring 35 points off Dallas' 20 total turnovers. It's a formula for failure.
"When you turn it over 20 times for 35 points, it's going to be hard to win a game. The Hornets took advantage of the forced turnovers they created," Carlisle said.
The Mavs will try not to make the same mistake against the Clippers.
L.A. enters the American Airlines Center with the Mavericks looking to avoid their third straight loss. The game will air locally on Fox Sports Southwest at 7:30 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 Earl K. Sneed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/EarlKSneed.
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