Earl K. Sneed, Mavs.com
Possible playoff preview in Rip City
Dallas Mavericks (47-24) at Portland Trail Blazers (42-29)
The Dallas Mavericks don't expect to finish too many games without Dirk Nowitzki on the court. But if the Mavericks have to, as they did in Tuesday's 106-96 home win over the Los Angeles Clippers, then they know they're in good hands with Jason Kidd.
With Nowitzki ejected for just the third time in his career at the 9:16-mark of the third quarter, Kidd celebrated his 37th birthday by festively scoring a season-high 26 points, dishing out 12 assists and grabbing six rebounds to lead the Mavs to the W. The 10-time All-Star also connected on 6-of-11 from 3-point range, the most he's tallied from behind the arch in a game this season.
"With Dirk out, I thought I'd play Dirk," Kidd said. "I didn't want a bad birthday, so I was going to take the blame if we lost with my offensive output."
(Photo by Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images)
"I thought (Kidd) willed the team with his energy and his enthusiasm," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said of the future Hall of Famer's performance. "He got guys engaged and it wasn't just playmaking -- it was shotmaking, it was assists, it was defensive plays, it was giving guys confidence out there."
Now the Mavericks will once again need Kidd at his best, with Nowitzki back in action, against the Portland Trail Blazers at the Rose Garden to start a two-game road trip.
As the two teams battle for playoff positioning, it is possible that the Mavs and Blazers could meet in an opening postseason series. If that's the case then the Mavericks would really like to make a statement, after dropping the first two games to the Blazers this season at the American Airlines Center by a total of six points.
"We haven't beat them all year, so this is a big game for us," sixth man Jason Terry said of the matchup.
Big game is right.
The Blazers have won eight of their last 10 games and four straight at home. But Portland still only sits in the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Meanwhile, the Southwest Division-leading Mavericks enter Thursday with the two seed, but they are locked in a dogfight with the Denver Nuggets for the second spot in the standings. With the contest against the Blazers and Saturday's road game against the Golden State Warriors, the squad is doing its best not to look ahead to Monday night's date at home against the Nuggets.
"Looking at Golden State and then Denver - so a big three-game stretch for us and we want to win them all," Terry added.
But winning all three games starts with slowing down a Portland squad that has out-executed the Mavericks down the stretch of the first two meetings. In the Mavs' 85-81 loss on Dec. 22, it was Brandon Roy that torched the Dallas defense for 10 of his team-high 23 points in the fourth to lead the Blazers to the victory. That was nothing compared to Andre Miller's career-high 52 points against the Mavs, with Roy sidelined due to a hamstring injury, to help the Blazers to a 114-112 overtime win on Jan. 30.
Miller's performance was the third-best by any scorer against the Mavericks in franchise history, and his 22 made field goals is an American Airlines Center record."Guys in this league, when they get in a groove, they can have special nights like that," Carlisle said of Miller's night. "We tried a lot of different guys on him...He played a phenomenal game. Guys like him get the rolls. A lot of those hung on the rim and went in. So, you have to give him his due. It was a phenomenal effort. We obviously didn't do a good job on him."
Now the Mavericks try to do a better job defensively on Miller and Roy, coming off of a fourth quarter performance that held the Clippers in check. Dallas outscored L.A. 30-19, holding the Clippers to just 5-of-22 shooting in the final quarter. According to Kidd, the defense will once again be the key come Thursday night.
"We're a pretty good team when we get defensive stops," the veteran point guard said.
Beginning a two-game expedition on the road, the Mavs travel to meet the Blazers in front of a national audience. The game will be televised nationally on TNT, airing at 9:30 p.m. CT.
The Mavericks return to the American Airlines Center on Monday night when they host the Nuggets. The squads have split the first two games of the season series. That matchup will air nationally on NBA TV and locally on KTXA 21 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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