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DENVER – At some point, the Mavs need to figure out how to pack Jason Terry’s jumper when they board their team jet.

It’s never been a problem in the past. Terry’s road numbers aren’t far off his home production throughout the course of his career.

However, Terry has been terrible away from the American Airlines Center this season. He’s averaging 11.6 points on .336 shooting on the road, compared to 17.5 points on .520 shooting at home.

“It’ll balance out,” Terry said after scoring only five points on 1-of-9 shooting in Wednesday’s win over the Nuggets at the Pepsi Center. “I’m not even worried. The only thing that matters right now is W’s anyway. It happens.”

It apparently is of some concern to Terry’s longest-tenured teammate, who has been known to offer brutally honest assessments of Jet’s performance.

“Dirk’s on me,” Terry said. “That’s the good thing. When the big boy says something, then I usually answer the call, so hopefully against Minnesota, I’ll break out.”

Dirk Nowitzki hasn’t called Terry out publicly. On the court, however, Dirk has hollered: “C’mon, Jet! Whatcha waitin’ on?”

You might recall the last time Nowitzki called for Terry to step up his game. It came after Jet was invisible down the stretch of Game 3 of the NBA Finals, something that had been a trend in the series to that point.

Terry responded by scoring eight points in the fourth quarter of a Game 4 comeback win, followed by efficient 21- and 27-point performances as the Mavs finished off the Heat to claim the franchise’s first title.

Jeremy Lin took the 2010 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas by storm. He became an instant star after holding his own going head-to-head with the Washington Wizards No. 1 pick John Wall.

Lin was playing for the Dallas Mavericks, whose president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson was the lone NBA executive to offer the impressive guard from Harvard a chance to show what he's got in the annual five-game summer showcase in the desert.

Lin, now with his third team and suddenly blowing away the league and lighting a spark under the New York Knicks, actually outplayed Rodrigue Beaubois and Dominique Jones at point guard that summer and quickly became the talk of the tournament. So much so that Nelson and the Mavs offered the 6-foot-3 long shot a one-year guaranteed contract.

Lin turned it into two years from his hometown Golden State Warriors.

"When we offered him the one-year guarantee we felt like he was ours, but there's no place like home," Nelson said Thursday during an appearance on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM's Ben & Skin Show. "I’m just always attracted to smart point guards. Jason Kidd and Stevie Nash and J.J. [Barea], they’ve all got their individual slants; J.J. is a little bit more of a scoring point guard, obviously a guy like Jason is a once-in-a-lifetime-type Hall of Famer, but with Jeremy I really, really liked the way he saw the game. He was kind of a stock that really hadn’t been exposed very much at Harvard."

Golden State wasn't long for Lin after he played mostly on their D-League team. The Warriors waived him on Dec. 11 and the Houston Rockets signed him three days later. Two weeks later he was a member of the New York Knicks, a team desperate for a competent point guard and one coached by Mike D'Antoni, an offensive mind who had done some pretty good work with a particular two-time MVP point guard in Phoenix.

Lin finally got his shot with the Knicks and he's been an instant smash with "Linsanity" just one slogan born from his remarkable three-game run in which he's averaged 25.3 points and 8.3 assists while leading New York to only its second three-game win streak of the season -- and with Carmelo Anthony injured and out of the lineup.

The Mavs' plan for Lin was to sign him and let him develop with their D-League affiliate, the Texas Legends, in Frisco. Dallas, of course, had Jason Kidd and Beaubois coming off an impressive rookie season.

"I’m just really, really happy to see him do well," Nelson said. "Because he’s a great kid, he’s got a great family and a really good future."

More additional background on Lin's rise at the Vegas Summer League, click here.

Our weekly look at how coach Rick Carlisle is managing the minutes of Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd during this 66-game schedule:

Dirk Nowitzki is back, baby.

"I was telling the guys that I've actually got my confidence back and my ability to move," Nowitzki said after scoring 25 points with nine rebounds in Wednesday's 105-95 win over the Denver Nuggets. “I think that was the main thing."

Whether Nowitzki's three-game surge will be enough to extend his All-Star streak to 11 in a row will be known tonight when the reserves are announced. Of greater concern to the Dallas Mavericks is that their franchise player, the reigning NBA Finals MVP is again playing like one. And when that's the case, anything is possible.

In terms of minutes, coach Rick Carlisle has clearly decided that Nowitzki can handle an uptick. Not that Carlisle is taking him to 40, but in five of his last seven games, Nowitzki has logged at least 35 minutes. In three games this past week, he's played 33, 35 and 35 minutes. Prior to the last seven games, Nowitzki played at least 35 minutes just four times.

As for Jason Kidd, he's still not back, at least not quite yet.

J-Kidd
Season averages: 28.7 mpg, 4.1 ppg, 5.1 apg, 4.5 rpg
The breakdown: Kidd said he plans to practice today and could play Friday night at Minnesota. The last time he returned from back spasms, Carlisle turned him loose for 29 minutes and then 34, 35, 34, 34, 33 and 33 minutes before he strained his right calf two minutes into the Jan. 27 game against Utah. In the nine games he played prior to his return, Kidd logged 34 or 35 minutes (and never more than 35) just three times. He's now missed six games with this injury and 10 overall.

Dirk
Season averages: 31.9 mpg, 17.6 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 2.3 apg
The breakdown: Nowitzki finally appears to be at a point where the more he plays the better he feels. That's in stark contrast to earlier this season when it seemed the more he played the more he aggravated that right knee. With his confidence flooding back, evidenced by the array of moves he's showing in recent games, Nowitzki's minutes are climbing toward 32 a game, still the lowest of his career outside of his rookie season. With eight tough games ahead leading to the halfway point of the season and the All-Star break, it wouldn't be surprising to see Dallas playing in a lot of close games and to see Nowitzki's minutes continue to trend upward.

DENVER -- Maybe this German dude has a few days left as a go-to guy after all.

It could be coincidence or perhaps it was just a matter of time, but Dirk Nowitzki has suddenly looked like himself ever since Charles Barkley declared that the best player in Mavs’ history was no longer capable of being "The Man."

Nowitzki has scored 79 points on 61.5 percent shooting in the last three games. He had 25 points on 11-of-20 shooting and nine rebounds in Wednesday’s win over the Denver Nuggets, putting up what’s pretty much been a typical performance for him over the last decade.

“All-Star performance, didn’t you think?” coach Rick Carlisle said, poking fun at the possibility that Nowitzki’s slow start could prevent him from extending his streak of All-Star selections to 11 when reserves are announced Thursday night.

Nowitzki really doesn’t care whether or not he makes the All-Star game. (Actually, he’d probably prefer to stay home and take a break during that long weekend.) His concern is only about whether he’ll be capable of leading a contender.

Any doubt that crept into Dirk’s mind during his slump has been eliminated.

“Feel good, feel good,” Nowitzki said. “You know, I’m just more confident in everything -- in the movement, in the shot, just all-around game.

“It was a long road, definitely. I was fighting an uphill battle over the first third of the season, but I feel good now. I have confidence in the leg strength again. I can make moves, I can spin, all of that stuff I need to do to get my shot off. Before that, that wasn’t the case.”

Some other notes from the win over the Nuggets:

1. Grounded Jet? Jason Terry’s road woes continued with a 1-of-9 shooting night, but Carlisle’s concern was about Terry’s health. Terry didn’t play the final five-plus minutes because of a sore hip flexor. “He’s got to get some treatment tomorrow and we’ve got to get him ready for Friday and Saturday,” Carlisle said. “It’s something that’s been bothering him the last couple of days, so that’s something we’ll have to monitor closely.” Terry certainly isn’t sounding any alarms, however. “No, no, no, no, not at all,” Terry said. “I’m good. It was just tight. Nothing to worry about at all.”

2. Wright on again: For the second consecutive game, high-flying, high-energy Brandan Wright made a big impact off the bench. Wright, who is sharing the backup big man role with Ian Mahinmi after earning more minutes, scored 10 points on 5-of-8 shooting, grabbed four rebounds and blocked a shot in 16 minutes against the Nuggets. He scored six of his points while playing the final 10:51. “We don’t run plays for him,” Carlisle said, “but he has a knack for being in the right place at the right time.”

3. Roddy B. breaks slump: Rodrigue Beaubois' play was a problem during the Mavs’ three-game losing streak. He scored a total of 13 points on 5-of-23 shooting during the skid, prompting Carlisle to challenge him to play more aggressively. Beaubois responded by scoring 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting in the first half against the Nuggets. Beaubois didn’t score in the second half, but his performance was still a positive. “Roddy’s first half was really key to our win,” Carlisle said. “Second half, he hit some rough spots, but that’s part of learning. That’s part of learning that position. He’s got to take it all in like a sponge, correct the stuff that needs to be corrected and build on the good stuff.”

DENVER -- Dallas Mavericks point guard Jason Kidd plans to practice Thursday for the first time since straining his right calf Jan. 27.

There is a possibility that Kidd, who has missed the last six games, could return Friday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“We had a good day today,” Kidd said after the Mavs’ 105-95 win Wednesday night over the Denver Nuggets at the Pepsi Center. “We’ll see how I go tomorrow in practice. Then, if I feel good, we’ll give it a shot Friday. If not, there’s no timetable right now. We just want to make sure I’m 100 percent before I come back.”

This is the first time Kidd has joined the Mavericks on a road trip since suffering the injury. He began running on a treadmill over the weekend and has significantly increased his physical workload this week.

“I’ve been running, I’ve been cutting, I’ve been shooting,” said Kidd. “Everything is responding in a positive way. We’re going in the right direction.”

The 38-year-old Kidd, who had a back injury earlier this season, has missed 10 of the Mavericks’ 26 games despite averaging a career-low 28.7 minutes per game. The Mavs (15-11) are 7-3 without Kidd, but they clearly missed their floor general during a recent three-game losing streak, especially late in close losses to the Oklahoma City Thunder and Cleveland Cavaliers.

How it happened: The Mavs are tough to beat when they’re this balanced.

Five Mavericks scored in double figures to key a relatively easy win at the Pepsi Center. The Mavs are 9-2 this season when at least five players put up double figures.

Dirk Nowitzki, who suddenly looks like a 10-time All-Star again, led the way with 25 points on 11-of-20 shooting. Vince Carter added 17 points (7-12 FG) and a season-high eight assists. The other Mavs in double figures: Rodrigue Beaubois (13 points, 5-7 FG), Shawn Marion (13 points, 5-8 FG) and Brandan Wright (10 points, 5-8 FG).

The Mavs had their second-highest scoring first half of the season, scoring 64 points before the break. Their offensive production tailed off each quarter, but the Nuggets never made enough of a run to put Dallas’ lead in serious jeopardy.

What it means: The streak is over. The Mavs avoided losing a fourth straight game for the first time this season by beating a banged-up Western Conference playoff contender. And all indications are that Nowitzki is back in All-Star form for the long haul. He has scored 79 points in the last three games, his most productive offensive stretch of the season.

Play of the game: The Nuggets were on a 12-3 run when Jason Terry penetrated and kicked to Shawn Marion in the right corner. Marion knocked down the 3-pointer to stretch the Mavs’ lead back to double digits and halt the Nuggets' momentum with seconds remaining in the first half.

Stat of the night: Nowitzki surpassed Adrian Dantley for 21st on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. Nowitzki’s 25 points gave him 23,179 for his career, two more than Dantley had. Robert Parish is next on the all-time list at 23,334 points.

DENVER -- This third quarter represented major progress for the Mavericks. They were only outscored by two points.

Hey, that’s a heck of a lot better than their post-halftime horror shows during their three-game losing streak.

The Mavs had committed more turnovers than they had made field goals in each of the previous three third quarters. They at least had a somewhat reasonable ratio in this frame, scoring 10 field goals and committing five turnovers.

The Nuggets went on a 10-0 run at one point, but the Mavs still enter the fourth quarter up nine.

DENVER -- At some point during the Mavs’ three off days, Rodrigue Beaubois regained a little swagger.

Beaubois struggled miserably during the Mavs’ three-game losing streak, scoring a total of 13 points on 5-of-23 shooting. He matched that total in the first half against the Denver Nuggets, making five of seven shots from the floor.

Beaubois’ performance fueled one of the Mavs’ best offensive first halves of the season. Dirk Nowitzki remained in a groove, scoring 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting and four other Mavs have at least five points.

But the Mavs didn’t finish the half strong, letting the Nuggets steal momentum down the stretch. Denver closed the half with a 12-6 run.

DENVER – Coach Rick Carlisle stressed that he wanted the Mavs’ point guards in attack mode, not trying to imitate Jason Kidd.

Delonte West and Rodrigue Beaubois responded in the first quarter against the Nuggets.

West has a team-high seven points on 3-of-7 shooting. Beaubois, who was scoreless in Saturday’s loss to Cleveland, knocked down a jumper and floater in the lane.

They’re among six Mavs who scored at least four points in their highest-scoring first quarter of the season. The Mavs are hard to beat when they’re balanced, as evidenced by their 8-2 record when five or more players finish in double figures.

Of course, the first quarters haven’t been the Mavs’ problem recently …

DENVER -- Mavs point guard Jason Kidd will sit out his sixth consecutive game tonight against the Denver Nuggets, but there are signs his return could come as soon as this weekend.

Kidd, who is recovering from a strained right calf, is on the road trip and went through a pregame shooting routine on the Pepsi Center court. He did not travel with the team on previous road trips while he was injured.

It’s unlikely that Kidd would return for a back-to-back, but perhaps he could practice Thursday in Minnesota to prepare to play against the Trail Blazers at home Saturday night.

Coach Rick Carlisle isn’t offering any hints.

“He’s getting better,” Carlisle said, and that’s all he offered for an official Kidd update.

DENVER -- Two of Rick Carlisle’s favorite words sum up the roles of the Mavericks’ reserve big men right now: “Be ready.”

The only certainty regarding the Mavs’ center position is that Brendan Haywood will continue to be the starter. Carlisle has explained to Ian Mahinmi and Brandan Wright that their playing time could be unpredictable.

That isn’t an excuse for a lack of production from the backup big men.

“When called upon, they have to go in there and give us energy and rebounding and the things we ask our five men to do within our system,” Carlisle said. “Sometimes there aren’t enough minutes to play everybody. And really, it’s a decision I got to make but it doesn’t mean Ian has fallen out of favor or anything like that. It just means Wright earned the opportunity the other night and played well enough to earn the opportunity to stay in the game.”

Mahinmi has been a bright spot most of the season, averaging 7.5 points and 5.3 rebounds in 20.2 minutes per game, but Carlisle opted not to play him Saturday night in Cleveland.

That wasn’t necessarily meant as a message to Mahinmi. Wright simply has produced consistently in limited opportunities, leading Carlisle to expand the high flyer’s role.

“Brandan plays above the rim better than anybody else on our team,” Carlisle said. “He has some unique abilities that help us and so does Ian. Look, we’ve got to turn our center position into one of our strengths. And for a long stretch, it was. And I still believe it is. Those guys got to be a three-headed monster for us.”

Mahinmi said he didn’t try to read anything into his DNP a few nights ago. He gets that he isn’t guaranteed minutes, but Mahinmi’s mindset isn’t changing.

“I still see myself as Brendan Haywood’s backup,” Mahinmi said. I’m going to be ready to go any time [Carlisle] calls my name.”

DENVER -- Some guy named Julyan Stone is expected to start at small forward for the Denver Nuggets tonight.

Never heard of him? Don’t feel too bad. He’s an undrafted rookie out of UTEP who has spent a good chunk of this season playing for the D-League’s Idaho Stampede.

Stone made his NBA starting debut in Monday’s loss against the Houston Rockets, filling in for shooting guard Arron Afflalo with a two-point, 1-of-5 shooting, two-rebound, one-assist performance in 20 minutes. Stone is expected to slide over to small forward against the Mavs, replacing Denver scoring leader Danilo Gallinari (severe sprained ankle) and allow Nuggets coach George Karl to keep Al Harrington and Rudy Fernandez as part of a potent bench.

Rick Carlisle’s scouting report on the 6-foot-7, 200-pound Stone: “He’s an athletic, aggressive wing player who is a capable scorer and a guy we have to respect. He’s a little like the kid Forbes who played here last year, but not as tall.”

The comparison to Gary Forbes ought to get the Mavs’ attention. Now with the Raptors, Forbes was an unknown and scored 20 points on 9-of-16 shooting in 36 minutes over two games against the Mavs in early November last season.

DENVER -- There was no update on Jason Kidd’s status after the Mavs' shootaround, so as expected the point guard duties will again be filled by Delonte West and Rodrigue Beaubois.

As much as the Mavs miss Kidd’s ability to orchestrate their offense, West and Beaubois can’t get caught up in trying to imitate the future Hall of Famer. They have to play their game, which begins with trying to put the ball in the basket.

Beaubois, in particular, got away from that in Saturday’s loss to the Cavaliers. He attempted only two shots in 20 scoreless minutes, looking like a guard who was trying not to make mistakes instead of one who was looking to make plays.

“Roddy wasn’t aggressive clearly and I got on his ass about it after the game and we’ve looked at film since,” Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said after Wednesday’s shootaround at the Pepsi Center. “Both of those guys are scoring point guards. They’ve got to always be aggressive to look to score. Otherwise, a big part of their game is missed by our team.”

Carlisle, who points out that offensive execution ranks behind rebounding and perimeter defense on his list of immediate concerns, has emphasized over the last few days that he wants the Mavs to always have an attacking mindset. That has to start with the point guards.

“It starts when we get possession,” Carlisle said. “We need to push the ball quick to try for great opportunities for our team. If we don’t have them, it preserves time on the clock for us to work the ball and keep playing. I always want our point guards to try to probe the paint and get to the rim when they can, but they’ve got to do it under control. They understand that.”

Whether they can follow the philosophy against Ty Lawson in high altitude is another matter.

DALLAS -- With Dirk Nowitzki finally turning the corner, Jason Kidd at a standstill and theDallas Mavericks threatening to become the first reigning champion in NBA history not to boast an All-Star, is there any way to know who this team is or even which direction it's headed?

The popular theory was to withhold judgment until the one-third point of the season because of the radical changes to the roster and the lockout-driven condensed schedule. But the one-third point has come and gone with no authoritative ruling to be found, and the halfway marker is quickly approaching.

Eight days ago, a nifty three-game win streak had the Mavs riding high, a season-best six games over .500. Their team game was lauded for scoring while Dirk was slumping.

Then three consecutive losses, including Saturday's blown lead at struggling Cleveland, quickly dimmed excitement levels and prompted team leaders Nowitzki and Jason Terry to openly pine for the return of their injured 38-year-old point guard, who is nursing his second injury of the season.

And so here we are at the end of a rare three-day respite with so few answers to so many questions about this team.

"I definitely didn't think we were going to lose in Cleveland," said Nowitzki, who ironically is coming off his best two-game scoring run of the season, yet the team couldn't crack 90 and lost both. "I was going to think we were going to win either OKC or Indy, but we lost those two. So it is what it is."

What is next is one heck of a 15-day, nine-game schedule leading up to the All-Star break that features only one opponent, the Jeremy Lin-revived New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, with a losing record. If ever there was a two-week stretch that could define the direction of a team, this is it.

To read the full story, click here.

The Dallas Mavericks seem to thrive when the odds are stacked against them so maybe if Dirk Nowitzki is not selected as an All-Star reserve they can use it as motivation.

Because if the Western Conference coaches leave him off the team and end his run of All-Star appearances at 10 in a row, the Mavs will make NBA history. Never before has the reigning NBA champion not been represented on the All-Star team*. Nor has there ever been a champion crowned that did not have at least one player make the All-Star team that season, ESPN Research confirmed (and that includes the ABA on both counts).

The first NBA All-Star game was played in 1951. The seven reserves for the 2012 Western and Eastern conference squads will be announced Thursday night. The All-Star Game is Feb. 26 in Orlando.

"That would be crazy," Mavs guard Jason Terry said. "Dirk has to be there. I think he will be. If he’s not, I know he needs the rest, too. I’d love to see him in the game just because he’s earned it. Some guys are grandfathered in. You’ve seen that throughout the history of the NBA. Guys like Tim Duncan, primarily his stats aren’t always what they were, but just because he’s a perennial All-Star; Shaq, same thing."

Duncan's run of 13 consecutive All-Star games is likely to come to an end. Same for Kevin Garnett's run of 14 in a row. Nowitzki's sluggish start has put his streak in jeopardy, too. He's had a two-game bounce-back, scoring 54 points on 21-of-32 shooting entering tonight's game at Denver.

The reigning NBA Finals MVP is already in a rare All-Star category. He and Boston Celtics sharpshooter Ray Allen are the only players that have made at least 10 All-Star games and have never been voted in as a starter by the fans.

This season was Nowitzki's best opportunity with longtime fan-favorite Carmelo Anthony residing in the East. But, second-year dunk enforcer Blake Griffin quickly filled the void and will start alongside Kevin Durant. Get used to that All-Star forward duo. Griffin is 22 and Durant is 23.

And now Nowitzki's run as a reserve is in jeopardy. His sagging numbers are starting to climb back up. He's averaging 17.2 points with a field-goal percentage back above 45 and a 3-point percentage that's finally back north of 20 percent. Remarkably, Nowitzki's PER -- Player Efficiency Rating, a measure of per-minute production -- is 18.8, above the league average of 15.0, although still well below Nowitzki's career standards.

The West is loaded at forward with Portland's LaMarcus Aldridge and Minnesota's Kevin Love expected to be locks as reserves. Other candidates include the Lakers' Pau Gasol, Memphis' Rudy Gay and Utah's Paul Millsap. Denver's Danilo Gallinari was in the running until he sustained a bad ankle sprain Monday that threatens to keep him out a month.

If the West coaches listen to Nowitzki, who missed four games in January to strengthen a bothersome right knee and work on his overall conditioning, they'll give him the weekend off for the first time since 2001. Earlier this week, Nowitzki said he doesn't deserve an All-Star spot.

"Averaging whatever, 15, 16 points, I don't think you should be an All-Star," Nowitzki said. "But we'll just have to wait and see. I think there is a lot of great young talent in this league that deserves to go."

*Footnote: Had the first lockout in 1998-99 not wiped out the 1999 All-Star Game, the Chicago Bulls might have become the first reigning champion not to be represented on the All-Star team. That season was the first without Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen following the dismantling of the three-time champs. The Bulls' top three players that season were Toni Kukoc, Ron Harper and Brent Barry, none of whom ever made an All-Star team.