ESPN

It’s playoff time. In the recent past, that’s often meant Mavericks fans, including their owner, ranting about refereeing.

The Mavericks broke the Curse of Danny Crawford last postseason, winning three of four games officiated by the official many fans held responsible for the Mavs losing 16 of the previous 17 playoff games officiated by him.

Crawford’s assignment to the Game 2 of the Mavs’ first-round series sparked a nationwide controversy. But nobody was talking about Crawford after he worked Game 4 of the West finals, when the Mavs’ rallied from 15 down in the fourth quarter to win in Oklahoma City.

And the Mavs won in Los Angeles with 2006 Finals villain Bennett Salvatore blowing a whistle.

Recent history suggests that there will be some good, ol’ complaining about officiating from the Mavs during this series with the Thunder. Or perhaps it’s just a coincidence that the Mavs’ two most noteworthy outbursts about officiating this season occurred the last two times they played the Thunder.

The NBA office hit the Mavs for a total of $135,000 after those games. Those fines:

*Cuban got hit for $75,000 after ripping the ref crew of Ron Garretson, Michael Smith and Mark Ayotte to ESPNDallas.com after the Mavs’ Feb. 1 home loss to the Thunder.

"Look, I haven't said a whole lot about the officiating in a long, long time, but I haven't seen it this bad in a long, long time," Cuban said. "Guys miss calls; that's part of the game. You're not always going to have a great crew. Officials have got to learn that's part of the game.

"But these were officials that have been part of the league for years, and it was just off-the-charts bad. And, if no one ever says anything, nothing ever happens."

*Carlisle got fined $35,000 for kicking the ball in the stands while frustrated by a no-call in that game, drawing his second technical foul of the night.

“That can’t happen,” Carlisle said after opening his postgame press conference by apologizing for the incident. “My intent was not to kick it into the stands, I was trying to kick it to the referee, but I’m not a very good kick. But that can’t happen; the officials made the right call on that one. That’s a regrettable situation.”

*Jason Kidd got fined $25,000 for complaining about the defending champions getting a season-long lack of respect from the referees after the Mavs’ March 5 loss in Oklahoma City.

The Thunder had a 33-10 advantage in free throws attempted with the crew of Tom Washington, Brian Forte and Pat Fraher calling the game. The Mavs were especially upset about a critical, questionable foul call on Ian Mahinmi that sent Serge Ibaka to the line for the go-ahead free throws with 46.2 seconds remaining.

"We don't get the benefit of the whistle," said Kidd, who infamously called a crew that included Washington “the three blind mice” after a one-point loss to the Pistons while playing with the Nets in 2006. "I don't think we're looked upon as champions, but that's a whole other story. Dirk [Nowitzki] should live at the line if they would call it the way it's supposed to be. But he doesn't."

On a related note, the Game 1 officiating crew will be Joey Crawford, Tony Brothers and David Guthrie with Bennie Adams serving as the alternate.

Jason Kidd will rest during the Mavs' regular-season finale, which means that he'll fail to record a triple-double in a season for the first time in his 18-year career.

Kidd came within one point of a triple-double earlier this month, when he had 10 rebounds and 12 assists in a win over the Golden State Warriors. His 107 career triple-doubles rank behind only Oscar Robertson and Magic Johnson in NBA history and are more than the combined total of the next four active triple-double leaders (LeBron James, Grant Hill, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett).

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Kidd's 17 consecutive seasons with a triple-double is by far the longest such streak in NBA history. Next on that list: Johnson (12), Robertson (11), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (10) and Larry Bird (9).

Jason Kidd will not play tonight against the Trail Blazers, coach Rick Carlisle said during his pregame interview on ESPN Dallas 103.3.

This is a scheduled rest for Kidd, not a setback after a four-game layoff due to a strained right groin that had bothered him all season.

The Mavs started a stretch of seven games in 10 days last night against Golden State, when Kidd had nine points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists. The Mavs did not want to risk Kidd playing three games in four nights immediately after his return.

Carlisle said Kidd would play Sunday against the Lakers and a decision would be made afterward after his availability for Monday's game against the Jazz.

Our weekly look at which Mavs' stocks have risen and fallen the most:

STOCK UP
Jason Kidd – The 39-year-old point guard, who has had a terrible season physically and statistically, has looked like the Kidd the Mavs need in his two games since he returned from a four-game layoff to rest and rehab a strained right groin that had bothered him all season. He’s quicker and more explosive and is playing more aggressively than he has been all season. He put up a seven-point, seven-assist, six-rebound, two-block, one-steal line in 22 minutes in Tuesday’s win over the Kings. He followed that with a better performance against the Warriors, coming within one rebound of a triple-double while dishing out 12 assists and getting three steals and two blocks in 33 minutes. The question now: Can Kidd keep it up during a stretch of seven games in 10 days that started last night?

STOCK DOWN
Lamar Odom – One more time, for old times’ sake. Maybe the most underachieving season in NBA history came to a premature (yet too late) end after Odom’s halftime confrontation with owner Mark Cuban, who finally got sick of Odom’s chronic unprofessionalism and lack of commitment after watching the forward play four lifeless minutes against Memphis, hours after Odom was late to a team meeting. Odom left Dallas on Tuesday wearing a T-shirt from his clothing line that was purple and featured a gold drawing of the Larry O’Brien Trophy on the flight home to L.A. It was classic Khloe’s little Lam Lam: passive-aggressive, self-promoting and Lakers-loving.

DALLAS -- Jason Kidd sprinted back in transition, jumped and swatted 6-foot-11 Donte Greene and swatted the ball off the backboard.

“I think I surprised both of us,” Kidd said.

What a pleasant surprise it was for the Mavs to see Kidd as spry as he’s been since the playoffs in his return from a four-game layoff to rest and rehab a strained right groin that had been nagging him all season.

Kidd had six points, seven assists, six rebounds, two blocks and one steal in his 22-minute stint in the win over the Kings. No, really, he had two blocks -- a third of his previous season total.

“For a guy that’s been out 10 days, it’s remarkable how he comes back and plays,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “Almost always plays well the first game back and has a real impact. It’s a sight for sore eyes to see him out there and see him moving well, not be in pain.”

There was certainly reason to wonder whether the 39-year-old Kidd would be able to come back and establish himself as an impact player in time to make a difference in the Mavs’ fight for a playoff berth, much less a postseason run.

After all, Kidd has missed 15 games this season while dealing with a variety of geezer ailments: back, calf and groin strains. And he’s averaging career lows in points (5.9), rebounds (4.0) and assists (5.2).

Kidd’s numbers against the Kings were encouraging considering that his minutes were limited, as the plan was to sit him the entire fourth quarter. His relative quickness and explosiveness was especially exciting to the Mavs.

“When somebody comes back off of injury, you don’t really look at the basketball he plays,” Dirk Nowitzki said. “You look at the movement. I thought he moved well. He actually drove a couple of times, he had a spin move going to the cup, he had a blocked shot, which I haven’t seen basically since he’s been here.”

Dirk laughed at that last little jab, but the Mavs certainly aren’t joking about the importance of a fresh, rested, healthy Kidd with the season on the line.

Ideally, Kidd could have gotten some rest down the stretch. However, the Mavs don’t have that luxury while battling for a playoff spot. Carlisle will carefully manage Kidd’s minutes in the upcoming stretch of seven games in 10 nights, but the Mavs need their leader during crunch time.

Kidd feels as ready as he has all season.

“Overall, this is probably the best I’ve felt,” Kidd said. “Saying that, I just wanted to be aggressive, get the ball in the paint, make some things happen and get a win.”

The Mavs need the wins to keep coming. It’s sure help if their gray-haired point guard can continue resembling the Kidd from his golden-haired days.

DALLAS -- Jason Terry has a lot of company in terms of Mavericks in contract years, a group that includes point guard Jason Kidd.

Kidd understands Terry's point about feeling like he's auditioning for 29 other teams every night, but that isn't quite the case for Kidd.

"Nah, I’ve just got a handful of teams," Kidd deadpanned, dropping a pretty strong hint that he'll only consider contenders as a 39-year-old free agent this summer.

The simple fact is that there's only one Maverick who has job security past this summer. That, however, is not a concern to Kidd.

"Just like last year, we had a lot of guys who were free agents and you see the success or reward that they got from other teams," Kidd said. "That goes for everybody. You can probably exclude Dirk from that audition, but everybody’s out here auditioning for other teams because you never know who needs your skills or who’s going to pay you the money that you’re looking for.

"So I agree with Jet, but I’m in a different bracket. I’m in the lower end with the age group. Who needs an older guy?"

Most of the Mavs have to balance their individual business interests with the ultimate team goal of repeating as NBA champions. Kidd points out that those aren't mutually exclusive pursuits.

"You win. You go out there and play hard," Kidd said. "The guys that went out there and played hard for us last year and weren’t playing for themselves got rewarded. That’s the way we have to approach it."

If you think Jason Kidd was surprised by his $25,000 fine, you’re greatly underestimating the savvy of one of the smartest players in NBA history.

Kidd had to anticipate a fine coming when he declared that the Mavs don’t get the respect from the refs that they deserve as defending champions and ripped the officiating crew’s critical foul call on Ian Mahinmi after Monday night’s loss in Oklahoma City.

It was simply a matter of whether the fine would be worth it. The early results indicate that Kidd got a heck of a bargain.

Maybe it’s just a coincidence that the Mavs shot 30 free throws the next night, but it’s hard to believe Kidd’s comments didn’t have some impact on the officials, at least subconsciously.

You could argue that the Mavs attacked more aggressively, but the stats are pretty startling. Playing their fourth game in five nights and sixth game in eight nights, the Mavs attempted their most free throws since a Dec. 30 win over the Raptors. They shot six more free throws than they had in their previous two losses combined. And they shot about 150 percent more free throws than their average.

Mark Cuban, whose measure rant after the Mavs’ previous loss to the Thunder cost him $75,000 (plus a matching charitable donation), has learned to pick his spots to rip the refs over the years.

Rest assured that Cuban still gets heated about missed calls on a regular basis, but he’s become much more cost efficient with his complaints. Plus, by being selective, it’s much more likely for his comments to be listened to and comprehended by the officials and league office instead of just dismissed as white noise.

Now, consider how much more impact those kind of comments have when they’re coming from Kidd, who rarely strays from the politically correct path while talking to the media. He hadn’t been fined by the league for criticizing refs since his classic “three blind mice” rant in 2006.

Kidd made a calculated decision to play the Rodney Dangerfield card with the refs this week. It seemed to pay immediate dividends.

If that continues to be the case, a man who has earned more than $170 million in NBA salary might have just made the smartest $25,000 investment of his life.

DALLAS – It will take extreme circumstances for Jason Kidd to be pushed past the 30-minute limit.

Even more extreme than his two primary backups not being available.

Delonte West will miss several weeks due to a fractured and dislocated right ring finger, and Rodrigue Beaubois is still away from the team while grieving his father’s unexpected death. That means the Mavs must get at least 18 minutes of point guard play per night from the duo of Dominique Jones and Jason Terry.

Jones and Terry aren’t pure point guards by any stretch, but the Mavs are willing to live with their mistakes to save wear and tear on Kidd’s legs.

“We want to be vigilant about this,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “You never say never, but right now we’ve been pretty consistent with it.”

They’ve been extremely consistent with it. Kidd is averaging a career-low 28.3 minutes per game. His minutes totals since returning from a strained right calf: 27, 31, 26, 22, 30 and 28. The 31-minute stint came in the double-overtime win over the Trail Blazers, when Kidd sat out the second OT.

DALLAS -- The Mavericks came dangerously close Monday to falling victim to a fourth game-ending, buzzer-beating shot -- and second by the Clippers -- after Jason Kidd threw the ball away with less than 10 seconds to play, but Caron Butler's open 3-point attempt skipped off the rim.

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"We got a little lucky at the end," Dirk Nowitzki said. "I think earlier in the season that shot would have gone in for sure. But now, if you’re on a little roll, stuff like that bounces your way."

Mavs coach Rick Carlisle calls it having the basketball gods on your side, and the way to get them on your side, Carlisle has said, is to please them by playing all aspects of the game consistently with a hard-nosed disposition.

Back on Dec. 29 when Kevin Durant threw in the first buzzer-beater from 27 feet away to drop Dallas to 0-3, Carlisle said the basketball gods were not on the Mavs' side. Apparently the gods have enjoyed the team's overall effort and rewarded it during its four-game win streak.

But, what did happen on that near-fatal turnover coming out of the 20-second timeout and Kidd inbounding in the backcourt in front of the Mavs bench?

Chris Paul made a 3-point shot to cut Dallas' lead to 94-92 with 17.8 seconds to go. With the shot clock turned off, the Mavs inbounded and six seconds later called a 20-second timeout in the backcourt with 11.9 seconds to go. Delonte West subbed in for Brendan Haywood and the Mavs set up for the inbounds play.

"We only had two seconds to get [it] across," Nowitzki said. "When the shot clock is turned off, most people don’t see that, but we only had two seconds to get it across because we had a couple dribbles in the backcourt. Plus, we couldn’t advance the ball because we already dribbled so we had to take the ball out in the backcourt and only had two seconds to get it across."

That's why Kidd heaved a pass into the frontcourt in the direction of Shawn Marion and West. Realizing the Mavs had little time to advance the ball, the Clippers had the pass well-defended, deflected it and Paul gained possession. He bounced a one-hopper ahead to Butler on the right wing. Butler had an open look, but he couldn't connect for his sixth 3-pointer of the game.

"Hey, we dodged a bullet there," Carlisle said. "To get on a winning streak of any sort in this league, you’ve got to have a little good fortune. But, you get the good fortune when you’re doing the other things hard and playing hard enough to get luck going your way a little bit."

DALLAS – At first glance, a backcourt featuring Jason Kidd and Vince Carter appears to be an ill fit at their advance age.

After all, somebody has to guard all the good point guards the Mavs will see. And almost all of the Western Conference contenders have one: Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook, the Clippers’ Chris Paul, San Antonio’s Tony Parker, Denver’s Ty Lawson, Houston’s Kyle Lowry.

Shawn Marion can solve a lot of problems, including the mismatch issues with the geezer guard combo. At least, that's what the early evidence indicates.

We got a glimpse of how the Mavs might approach the opposing point guard problem on Friday night, when Kidd returned from a six-game absence. The Mavs stuck with Carter as the starting shooting guard instead of putting Delonte West in that spot and gave Marion the assignment of defending rookie sensation Ricky Rubio.

“This is nothing new,” coach Rick Carlisle said of Marion’s ability to be a defensive problem-solver regardless of position. “He’s been one of the most versatile players that we’ve had at both ends of the floor in the game in the last decade. It helps. He’s always up for those kinds of challenges, too.”

It worked wonderfully against the Timberwolves. Rubio had a so-so outing, scoring 10 points on 2-of-8 shooting and dishing out eight assists. Meanwhile, Kidd keyed a Mavs win, as Dallas outscored the Timberwolves by 23 points in Kidd’s 27 minutes.

Marion’s ability to defend point guards keeps Kidd’s lack of elite quickness from being exposed and limits the wear and tear on the 38-year-old. It allows the Mavs to continue starting Carter, who has by far the team’s best plus-minus this season, and ensures that West will be available to play all the backup point guard minutes.

It worked against Rubio. What about against an elite point guard like Paul? We’re about to find out.

This was the kind of moment when the Mavs need Jason Kidd the most.

Things had gone haywire for the visitors at the Target Center. The Timberwolves had gone on a 19-5 run to slash the Mavs’ lead to three points with a little more than 10 minutes remaining in the game.

Re-enter Kidd, who made his return Friday night after missing the previous six games with a strained right calf.

Kidd calmly hit a 3-pointer on his first possession after checking back into the game. He had four assists over the next three-plus minutes, finding Jason Terry for a midrange jumper, Dirk Nowitzki for a layup, Terry for a 3 and Nowitzki for a 3.

Suddenly, the Mavs’ lead had swollen back to 13. Ballgame.

“He got us home,” coach Rick Carlisle said of Kidd. “It’s great to have him back.”

Kidd had eight points, 10 assists, eight turnovers, five rebounds and two steals in his first game since Jan. 27. His most important stat: The Mavs were plus-23 in his 27 minutes during the 104-97 win.

A few more notes from the Mavs’ victory in Minnesota:

1. Dominance doesn’t satisfy Dirk: The big German’s groove continued with a season-high 33-point performance, an impressive display of offensive efficiency. Nowitzki, whose season scoring average has risen more than two points over the last four games, hit 11 of 19 shots from the floor and four of seven from 3-point range. “I’m still mad that I missed three free throws,” he said, noting his 7-of-10 night from the line.

2. JET makes buckets count: Terry has so much swagger he never believes he’s slumping. Not even after missing 18 of 22 shots on a road trip. Terry broke out of that funk with three buckets -- a midrange jumper, a floater and a 3-pointer -- in a span of 2:10 during the Mavs put-'em-away run. Terry finished the game with 16 points on 7-of-21 shooting. “His start was a bit of a struggle, but he hung in there,” Carlisle said.

3. Boys of summer ’10: It was quite an interesting night for the guards from the Mavs’ last summer league squad. Rodrigue Beaubois didn’t get off the Mavs’ bench, watching Kidd and Delonte West split the playing time at point guard in Kidd’s return. Dominique Jones was inactive for the Mavs. And Jeremy Lin scored 38 points and dished out seven assists to lead the Knicks to a win over the Lakers.

Will he or won't he?

We still don't know following Friday's morning shootaround. Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle continues to keep Jason Kidd's status under wraps. Carlisle said he'll let everyone know prior to tonight's game at Minnesota if the 18-year veteran point guard will make his return, ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM's Chuck Cooperstein reports.

Kidd has missed the last six games with a strained right calf. Dallas is 3-3 without him during this stint and 7-3 overall with Kidd out of the lineup.

After stringing together a few wins after the Dallas Mavericks stumbled to a 1-4 start following an embarrassing 15-love skunking to end their New Year's Day loss at Minnesota, Jason Terry had this to say:

"The loss to Minnesota was our wake-up call. Any time you lose to that ballclub it's not a good thing, not when you're a championship team."

And who could really blame him? That Minnesota win halted a nine-game losing streak to the Mavs, who had won 18 of the previous 19 meetings.

And then three weeks later those Wolves did it again, only in Dallas, thumping the Mavs by 15 points to spoil their championship ring celebration. A three-game win streak followed for the Mavs, but there were no proclamations about how losing to a perennial doormat served as another wake-up call.

Well, here we go again with a third and final meeting of the regular season between these two clubs, and Dallas is fully aware that these Wolves are young and hungry and pretty darn good. In fact, this one in Minnesota -- 13-10 since an 0-3 start -- is a pretty important one for both squads.

Dallas just snapped a three-game skid at Denver and must play Portland on Saturday and the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday and Denver again on Wednesday. Minnesota is at .500 for a second time and would close to within one game of Dallas in the standings as it fights to remain a legitimate playoff contender heading to the halfway point of the season.

It should be fun.

Records: Mavs (15-11); Timberwolves (13-13)

When: 7 p.m.

Where: Target Center

TV: FSSW

Radio: ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM; 1270 AM (Spanish)

What to watch: J.J. Barea wasn't healthy with a bum hamstring the first time the Mavs played up north on New Year's Day, but he have it a go and scored eight points in 17 minutes. The hamstring (and ankle issues) kept Barea out of the Jan. 25 game at Dallas when he picked up his championship ring and then took a seat on the bench in a suit. Now, the diminutive guard is raring to go against his old mates in an important game for both teams. He's been back for five games and is coming off his best game of the season Wednesday night at Memphis with 17 points -- 6-of-8 from the free throw line -- and six assists in 23 minutes. Barea will be looking to remind his former team how to break down a defense.

Key matchup: Nikola Pekovic vs. Brendan Haywood/Ian Mahinmi/Brandan Wright
Surprised? Yeah, well Pekovic has been just that of late. Consider that in the first matchup on Jan. 1, he didn't get off the bench. In the second meeting, he had 13 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field and 5-of-5 from the free throw line, plus six rebounds. In his last five games, the 6-foot-11, 290-pounder from Montenegro has scored in double figures in each, has two 20-plus scoring games and three double-doubles while averaging 16.8 points and 10.2 rebounds. In a nutshell, the three-headed monster Rick Carlisle talked about at the center position has to enforce the middle and can't let Pekovic join the double-double lineup with All-Star Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio.

Injuries: Mavs -- G Jason Kidd (right calf strain) is questionable. Timberwolves -- C Darko Milicic (sprained right ankle) is questionable.

Up next: Portland Trail Blazers at Mavs, 7:30 p.m., Saturday

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 -- 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.