Mavs' road to halfway point: Murderer's Row
The schedule turns brutal, with 11 of the next 15 opponents sporting records at or above .500. Considering more than half the league is below .500, this 15-game stretch is truly a Murderer's Row. Eight games are at home, including the first four. One of the non-.500 teams, Memphis, has already defeated Dallas and two others, Sacramento and Detroit, lost to the Mavs by a combined seven points.
At 19-7 and riding a five-game winning streak, the Mavs can feel pretty good about themselves heading into this stretch. They're as healthy as they've been, Dirk Nowitzki is playing at an MVP level and the club is playing hard-nosed defense, if not for a full 48 minutes, then when it really counts in crunch time.
"The important thing now is even though we’ve won five in a row, is to stay hungry, not let any complacency creep in and try to work to maintain this momentum and carry it forward," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. "That’s a challenge in this league. The teams that can do that end up being special teams, and the ones that can’t end up being average or also-rans."
Here's a look at the Mavs' next 15 games:
vs. Houston
vs. Cleveland
vs. Portland
vs. Memphis
@ Denver
@ Houston
@ Sacramento
@ L.A. Lakers
vs. Detroit
@ San Antonio
vs. Utah
vs. L.A. Lakers
vs. Oklahoma City
@ Toronto
@ Boston
Jeff Caplan
ESPNDallas.com
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Jeff Caplan
Jeff Caplan joined ESPNDallas.com in December 2009. Jeff covers the Mavericks, Rangers and colleges. He has a wealth of experience in the area, covering multiple beats in his 11-plus years with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Tim MacMahon
Tim MacMahon joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009. Tim covers the Cowboys and Mavericks. He has covered the local sports scene from high schools to colleges to pros during his six-year tenure at The Dallas Morning News. MacMahon is a graduate of UNT.
Marc Stein
Marc Stein began writing for ESPN.com in 2000 and signed on full-time in 2002 as Senior NBA Writer. He also makes regular appearances on "SportsCenter," "NBA Shootaround," "NBA Fastbreak," "NBA Coast To Coast," ESPNEWS, ESPN "First Take" and ESPN Radio.
Jeff "Skin" Wade
Jeff Wade joined ESPNDallas.com in November 2009. He is one half of "The Ben & Skin Show," heard weekdays from 9a-12p on 103.3 FM ESPN, and also works as sideline analyst for the TV broadcast of all Maverick home games.
103.3 FM ESPN PODCASTS
Play Podcast ESPN's Stephen A. Smith chimes in on the Dallas Mavericks' season, their free agency plans and more.
Play Podcast Mike and Mike join Ben and Skin to discuss Jerry Jones' window and the Mavs future. They don't see Dirk Nowitzki leaving even if the Mavs miss out on the dream of Deron Williams or Dwight Howard.
Play Podcast Mavs F Dirk Nowitzki says he's too old to stay with a rebuilding franchise but couldn't imagine himself leaving the city of Dallas.
Play Podcast Is the Dwight Howard to the Mavs dream alive? Dwight still wants out of Orlando and it could open the door for the Mavs to put a proposal together.
Play Podcast Mavs guard Delonte West dishes on his desire to return to the Mavs, his relationship with Lebron James and how he ended up hanging out with Dez Bryant over the weekend.
Play Podcast Ben and Skin discuss the three most important figures for the Rangers, Mavs, and Cowboys. Who is the most vital to the ultimate success of each organization?
TEAM LEADERS
| POINTS | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Dirk Nowitzki
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| OTHER LEADERS | ||||||||||||
| Rebounds | S. Marion | 7.4 | ||||||||||
| Assists | J. Kidd | 5.5 | ||||||||||
| Steals | J. Kidd | 1.7 | ||||||||||
| Blocks | B. Wright | 1.3 | ||||||||||
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