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Follow along with our experts as they tweet and chat throughout tonight's Mavs-Bulls game at the United Center.

CHICAGO -- Tonight's game, with the Mavericks having already secured a playoff spot and the Chicago Bulls hurting and in danger of losing the No. 1 seed in the East, is steeped in intrigue.

Will the Bulls' banged-up MVP Derrick Rose play? We know the Mavs' 39-year-old point guard Jason Kidd will not. Will Rick Carlisle otherwise go full-throttle with Dirk Nowitzki and the rest of his squad and test it against a rugged competitor with high stakes on the line?

"The most physical defensive team in basketball," Carlisle said, describing the Bulls, the NBA's best rebounding bunch. "It'll be good. We need that kind of game right now."

Do they?

No one wants to risk injury, and how concerned are the Mavs with seeding anyway? Remain sixth and face the Lakers, or perhaps the Clippers as a long shot. Drop to seventh and draw the Spurs or Thunder. At the same time, no one wants to roll into Chicago and get blown out by the owners of the league's best record. There's no progress in that for a team that is still just coming together.

"Play to win," said the suddenly re-emerging Vince Carter. "Whoever is on the court."

The stakes are greater for the Bulls, but for the Mavs there remains confidence, consistency and momentum to gain.

"You don't want to kind of lollygag a week before the playoffs," Nowitzki said.

Carlisle won't let his team lollygag. At the same time he will manage his players by the minutes he deems fit and not by what the game might ordinarily ask him to do, to steal an axiom from Rangers manager Ron Washington.

Dallas wants to compete, but a win, unlike for Chicago, is not top priority.

Records: Mavs (36-28); Bulls (47-16)

When: 7 p.m.

Where: United Center

TV: ESPN, FSSW

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

What to watch: Keep an eye on Carter, who has re-asserted himself since taking over minutes at small forward with Lamar Odom on team-mandated vacation. He's averaged 20 points over the last three games and has gone to the free throw line 20 times.

Key matchup: Luol Deng vs. Shawn Marion
The 6-foot-9 small forward from Sudan has been absolute workhorse this season, averaging a tick under 40 minutes a game. he's logged 40 minutes or more in seven consecutive games, but he's coming off to of his worst performances of the season, going 6-of-23 from the floor and 0-of-8 from 3-point land for a total of 13 points. Another sign that Deng could be tiring is that the 77 percent free throw shooter is 2-of-8 in his last three games. Still, the long-armed Deng will be another good challenge for Marion to sharpen himself defensively as Kobe Bryant, Manu Ginobili or Kevin Durant await in the first round.

Injuries: Mavs – G Jason Kidd (rest) is out. Bulls -- G Derrick Rose (right ankle/foot) is a game-time decision; F Luol Deng (ribs) is probable.

Up next: Mavs at Atlanta Hawks, 7 p.m., Thursday

DALLAS -- The Mavericks insist they won't be going on vacation for the next week until the playoffs start.

"We want to be playing good basketball heading into the playoffs so we're working toward that," coach Rick Carlisle said after Friday morning's shootaround. "That's the biggest thing. We'll watch the minutes, but the emphasis is going to be on hard play, continuing to trend the right way coming off a good win against Houston and, again, we just want to be very fixated on our process of being a good basketball team and being a team that can be successful in the playoffs."

PODCAST
Mavs coach Rick Carlisle dishes on the state of his team now that they've clinched a playoff spot. He also talks about Delonte West's "West willy" and why he's gone with Vince Carter over Shawn Marion in the last couple of games. Listen

Tonight's game against the Golden State Warriors, a severely depleted squad that has lost 13 of 15, should amount for an easy night for the home team that will allow for minutes to be spread up and down the roster. Consider the Warriors' probable starting five for tonight: Charles Jenkins, Klay Thompson, Mickell Gladness, Jeremy Tyler and Dorell Wright.

That should leave a well-rested Mavs team for an interesting game Saturday night at the Chicago Bulls.

The Bulls are locked in a battle with the Miami Heat for the No. 1 seed in the East, the difference between opening the playoffs against the surging New York Knicks or the spiraling Philadelphia 76ers.

Jason Kidd said the Mavs can't afford to take a laissez-faire approach into the final three games.

"That can sometimes hurt if you if you go in thinking we don’t care about these three games," Kidd said. "We want to make sure that we’re firing on all cylinders going into the playoffs, offensively and defensively, so these three games are for us to get better and that’s the way we’re going to approach it."

Records: Warriors (22-39); Mavs (35-28)

When: 7:30 p.m.

Where: American Airlines Center

TV: ESPN, FSSW

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

What to watch: This is the type of game that Brandan Wright should see a heavy workload and that means the alley-oop watch will be on full alert. The 6-foot-10 center leads the Mavs in dunks this season and considering the Warriors' depleted roster and the likely up-and-down tone this game should take, watch out below.

Key matchup: Klay Thompson vs. Shawn Marion
Who knows how many minutes the Matrix will play tonight? If the defensive player of the year candidate sticks with the opponent's most dangerous scorer, than Thompson's it. The Mavs got a taste of that last time at Golden State. He leads all rookies in 3-point percentage and in 23 games since taking over as the starting shooting guard, Thompson has averaged 18.3 points, 3.0 assists and 3.1 rebounds in 33.7 minutes.

Injuries: Warriors -- C Andrew Bogut (fractured left ankle) is out; G Stephen Curry (right ankle sprain) is out; F David Lee (strained groin/stress fracture) is out; C Andris Biedrins (mild concussion) is questionable; G Nate Robinson (right hamstring strain) is questionable. Mavs – None.

Up next: Mavs at Chicago Bulls, 7 p.m., Saturday

SALT LAKE CITY -- This is it. The final full week of the compacted 66-game regular-season schedule comes down to four games in six nights.

The Mavericks will have four days off following this week's slate before finishing off the regular season on April 26 at Atlanta, and then presumably beginning the playoffs a few days later.

The Mavs (34-27) have yet to secure a playoff spot with five games to go, but they certainly have the upper hand in getting in and finishing with the sixth seed. But nothing is guaranteed and that includes getting a win tonight at Utah, a team desperately clinging to playoff contention.

So here we go:

Today: at Utah Jazz (31-30), 8 p.m.
TV/Radio: FSSW/103.3 FM ESPN; 1270 AM (Spanish)
What to watch: The Mavs know they're going to get the Jazz's best game. They got a night off and have to win to keep their playoff hopes alive. Dallas is 2-0 against Utah but hasn't seen the Jazz since early March. The big issue for the Mavs could be fatigue after Sunday's overtime loss to the Lakers in Los Angeles. Dirk Nowitzki played a team-high 43 minutes. Jason Kidd played a season-high 39, Delonte West and Brendan Haywood each played 38 minutes and Jason Terry played 37.

Wednesday: versus Houston Rockets (32-28), 7:30 p.m.
TV/Radio: KTXA (Ch. 21)/103.3 FM ESPN; 1270 AM (Spanish)
What to watch: Another desperate team is on the docket. The Rockets ended the week Sunday with a third consecutive loss after winning four in a row. Houston gets Denver at home tonight and depending on that result and how the Mavs fare at Utah, this game could be absolutely huge just to get into the playoffs.

Friday: versus Golden State Warriors (22-37), 7:30 p.m.
TV/Radio: FSSW/103.3 FM ESPN; 1270 AM (Spanish)
What to watch: If ever there was a gimme game, this is it in the home finale. The Warriors (10-20 on the road), via trade and injury, are completely depleted. Their best healthy player might not be healthy any longer as David Lee has a strained groin and a stress reaction and could miss the rest of the season. Dallas came close to blowing a big lead at Golden State to start this current four-game road trip. If the Mavs don't win this one easily at home then they might as well pack it in for the summer.

Saturday: at Chicago Bulls (46-14), 8 p.m.
TV/Radio: FSSW/103.3 FM ESPN; 1270 AM (Spanish)
What to watch: This will be the Bulls' third-to-last game, and as they start the week with a 3 1/2-game lead over Miami for the No. 1 seed in the East, it's debatable as to whether the Mavs will see a full Bulls lineup or not. By this point, if the Mavs have not clinched a playoff spot, they could be in serious jeopardy of matching the 1999 Bulls as the last defending champ not to make the playoffs. Chicago could still be jockeying with Oklahoma City and San Antonio for best overall record, so it's hard to say at this point how each coach will approach the game.

We already know that the Dallas Mavericks are the oldest team in the NBA, boasting a mature average of 30.3 years and a starting lineup that averages 32.8 years (and Delonte West, 28, lowered that when he took over for 34-year-old Vince Carter).

But what about the tallest team in the NBA? Yes, it appears that Dallas, with its recent signing of 7-foot Chinese center Yi Jianlian, can also claim this distinction (if not in total feet and inches, which they might, than in total number of tall players). Seven -- virtually half of the Mavs' 15-man roster -- stand 6-10 or taller. Dallas is the rare team with three 7-footers (Yi, Dirk Nowitzki and Brendan Haywood), plus 6-11 center Ian Mahinmi and three 6-10 forwards and/or centers in Lamar Odom, Brandan Wright and Sean Williams.

Dallas has already shown a lineup that includes Odom, Nowitzki and Mahinmi, or darn near 21 feet of front-line players.

The league average for the number of players 6-10 or taller on a team is 4.2.

Four teams -- the New York Knicks, thanks to the addition of 7-1 center Tyson Chandler, the Orlando Magic (with five players at 6-10), the Washington Wizards and the Minnesota Timberwolves -- all have six.

Two teams -- the Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers -- have just two players at 6-10 or taller.

Six teams, including tonight's opponent, the Detroit Pistons, have five, six have three, 11 teams -- including the entire Pacific Division -- have four, but just one team stands the tallest with seven.

What does it all mean? Probably not a whole lot. Three of the Mavs' tallest players -- Yi, Williams and Wright -- are role players at best at the moment. Williams is playing for the Mavs' D-League affiliate. Wright has seen limited action of late and Yi could see his first action tonight.

However, the addition of Odom, who is still trying to find his footing in Dallas, does give Mavs coach Rick Carlisle intriguing versatility, such as using Odom to bring the ball up the floor and initiate the offense. And Haywood and Mahinmi are showing to be a nicer-than-expected combo at center. Williams and Wright do provide additional bodies to use in the middle in case of foul trouble.

So, take it for what it's worth. The Mavs have a lot of tall guys.

The Dallas Mavericks had their fun on Monday sharing a few laughs with the President. Can they get down to business on Tuesday?

With two days having passed since their last game -- an eternity in this schedule -- the Mavs have a shot to even their record for the first time against the struggling Detroit Pistons, who lost for a fourth straight time Monday night, trampled by the Chicago Bulls, 92-68. This game will be about energy and the Mavs need to bring it against a downtrodden club.

Dallas will have to do find that energy and some rhythm without point guard Jason Kidd (lower back) for a second consecutive game, and this an important one because Dallas faces a rested Boston Celtics team on Wednesday. The Celtics will have had four days off since their last game.

Records: Mavs (4-5); Pistons (2-7)

When: 6:30 p.m.

Where: Palace of Auburn Hills

TV: FSSW

Radio: 103.3 FM ESPN; 1270 AM (Spanish)

What to watch: Mavs coach Rick Carlisle has challenged Rodrigue Beaubois to bring a more determined and disciplined defensive effort on a more consistent basis. Dirk Nowitzki challenged the third-year guard to make better decisions and attack the basket. With Jason Kidd on the shelf again, Beaubois should get an opportunity to show improvement in both areas against the Pistons, a team that has trouble cracking 80 and doesn't exactly play "Bad Boy" defense. As has been stated here before, Beaubois might not be a regular rotation player with a fully healthy roster, but he will be integral throughout the season to help keep Kidd rested. Showing he can contribute now could do wonders not only for Beaubois' confidence, but for Carlisle's confidence in him.

Key matchup: Dirk Nowitzki vs. Jonas Jerebko
The second-year forward out of Sweden will have his hands full as Nowitzki looks to break out of a shooting slump that has seen him miss 17-of-22 shots in the last two games and score just 16 points. Nowitzki nearly had back-to-back single digit games for the first time since Nov. 26, 2003 when he left scoreless after seven minutes with a sprained ankle, and Dec. 10, 2003 when he returned from the injury and scored nine points in 27 minutes. Nowitzki is averaging a team-high 19.0 points, but shooting just 43.8 percent overall and 20.0 percent on 3s.

Injuries: Mavs - G Jason Kidd (lower back) is out. Pistons - F Charlie Villanueva (right ankle) is questionable; G Rodney Stuckey (groin) is questionable.

Up next: Mavs at Boston Celtics, 7 p.m., Wednesday

DALLAS -- The Dallas Mavericks' zone defense was so effective last season -- whether it was early in the year to throw a wrench at teams in crunch time or in the NBA Finals to force the more athletic Miami Heat into a bombs-away approach -- that it was widely regarded as the best in the business.

But without Tyson Chandler in the middle barking orders and with an influx of new players unfamiliar with the mechanics -- and add that assistant coach Dwane Casey, the defensive architect who called most of the sets, is now the head coach in Toronto -- one has to wonder if the zone will continue to be a part of Dallas' defensive repertoire or, at least, an effective part of it.

"Definitely, the zone is where it shows how long you’ve been together because it’s a lot of pointing and switching on the fly and matching up," Dirk Nowitzki said. "So, we’ll see how ready we are."

Dallas mastered what it called an amoeba-like, 2-3 zone that can look a lot like man-to-man coverage and used it extensively in the NBA Finals. On paper, the older Mavs couldn't match up with the Heat's athleticism and the zone proved to be a successful means to choke off the Miami offense and force 3-point shots -- six more per game on average than the Heat attempted in all three rounds of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Miami beat Dallas' zone in Game 1 with hot outside shooting (11-of-24). In fact, the two games the Heat won they shot a combined 19-of-43 (44.2 percent) from long range compared to 26-of-87 (29.9 percent) in the four losses. In the Eastern Conference finals against the Chicago Bulls, Miami averaged just 11.6 shots from 3-point range. In the NBA Finals, they took no fewer than 14 in any of the six games, and four times lofted 19 or more and once hit 30.

With Chandler out of the picture and the Mavs now starting less athletic center Brendan Haywood, and with Vince Carter replacing the tenacious DeShawn Stevenson for on the perimeter, will Dallas employ the zone Sunday, or even much at all in the early portion of the season?

“I don’t know. We’ll have to see from game to game," Nowitzki said. "Usually a zone can be a game-changer when the other team runs a play you can’t stop, when the pick-and-roll is hot or a post-up guy is hot, then you throw in the zone. But if our man-to-man is fine, which it was last year, then some games we didn’t even use it [the zone]. So it kind of just depends on how it’s going. If we have trouble guarding teams man-to-man, then we might throw it in there."

Free agency begins to get serious this week as teams can talk directly with players starting at 9 a.m. (CT) Monday.

As ESPN.com's Marc Stein reported Sunday, center Tyson Chandler plans Tyson Chandler plans to meet face-to-face this week with officials from the New Jersey Nets, Golden State Warriors and Dallas Mavericks Southwest Division rival Houston Rockets.

The Mavs have five other free agents that can also begin to meet with other suitors. One of those is DeShawn Stevenson, who has upward of a dozen teams express interest in signing the veteran, hard-nosed shooting guard. To begin the paring-down process, Stevenson will engage in a series of conference calls with interested teams throughout Monday, agent Mark Bartelstein said on Sunday. The Mavs have made their interest in re-signing Stevenson known through Bartelstein.

It's uncertain if J.J. Barea or Caron Butler will have face-to-face meetings with any of their suitors. Barea has drawn interest from the Miami Heat, the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks and Sacramento Kings, according to a source close to that situation. Butler has interest from at least a half-dozen teams, including the Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs and New Jersey Nets.

The Mavs' other two free agents, Brian Cardinal and Peja Stojakovic, will both likely be veteran minimum deals. Cardinal has a strong chance of landing back in Dallas.

Coming Christmas Day, an NBA Finals rematch featuring the Dallas Mavericks against the visiting Miami Heat.

The NBA announced the official lineup for Dec. 25, expected to be the opening day for the 2011-12 season assuming all goes as planned with the final stages of labor negotiations set to begin today and the tentative labor agreement is passed next week.

The opener is set for a 1:30 p.m. (CT) tip and will be televised on ABC.

Five games are slated for the day: The Boston Celtics play at the New York Knicks (11 a.m.,TNT), the Chicago Bulls are at the Los Angeles Lakers (4 p.m., ABC), the Oklahoma City Thunder play the Orlando Magic (7 p.m., ESPN) and the Los Angeles Clippers face the Golden State Warriors (9:30 p.m., ESPN).

The remainder of the 66-game, 2011-12 season is expected to be released on Tuesday.

Tickets for the preseason game against Oklahoma City on Dec. 18 and for regular-season games are expected to go on sale some time after the NBA releases the schedule.

It's unconfirmed whether Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle agreed to speak and play the piano for middle school students at W.G. Weiner Exploratory Arts Academy in Dallas to share his passion for the piano and music, or to lead a few more renditions of "We are the Champions."

We'll assume the former, but it sure was hard to tell.

The coach of the 2011 world champs held court Wednesday morning as sixth, seventh and eight graders packed the school's auditorium in three separate assemblies. Prior to that, Carlisle sat at a table in a small room with four student journalists that left no stone unturned.

"Were the 1986 Boston Celtics the best team that year?" asked one young journalist, clearly having done his homework, knowing that Carlisle was a reserve on that championship team 25 years ago.

Carlisle smiled and said, "Absolutely. It might have been the team of all-time. In fact, it would be interesting for that team to play the Mavericks."

Then it was on to the auditorium stage and a 9-foot Steinway & Sons Grand piano. Carlisle is a self-taught pianist, learning how to play the year he transferred from Maine to Virginia and had to sit out a year before being eligible to play for the Cavaliers. The man with some of the longest fingers you'll ever see is talented enough to sit in on occasion with close friend Bruce Hornsby and his band, which Carlisle did last month at show at the Biltmore in Asheville, N.C.

Anyway, Carlisle opened Wednesday's presentation for the students by quizzing them on the song played before sporting events. Then he played the National Anthem. He then asked for a volunteer to sing --what else? -- Queen's "We are the Champions." Although the song has become an anthem for sports champs, it was recorded in 1977 and the young lady who volunteered to sing on stage -- along with her middle school mates in their seats -- wasn't all that familiar with it. A sharp teacher quickly provided a cell phone with the lyrics to the chorus dailed up and soon the entire auditorium sprang to life with a spine-tingling rendition as Carlisle happily played along.

This is also how Carlisle closed his 30-minute presentation as well. Each assembly got a heavy dose of "We are the Champions" and a select group of students from loudest assembly will be awarded tickets to a Mavs game -- just as soon as the NBA lockout ends, of course.

Carlisle encouraged the students to learn how to play the piano or another instrument, to not be afraid to make mistakes and to enjoy the challenge of becoming good at whatever they choose to do. "Music is not only a creative outlet," he told them, "but it is very relaxing and it is something you can take with you for a lifetime."

As for that other subject matter -- the lockout, Carlisle went silent. "Can't talk about it," he said. The start of the Mavs' training camp on Oct. 4 certainly appears in jeopardy not to mention the regular season that is supposed to start on Nov. 1 at home against the Chicago Bulls.

It will be a busy period when the lockout is lifted. The Mavs have six free agents, including Tyson Chandler, Caron Butler and J.J. Barea and Dallas hopes to re-sign them all.

Carlisle also opted not to discuss plans to fill the vacancy on his bench left when Dwane Casey accepted the head coaching job with the Toronto Raptors.

About all Carlisle would say regarding basketball is that he and his coaches are keeping regular office hours and are preparing as much as possible to defend their title. They'll also be busy the next few weeks with a series of fantasy camps.

"We're working. We're getting ready. Preparing," Carlisle said. "The one thing about this job and playing in this league is you have to be resourceful. We really haven't changed anything in terms of our approach. We're still studying things we did last year, things we can do better and we're just getting ready."

DALLAS -- Retribution mattered.

Immediately after the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder to clinch the Western Conference championship, Jason Terry attempted to downplay the possibility of a potential NBA Finals rematch against the dreaded Miami Heat. The Heat and Chicago Bulls were headed to Game 5 in the East finals the next night with Miami in control, 3-1.

"It doesn't matter who we play," Terry said adamantly. "Whoever shows up in those uniforms they know they're going to have a fight on their hands because we're going to go out and we're going to leave it all out on the floor. We know what happened last time, and it's our job to seal the deal."

Terry and the Mavs lived up to the latter part. They sealed the deal, dropping 2006 Finals tormentor Dwyane Wade and his new superstar sidekick LeBron James on their home floor in six games.

It wasn't until Tuesday's exit interviews back at the American Airlines Center that Terry finally admitted just how good it had felt to win his and the franchise's first title against the team that took it from them five years earlier.

Terry was asked for his favorite moment in the Finals. It wasn't his Game 5 dagger from 26-feet away or his cross-over dribble past LeBron James and kick-out to Jason Kidd for a killer 3 in the same game or his 19-point first half in Game 6. It wasn't even his gutsy challenge of James after Game 3.

This was it:

"Just seeing the faces of the Miami Heat when we won. Not only the players, but the fans," Terry said. "Going through that arena and remembering what they did to us. To do it on their court ... It would've been special doing it here in front of our fans, but on their court ..."

So, Terry was asked as a follow-up, redemption did matter?

"No question," Terry said. "I had to play it up, didn't want to use that as a motivating factor going in, but walking out of that same locker room, those same ballboys -- all that played a factor."

DALLAS -- The Dallas Mavericks spent the season preaching defense. But, three games into the NBA Finals and trailing the Miami Heat, 2-1, defense is not the problem.

The Mavs have held LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and company to an average of 91.0 points a game. The Mavs, however, are averaging just 88.3 points, down from 100.2 in the regular season and 99.7 points in the first three series. If Dallas is going to tie up the Finals and have a chance to take a 3-2 lead back to Miami, it will because they finally get their free-flow, spread-the-wealth offense back in gear.

"We have to get the ball out quickly and push and look for early opportunities in transition, get this tempo up," cold-shooting guard Jason Terry said. "I just believe, honestly, if we score 100 points they can’t beat us. If it’s a 90-, 80-point game, which it has been the last three, then it gives them a chance. We get up in the 100s, I like our chances."

The Mavs are 6-1 in the playoffs when they score at least 100 points. The bad news for Dallas is that in 18 playoff games, the Heat and their smothering, swarming defense, have allowed 100 points once, in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Chicago Bulls.

But, Dallas is shooting just 42.0 percent in the series, down from 47.5 percent in the regular season, and the Heat defense has turned them into a low possession team, averaging 70.1 shots in three games.

"Our ability to spread the floor and shoot is a big reason why we made it to the Finals, to really spread the ball around and shoot and make timely and big shots," Dirk Nowitzki said. "But, for some reason they're so long and athletic on the perimeter that they're able to swarm me and my post-ups, and when we swing, they're still athletic and quick enough to get to our shooters on the weak side and run them off, or at least contest them."

Turnovers are obviously another significant issue. The Mavs have 45 turnovers for 62 Miami points --accounting for more than 22 percent of the Heat's total scoring -- compared to 37 Heat turnovers for 43 Dallas points.

"I've got to do a better job of putting my teammates in a position to be successful," said Jason Kidd, who has 12 turnovers in the three games. "I think that's the one thing from here on out I'm going to try to do."

As Nowitzki said, the Heat defense has been excellent doubling him, yet being aware enough and quick enough to close on the perimeter. Terry has experienced the brunt of that force. He has not shot well and has struggled through two awful fourth quarters. And because James and Wade log heavy minutes, the Mavs' prized bench has been unable to capitalize on a true bench-on-bench situation.

The Dallas bench, the highest-scoring during the regular season at about 20 points, is averaging half that in this series. J.J. Barea, who turned into a mini-star with his breathtaking penetrations against the Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City Thunder, has been totally removed as a threat. He's averaging 4.3 points and shooting 21.1 percent.

He got into the lane in Game 1, but couldn't finish. Ever since, his drives to the rim have been few and far between.

"Any time I get by him [Heat guard Mario Chalmers], LeBron is waiting for me at the free throw line and the big guys are waiting for me under the rim," Barea said. "Team effort, they're doing a good job. They know if they want to win they've got to be like that."

And the Mavs have to get back to a free-flowing offense that puts points on the board.

DALLAS -- LeBron James finishes Game 3 with 17 points and nine assists. He had four assists in the fourth quarter, including the no-look, behind-the-back pass to Chris Bosh, who drained the game-winning jumper in the 88-86 win on the Mavs' home floor.

Yet, James is being ripped for shrinking from the superstar spotlight? The Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls might quarrel with that notion. The Dallas Mavericks likely would, too. It was just a week ago that Wade was the one queried about the state of his health -- he must be injured! -- because his scoring dipped against the Bulls in the East finals while James hit the big shots and, by the way, shut down Derrick Rose.

Yet, here is Wade tormenting the Mavs like it's 2006 -- sans the free-throw parade -- averaging 29.0 points on 56.7 percent shooting. James? He's averaging 20.3 points on 51.1 percent shooting, 6.0 assists and 6.7 rebounds. And then there's this: In the fourth quarter of the three games, the man James has guarded, mostly Jason Terry, has scored five points. Terry was 0-of-4 in the fourth quarter Sunday night.

"I think you're concentrating on one side of the floor. All you're looking at is the stat sheet," James quipped at a reporter who suggested he is 'shrinking' from the moment. "Honestly, I'm a two-way player. Since D-Wade had it going offensively, so we allow him to handle the ball, bring it on offensively. You should watch the film again and see what I did defensively. You'll ask me a better question tomorrow."

For James, the only 6-foot-8, 260-pound forward in the league today that can run the point, to be ripped for not scoring 30 points a night seems, at best, shortsighted. Consider that he draws the Mavs' best defender, Shawn Marion, and is instantly swarmed on the perimeter. Wade benefits from the lighter defensive matchup against DeShawn Stevenson, the ultra-competitive, but still 38-year-old Jason Kidd and the 6-2 Terry.

The matchups dictate that Wade should be the dominant scorer with James serving more as a facilitator. His 6.0 assists in the Finals are one fewer than Kidd, one of the best passers in the game's history, is averaging.

The Mavs have to find an answer for this two-headed monster that has the Mavs constantly playing from behind and making it difficult for Dallas to find consistent scoring beyond Dirk Nowitzki.

If the Mavs are to win their first championship, they'll have to win consecutive games in this series at some point. Games 4 and 5 at home would seem to be their best chance. It won't be easy. The Heat have not lost more than one game in any series this postseason.

The last time the Heat lost two in a row? Turn back the calendar to March 8, the last of a five-game skid.

"Games get tougher as you get deeper into the playoffs. We know that," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. "I don't know the number of times we climbed out of holes, but it's just always going to make the game harder. So, our overall game, yes, is going to have to be better from start to finish."

Shawn Marion's job just got tougher. The Miami Heat don't don't have great size inside, yet they forcefully rebound the basketball because their two big wing guys crash the boards.

LeBron James (8.7) and Dwyane Wade (7.3) are combining for 16 rebounds a game in the playoffs with nearly four coming on the offensive end (Chris Bosh leads the team at 8.9).

Shawn Marion starts on LeBron, but that doesn't mean he won't see Wade, too. Either way, he'll have to keep his man in check. Marion is an excellent career rebounder and not everyone realizes he boasts four seasons averaging double-digit boards. Tyson Chandler has two (he averaged 9.4 this season).

Marion does his best work on the offensive glass-- grabbing one-third of his total postseason rebounds (6.3 a game) there -- and the 6-foot-7, 228-pound Matrix will be challenged there.

The energetic Thunder drilled Dallas on the boards. After Game 4, coach Rick Carlisle said: "We're getting outrebounded by eight a game in the series on average, and that’s a big concern."

Help on LeBron and Wade will have to come from all directions because the Mavs' 2s and 3s excluding Marion -- DeShawn Stevenson, Jason Terry and Peja Stojakovic -- won't get many boards. Corey Brewer, a bouncy 6-foot-9 forward is an option, although he's also low-volume rebounder. Jason Kidd, Tyson Chandler and Brendan Haywood will have to be alert.

The Heat ranked third in the NBA in rebounding differential (plus-2.97). Entering Thursday's Game 5 they'd taken it up a tick to plus-3.07 even though playing the Chicago Bulls, an extraordinary rebounding team. By contrast, the Mavs are getting outboarded in the playoffs by 2.1 a game.

OKC got them by 22 boards in Game 4, but the Mavs got away with it. Against the Heat, it's doubtful they'll be as fortunate.

Marion's job just got tougher, but it can't just be on him.

DALLAS -- If the NBA awarded an NHL-style Conn Smythe Trophy to the overall playoff MVP, who could argue that through three rounds Dirk Nowitzki would not be the runaway leader? Has anyone been better?

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After scoring 26 points in Wednesday's Game 5 clincher, Nowitzki finished the Western Conference finals averaging 32.2 points a game on 55.7 percent shooting (he shot 57.4 percent in the sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers). That included 48 points in Game 1 and 40 in Game 4. Over the course of the playoffs, 15 games in which Dallas is 12-3 and 10-1 since the Game 4 loss at Portland, Nowitzki is averaging 28.4 points, second overall by a minuscule 0.2 points behind Kevin Durant.

That's despite the Thunder seemingly figuring out how to limit Dirk's touches. In Game 4, Nowitzki was 8-of-11 after three quarters and finished with 20 shots and40 points. In Game 5, Nowitzki got off fewer shots than J.J. Barea, Shawn Marion and even DeShawn Stevenson for a large chunk of the game. He had just eight shot attempts through three quarters. In the fourth, he got off seven shot attempts. He made just two, but both were 3-pointers, including the go-ahead dagger with 1:14 to play.

The Miami Heat or Chicago Bulls will certainly look at how the Thunder tried to sneak the center over and flood the strong side to take away easy catches where Nowitzki can then simply shoot over his defender as he did all night in Game 1.

"I didn't really have a lot of good catches there, clean catches early," Nowitzki said. "But, like I said, I've got to keep attacking for this team."

And that might be the biggest difference in Dirk's game today. He is relentless. He doesn't get discouraged if he's being played physically by a big man or irritated by a small guy. It just doesn't matter. Dirk remains relentless with near-unstoppable drives and his patented one-legged fallaway that's been the talk of the NBA this postseason.

Dirk set a career mark of 51.7 percent shooting during the regular season. He's at 51.7 percent in the postseason.