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We'll probably never know coach Rick Carlisle's true feelings about Lamar Odom and the forward's indifferent attitude and disappointing performances with the Dallas Mavericks.

Carlisle is a pragmatist. He doesn't obsess over what might have been.

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"It’s a chapter that is one that will go down in Mavs history as just something that didn’t work out," Carlisle told ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM's Galloway & Company earlier this week. "We all tried. We all wanted it to work; Lamar wanted it to work. It was just rough. At times it felt like we were gaining momentum, but we just couldn’t get there and in the end we had to go on without him."

One has to wonder how badly Odom really wanted it to work since only he could control his attitude and effort. The Odom chapter is not yet closed because, well, he's still a member of the team. The Mavs would love to slam the book shut by trading Odom around the draft and getting rid of the $2.4 million potential cap hit, the amount guaranteed on the final year of his deal that in full is worth $8.2 million.

The deadline to trade Odom and wipe his potential cap hit from the books is June 29. Any team that has him on its roster by that date is responsible for paying him his guaranteed money. Two well-documented trade partners include Sacramento and Toronto, teams with substantial cap space to absorb Odom on the payroll and waive him. The Mavs will throw in cash to cover the buyout and maybe even throw in a second-round draft pick.

That strategy has seemed the most logical because, the thinking has gone, the Mavs in no way will take back salary because it would burn their cap space and squeeze their ability to offer Deron Williams a max contract in free agency.

Then, Carlisle on GAC offered just a scenario.

"One of the things about Odom’s contract is it is a contract that is going to be very desirable because it is a large number with a small guarantee, like (Jerry) Stackhouse’s and like (Erick) Dampier’s deal," Carlisle said. "Those two contract situations turned into (Shawn) Marion and (Tyson) Chandler. Those were two important building blocks to a championship."

Whether he meant to or not, Carlisle opened the door for speculation that the Mavs could be open to dealing Odom for a player of relevance. It would require packaging him with say, Shawn Marion ($8.6 million next season), for a high-dollar player another team wants to get out from under the contract, for example Pau Gasol in Los Angeles or Amare Stoudemire in New York.

The catch is that such a deal would make it difficult for the Mavs to then carve out enough cap space to offer a max deal to Williams. That is unless Dallas then moved the incoming player to another team in exchange for a player whose salary matched Marion's, as ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM's Jeff "Skin" Wade explained on Wednesday's Ben & Skin Show.

Such a scenario would rid the Mavs of Odom's cap hit, bring in a player at (most likely) a position of need and keep the Mavs in play to offer Williams the moon.

Such a plan won't be easy to carry through, but it certainly was curious of Carlisle to mention, unprompted, the possibility.

So let the speculation begin.

A six-pack of statistical nuggets to help get you reacquainted with the Mavericks as they return to work after All-Star Weekend:

*Steve Nash was back at Dirk Nowitzki’s side during Sunday night’s All-Star Game, but Nash is no longer in the top five in terms of regular-season games played as a Dirk teammate. Jason Terry has played 559 regular-season games alongside Nowitzki for the Mavs, followed by Michael Finley (471), Shawn Bradley (467), Erick Dampier (412) and Josh Howard (411).

*Nowitzki’s run of 11 consecutive All-Star selections is the second-longest active streak in the league. After Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan saw their respective runs of 14 and 13 end over the weekend, Dirk trails only Kobe Bryant’s 14 straight All-Star trips among active players. Dwyane Wade and LeBron James are next in line with eight straight All-Star trips.

*The Mavericks shot 46 percent from the 3-point line in their four-game playoff sweep of the Lakers. In this season’s two meetings? Dallas is shooting just 20.7 percent from long range against L.A.

*The loss to the Lakers in their final game before the All-Star break was the Mavs’ first this season in which they held a fourth-quarter lead at home. That leaves Chicago, Indiana and Oklahoma City as the only teams that haven’t lost at home after leading in the fourth quarter this season.

*Last Wednesday’s game was Kobe Bryant’s 52nd regular-season appearance against Dallas, breaking Bryant’s tie with James Worthy (51) for the most games against Dallas for any Laker.

*The Mavs still narrowly rank as the league’s second-oldest team with an average age of 30.0 … just behind Atlanta’s average age of 30.2.

DALLAS -- Shawn Marion was taking such punishment from rock-solid screens set by the Lakers' big men Wednesday night that he said he about had enough of it.

"It takes a lot out of you. Them big [expletives] hit me a couple of times, I wanted to fall down," said Marion, who couldn't afford to fall down because he was chasing NBA scoring leader Kobe Bryant. "They really take pride in making sure they set some hard screens. A couple of them, I was like I was ready to hit somebody for real."

Marion said the Mavs' bigs don't set screens with the same level of commitment. For years Erick Dampier might have gotten ripped for fumbling balls out of bounds among other aspects of his game, but coach Avery Johnson always loved the way the big man stonewalled defenders with screens that sprung shooters for open looks.

Tyson Chandler happily performed that duty last season and Marion, who held Kobe Bryant to just 15 points on four field goals with seven turnovers, said the Mavs' bigs need to step it up.

"We got to start hitting people like that too," Marion said.

Brendan Haywood just can't catch a break around here. When he showed up in the Josh Howard trade with Caron Butler and DeShawn Stevenson, he quickly caught everyone's eye with some impressive play.

Then Erick Dampier got healthy, got his starting job back and Haywood was perceived to have sulked. That summer, with Dampier on his way out, Haywood thought he had the starting job sewn up, and why not, coach Rick Carlisle promised it to him. Along comes Tyson Chandler, who goes on to change everything we always thought we knew about the Mavs.

Now Chandler's gone and this 6-foot-11, energetic French kid is stealing the spotlight.

But Haywood isn't letting Ian Mahinmi's surprise rise get him down. The 7-foot veteran is just going about his business and getting the job done on the defensive end, a significant reason why the Mavs are the third-ranked defensive team in the league.

Haywood, bouncing back from tough night against skilled Lakers center Andrew Bynum, logged two of his higher-minute games in the back-to-back set against the Clippers and Jazz, and for good reason.

Wednesday night in L.A., coach Rick Carlisle tried to give Dirk Nowitzki a break by putting him against offensively limited center DeAndre Jordan while the 7-foot Haywood took on athletic and rugged power forward Blake Griffin, who averages 21 points and 12 rebounds.

Haywood, playing 26 minutes, used his size effectively and held Griffin to 14 points on 6-of-15 shooting (Griffin did miss some point-blank attempts and he did get to the free-throw line eight times, making just two). And what happened with Jordan, who averages 7.8 points a game? He went off for a season-high 19.

In the big win Thursday at Utah, Haywood logged 29 minutes -- nine more than his season average -- and made smooth-scoring center Al Jefferson work for his 22 points on 18 shots. Haywood also supplied three assists and he was a perfect 4-of-4 -- no kidding -- from the free-throw line.

Carlisle called Haywood's game against Jefferson and the Jazz probably his best work of the season.

On the surface, Haywood's 4.3 points and 6.7 rebounds in the first three games of the road trip don't leap off the screen, but he's been a steady presence in the paint, the area of top concern entering the season.

DALLAS -- In the 2006 NBA Finals, the Miami Heat started an aging but still effective Shaquille O'Neal at center with Alonzo Mourning coming off the bench. The Dallas Mavericks rolled out a tag-team center unit of DeSagana Diop and Erick Dampier.

Advantage: Heat.

In 2011, the Heat start 6-9 center Joel Anthony while more traditional, but well past their prime post men, Dampier, Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Jamal Magliore can't get on the floor. Dallas starts All-Defensive second-team member Tyson Chandler with currently ailing Brendan Haywood (right hip flexor) as the backup.

Advantage: Mavs.

"He was very good [Tuesday] night. It goes without stating, obviously," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said Wednesday about Chandler's 13-point, 16-rebound performance in Dallas' series-evening Game 4 win. "Nine offensive rebounds and putting a lot of pressure, getting to the rim. He's an impact player and he has been for several years when he's been healthy. So we understand that. We have to meet him with force, with effort, and we have to be relentless, because he does offer them relief points in the paint with his aggressiveness."

Here's relief: The 7-1 Chandler has drawn the most fouls during the Finals (25), grabbed the most offensive rebounds (20) and has the most second-chance points (17).

Chandler has drawn three more fouls than Dirk Nowitzki, six more than Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, and nine more than LeBron James.

Much of that is because of the obvious size mismatch inside, particularly when the Heat use two big men to double Nowitzki. Chandler is drawing fouls on the boards, but the Mavs have also fed Chandler in the paint with the fourth quarter of Game 4 serving as a prime example. Then there's the defensive side. Chandler has been highly active protecting the rim, limiting penetration and free throws for Wade and James.

"We love Chandler," said Jason Terry, who along with Nowitzki are the only remaining members of the '06 team. "Obviously, what he means to us from the inside as a presence offensively and defensively is huge. Each team has to have that presence. They had it in ’05-’06. We have it now and he’s a big difference-maker."

MIAMI -- Erick Dampier lined up next to Dirk Nowitzki for six years in Dallas. They were locker room neighbors and remain friends.

Dampier would like for Nowitzki to win a championship before his Hall of Fame career is done.

Just not this month.

"He's going to do everything in this world to try to win," said Dampier, now with the Heat. "He's an excellent player. Hopefully at some point he'll get to finish off his career with a title."

Dampier isn't the only former teammate of Nowitzki's now with the Heat. Juwan Howard and Jamal Magloire also had stints with the Mavs.

Howard, 38, is also chasing an elusive first title after 17 years in the league. Asked if he would like to see Nowitzki complete that career quest, Howard wasn't going to show it.

"Not this time," he said with a grin. "Not while I'm playing. No disrespect."

Dampier hasn't talked to Nowitzki or any of his former Dallas teammates or coaches going into the Finals, and doesn't expect to until after the series is over.

Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle recently said that Nowitzki is one of the top 10 players in NBA history. While that could be debated, he's easily the league's greatest European ever.

Dampier doesn't believe the 2006 MVP needs to a ring to cement his place in the game.

"He's one of the best players ever at that position," Dampier said. "There are a lot of people out there that haven't won a title. If he doesn't win one, the legacy he'll leave behind is definitely a great one."

Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle desperately wants Brendan Haywood to play to his potential. It was the coach who traveled to Haywood's North Carolina doorstep on the first night of free agency last summer to let the big fella know how much he and the franchise loves him.

Remember when Haywood was a double-double machine when he first arrived? Yes, Erick Dampier was injured, paving the way for Haywood to hog minutes at center. Clearly, he hasn't handled Tyson Chandler's arrival and subsequent explosion onto the scene very well and it's shown in his worst statistical season of his career (4.1 points, 4.7 rebounds), if not even more so in the way he's carried himself.

Haywood's play has been so suspect this season that raw, third-year center Ian Mahinmi has made plays to further whittle down Haywood's 17.0 minutes a game. Ultimately, Carlisle knows that the veteran Haywood, who is in the first year of a earning a guaranteed $40-plus-million from the Mavs, can be an effective backup center if he applies himself night in and night out. Carlisle also knows he needs an effective Haywood behind a sometimes foul-prone Chandler if the Mavs are going to make a playoff push.

He shows promise in sporadic peeks. Every so often, Haywood plays inspired as he did Wednesday against Sacramento (12 points, 10 rebounds in 22 minutes -- his first double-double and only third double-digit rebounding game of the season). Thursday night at Phoenix, he logged just 11 minutes, but he got in early and was effective with seven points (on 3-of-4 shooting) and five rebounds.

He still remains an embarrassingly low 35.4 percent from the free throw line, which is a real problem in keeping him on the floor, and that didn't change over the last two games. He missed 6-of-9.

Before the season, the Mavs' front office believed the team's length with the 7-1 Chandler and 7-foot Haywood and Dirk Nowitzki, plus the long and lanky Shawn Marion would make for a strong matchup against the Lakers' tall front line of Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom in a playoff series. Dallas' height is a great advantage over the Spurs, whose one weakness is length inside beyond Tim Duncan.

But, that means Haywood must play as if it matters. Carlisle has consistently taken a tact of positive reinforcement with Haywood, always pointing to the extra conditioning work he puts in, etc., to try to get through to him.

Ultimately, it's up to Haywood to decide if he wants to be an integral part of a team that has been all about togetherness and seemingly has a golden opportunity to make a bold statement in the postseason.

DALLAS -- When the Mavericks come out sleepwalking as they did Monday night against the desperate Cleveland Cavaliers, coach Rick Carlisle reaches for his Mr. Energy -- and Ian Mahinmi delivered again.

The 6-foot-11, raw, but enticing third-year center also again provided intrigue into the direction of the backup center position. Brendan Haywood has been a major disappointment and against Cleveland he didn't get off the bench, sporting a DNP-CD for a second time this season. Granted, the undersized, and up-tempo Cavs are not an ideal matchup for Haywood, who is more in the mold of Erick Dampier than Tyson Chandler.

Carlisle turned to Mahinmi with 2:40 to go in the first quarter and Cleveland leading 26-19. He immediately created a jolt and the Mavs finished off the quarter on a 10-2 run. By the time Mahinmi sat down with 5:21 left in the half, Dallas led 45-32. Mahinmi had two points and four rebounds, but more telling than the numbers was the obvious infusion of enthusiasm the team badly needed against a team that entered the Mavs' 99-96 victory with 24 consecutive losses.

"He was by far our best player," Carlisle said. "He was doing things consistently that we needed to be doing as a team all night which was being extremely alert, being ready to react and respond, quick to the ball, willing to take charges, those kinds of things. He played a great game."

Mahinmi played more than 20 minutes and finished with 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting, including a nifty spin move and left-handed hook. He also had eight rebounds. It was Mahinmi's third double-digit scoring game and the third game in which he recorded six or more rebounds. On the season, he's averaged 6.9 minutes in 31 games. Haywood has had two double-digit scoring games and 11 games of six rebounds in more. He's played in 48 games and averages 17.1 minutes.

"We've got high expectations with this team with all those vets," Mahinmi said. "The younger guys have to come up with a lot of energy. I don't know exactly how many minutes I'm going to get every night, but I know that if I get in I know exactly my role and I try and do that."

Mahinmi might be embarking on a new role as part-time backup power forward. He got a few minutes in that spot playing alongside Chandler in the fourth quarter of not only a close game, but one in which a loss would have been humiliating. Carlisle said he he felt Dirk Nowitzki, who hurt his right wrist in the first quarter, and Shawn Marion were winded so he went with Mahinmi. The Mavs don't have possess the physical, blue-collar power forward element, a role Carlisle said he could experiment with further.

Mahinmi has performed well in the past only to find himself planted at the end of the bench the next night where third-string centers typically find themselves. And he could again when the Mavs begin a three-game road trip Wednesday at Sacramento Kings. But, Mahinmi is clearly earning the trust of his coach and has it from his teammates, starting with the captain.

"I like Ian. He's physical, he's athletic, he's fast," Nowitzki said. "He's worked on his in-between game. He's not only a back-to-the-basket guy or a hustle guy, but he can finish. He even had like two lefty hooks [against Cleveland] and he can make that 15-, 16-footer. So, yeah, I think he can play 4 and 5. He comes to work every day. He's a pro."

BOSTON -- Erick Dampier averaged a double-double the season before he signed a monstrous contract with Dallas Mavericks. He never averaged one again.

Tyson Chandler averaged a double-double in 2008-07 with the New Orleans Hornets and, mostly due to injury, has been unable to obtain such lofty numbers since. However, Chandler is moving in that direction and, as of the past seven games, rather quickly.

He enters tonight's second of a three-game road trip against the Boston Celtics averaging 10.2 points, bolstered by a 16.9-point average over the past seven games, and 9.3 rebounds. He's posted consecutive double-doubles and has four in his last seven games. But, other than sounding good, is a double-double necessarily a benchmark Chandler strives to reach?

"As a big guy you want to be in double figures rebounding," said Chandler, who has done that in two of his previous nine seasons. "Scoring, I think, is just opportunities. If you get opportunities to score as a big guy and you get good looks you can average a double-double. But, for me, the impact for a big guy, you want to be in double-digit rebounding, you want to have your blocks up and you want to keep the opponent’s field-goal percentage down."

That's music to coach Rick Carlisle's ears. The coach has rewarded his big man's defensive determination with more offensive opportunities and Chandler's been cashing them in.

Tonight's game offers a far more rugged challenge for the Mavs' 7-foot-1, 235-pounder. The Celtics present wider, thicker bodies inside than most Western Conference teams and especially so now that 6-10, 280-pound Kendrick Perkins is back in the lineup. Shaquille O'Neal might not play tonight. He sat out Thursday's practice and Boston coach Doc Rivers revealed that Shaq might be dealing with an Achilles issue. The 325-pounder's minutes have been drastically reduced over the past four games.

Jermaine O'Neal remains sidelined, but Chandler and the Mavs also must deal with the shorter (6-9), but heftier (289 pounds) Glen Davis, who is averaging 12.1 points and 5.3 rebounds. He uses that extra-large, low-center-of-gravity frame to gain positioning.

"It’s always different in the East when you have guys that are a little more big, more physical, pack the paint. So, it’s always a different game," Chandler said. "It’s always fun to clash the West Coast runners-and-gunners against the brutes of the East. This is another one of those challenges. For us, we have to allow our ball movement, our floor spacing to overwhelm their defense as far as packing the paint."

When the topic of Brendan Haywood comes up, Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle unfailingly defends his backup center's effort and work ethic, if not always his production. Not even Carlisle could do that.

Hawyood is in the midst of his worst of 10 NBA seasons. His 3.9 points per game, 4.7 rebounds, 0.9 blocks and 17.5 minutes are career lows, by far. Consider this: In 28 games with the Mavs last season -- about half of which Erick Dampier was injured -- Haywood averaged 8.1 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.1 blocks, and 26.5 minutes.

And then there's nights like Saturday against the Atlanta Hawks, when Haywood became the engaged player everyone expected to see on a nightly basis. He scored 10 points, grabbed five rebounds, blocked a shot and was a force in the first six minutes of the fourth quarter when the Mavs turned a one-point deficit into a 10-point lead.

Haywood had seven points and four boards, two offensive, and made five of eight free throws during his nearly nine minutes of fourth-quarter playing time.

"I think he can give us a presence on the inside offensively," Carlisle said. "We’ve gone to him a little more in recent games. I love when he gets the ball and goes strong."

Haywood played 19 minutes against Atlanta after playing just eight minutes in the game before. One game before that, Haywood put in 24 solid minutes defending Blake Griffin. The game before that, he played five minutes.

The Atlanta game was picture perfect. Haywood's 19 good minutes allowed Carlisle to play Tyson Chandler 29 minutes, right about where Carlisle would like to keep his starter. The center tandem combined for 22 points and 11 boards. The key question regarding Haywood is whether he can deliver Atlanta-like energy and production more consistently over the second-half of the season.

The Mavs hope Monday night wasn't the answer. Facing the Washington Wizards, his old team, Haywood figured to have motivation on his side and to be at the top of his game. However, it didn't go by the script. Haywood played just nine minutes and put up goose-eggs across the board except for a lone turnover and two fouls.

It was instead Ian Mahinmi who again gave Carlisle more reasons to give him extra looks. The third-year center had seven points, two rebounds and a block in seven minutes. Mahinmi has become the guy Carlisle turns to when he feels the team needs a jolt of energy.

Carlisle really has no choice but to continually praise and encourage Haywood publicly in hopes the big man will raise his level of play. However, Carlisle must massage Haywood to get the most out of him is critical. Carslisle knows he will need Haywood to perform at a high and consistent level come the playoffs.

"He plays. He tries," Carlisle said. "I do think when he can get involved offensively, it energizes our team. I don’t think it necessarily energizes him, but I think it helps our team. Guys pull for Brendan because they know that this has been a situation that hasn’t gone sort of to form with the Tyson trade and all that, and the guys have to really make some adjustments. A lot of our guys really respect how he’s approached it."

It's time for Haywood to show his teammates the same respect with more quality outings on the court.

CHICAGO -- Adding Peja Stojakovic and subtracting Alexis Ajinca is a no-brainer move for the Dallas Mavericks, a club that doesn't need a fourth, albeit affable, center and desperately needs another proven weak-side shooter to fill the void left by the injured Caron Butler.

ESPN.com's Marc Stein has reported that Stojakovic has given the Mavs a verbal agreement to join them once he clears the 48-hour waiver period. To make room for him on the 15-man roster, Dallas, in a separate trade, is shipping Ajinca, a throw-in last offseason in the Erick Dampier-Tyson Chandler deal, to Toronto.

The only question is how much Stojakovic has got left. At 33, Stojakovic's All-Star days are well behind him and injuries are an ongoing issue. This was not a blockbuster deal but rather a small, but heady move to get a sharpshooter that can dial it in on any given night. He's dealing with a knee problem now that's kept him on the bench for all but two games in Toronto after being traded there from New Orleans in a salary dump.

If Stojakovic can get on the floor and stay there he is one of the great pure shooters in the league and provides the Mavs with an additional spot-up threat on the wing. He's played in just eight games this season -- six with New Orleans two with Toronto -- so it's questionable as to what kind of immediate help he can offer. Still, in his limited time, he's made 48.4 percent of his 3-balls (15-of-31).

The signing certainly can't hurt. After all, this a team that is now starting 10-day contract player Sasha Pavlovic at small forward so Shawn Marion can come off the bench where he's been extremely effective as a scorer and defender.

The 7-foot-1 Ajinca might one day amount to a role player in this league, but he offers next-to-nothing for a veteran team like Dallas with championship aspirations. He'll get some developmental time at rebuilding Toronto, while Stojakovic, knees allowing, can provide spurts of instant offense like he did on Nov. 15 when he hit 4-of-6 from the arc and scored 17 points in 19 minutes -- against the Mavs.

DALLAS -- For all the praise heaped upon Dallas Mavericks starting center Tyson Chandler for his impact on the team's 20-5 start, backup center Brendan Haywood has experienced a chillier effect.

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Wednesday's 103-99 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers took yet another twist for the man who thought he'd be the Mavs' starting center after signing a free-agent contract in July worth $43 million guaranteed. Haywood logged just 9 minutes, 58 seconds, managing two points -- on a pair of free throws no less -- with two rebounds and two fouls.

In the second quarter, Mavs coach Rick Carlisle turned to little-used third-string center Ian Mahinmi. One minute into his stint, Mahinmi grabbed a defensive rebound, ran the floor and was the recipient of a Jason Kidd pass for a running layup. Mahinmi played all of his 3:12 in the second quarter, recording the one bucket and rebound, while rekindling the notion that Carlisle might be growing weary of Haywood's underachieving play to this point.

After the game, Carlisle addressed the backup center position before the question could even be asked.

"The backup center position, I'll just address that. I think it's important," Carlisle said. "Brendan is our guy, but in situations where we feel we need a little more energy, quickness in the game, that's why I look to go to Ian. Brendan just had; it was a tough game for him. He was just unable to get much going around the basket and defensively, LaMarcus Aldridge is a tough matchup. Ian did a very good job when he got in there, but Brendan is going to be our guy on most nights."

Haywood's body language on the floor and the bench have come into question as well. He can look disengaged, aggravated or frustrated. Carlisle didn't agree or disagree with that assessment.

"If that's the case, there's probably some frustration," Carlisle said. "This guy's been a starting center for 10 years. We're asking him to do something that's a big adjustment. Shawn Marion has made the same adjustment, too. Brendan, he works hard. I guarantee you [Thursday] he'll be one of the first guys in here doing cardio and keeping himself ready. He's been working on his free throws, he knocked those two in [Wednesday], which was really big. He's still a big part of our team."

Not only has Haywood underperformed in terms of his season averages, 4.1 points and 5.3 rebounds entering Wednesday's game, he owns the league's worst free-throw percentage at 23.7 percent. It will take a welcome uptick after he made both attempts Wednesday. On Monday, Haywood faced the indignity of being hacked intentionally by the Bucks in the fourth quarter. Haywood missed all four free throw attempts and Milwaukee just happened to go on a 14-2 run that ultimately won the game.

"Well, he actually made his free throws [Wednesday] and that's big for him after the fourth quarter the other day where he missed a couple, so I was proud of him there," Dirk Nowitzki said. "He has to keep on working like everybody else. It's only December. He has to come in there, clog the paint for us, get some rebounds and if he gets the ball in the paint finish for us. I'm not really worried about him."

Haywood's situation changed after the Mavs traded Erick Dampier to Charlotte and acquired Chandler. The 7-foot-1 center was coming off ankle and foot injuries, but after a productive summer playing for Team USA at the World Championships, his high-energy emotion and play decisively won him the starting job during the preseason. Averaging 8.5 points and 9.0 rebounds, Chandler is largely credited with spearheading the team's defensive progress.

The Mavs have maintained that the one-two punch at the center position will help them contend with teams such as the Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs. The Mavs have yet to face L.A., but they handed the Spurs one of their three losses on the season. However, Haywood did not play. He was suspended for the game by Carlisle and sent back to Dallas after engaging in a heated exchange with Carlisle during the morning shootaround.

Chandler said he can sympathize with Haywood and believes that his positional partner will come around.

"He's such a good dude that I think it's tough," Chandler said. "It's a tough situation because when you're a guy who spends your whole career starting and used to playing X-amount of minutes and now you're being asked to do something that's so out of your norm, sometimes it takes a while to adjust. I fully expect him to be able to adjust and really help us out."

Since Haywood's suspension on Nov. 26, he has mostly stayed out of the locker room before and after games when it is open to the media. After games he puts on his headphones and works out on the elliptical machine outside of the locker room. Other times he has declined requests for interviews.

Chandler said he tries to keep Haywood positive, but doesn't speak to him about his current plight.

"Not about that, moreso just encouraging him during the course of a game, encouraging him during practice," Chandler said. "If I see something, I share it with him, that kind of stuff. The other stuff, that's not my position."

DALLAS -- Tyson Chandler doesn't have to think real hard to recall the exciting 2007-08 season when he, Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets broke onto the Western Conference scene with flash and dash.

The Hornets won a franchise-record 56 games, shared the Southwest Division championship, earned the No. 2 seed in the playoffs and dusted off the Dallas Mavericks in the first round with a flurry of Paul-to-Chandler alley-oops.

"It seems like yesterday," Chandler said Sunday, the day before his Mavs take on Paul and the undefeated Hornets at the American Airlines Center. "I've got some fond memories of those guys. I still keep in contact with a lot of them, know their families, know their kids. So, we’re definitely still close and they're on a bit of a run right now."

Yes, they are. The most surprising team in the NBA is 8-0 under first-year coach Monty Williams, and they've beaten a slew of good teams to get there. The 7-foot-1 Chandler is now two seasons and two teams removed from the Hornets. While battling through ankle injuries, he was dealt to Charlotte in the summer of 2009, and was nearly traded to Toronto this summer before it was called off, opening the door for the Mavs.

Chandler said that even during the franchise's breakout year, the team knew it wouldn't last.

"It was a financial situation," said Chandler, who averaged a career-best 11.8 points and 11.7 rebounds in '07-'08. "We had our opportunity to win that one year and if we didn’t go all the way we kind of had it in the back of our head that they would break things up. I kind of knew I was going to be the one to go because teams were inquiring and my contract made sense."

The Hornets didn't win it all. They lost to the San Antonio Spurs, going down in a Game 7 in New Orleans. The core of the team remains with Paul, power forward David West and 3-point specialist Peja Stojakovic. Emeka Okafor is now handling the middle and averaging 12.5 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.3 blocks. Newcomers Marco Belinelli and Trevor Ariza are playing key roles and the bench is deep and so far productive.

"They’re actually deeper than when I played there," Chandler said. "They’ve got some athletic wings. That’s what we lacked when I was there, athletic wings that can get out, take some pressure off Chris, handle the ball and move side to side well defensively. I think they’ve upgraded in those positions and they’re playing well."

Chandler, who is working on the $12.6 million final year of that contract, has been a breath of fresh air at the center position for the Mavs, who traded the aging Erick Dampier for Chandler's 28-year-old and fully healthy legs. His stats are steadily on the climb, up to 8.1 points and 8.6 rebounds. He's shooting 74.1 percent from the floor, thanks to swapping Paul alley-oops for lobs from Jason Kidd, and he's hitting 86.2 of his free throws, more than 25 points better than his career average. He's also bringing a demeanor to the Mavs' defense, which leads the NBA in opponent shooting percentage.

Tonight's meeting is the first of two in three days. They teams will meet again Wednesday night in New Orleans. But, first comes tonight's anticipated game when the Hornets will put their perfect record on the line against the Mavs (6-2). Chandler said he plans to send them back to his old home with a first 'L' of the season.

"Trust me, it’s definitely on my mind and I’ll make it be known in the locker room that this will be huge for us," Chandler said. "They’re the only undefeated team in the league and everybody’s got to lose at some point. It would be good for them to get that loss here."

This probably isn't how Brendan Haywood expected the start of the season to go down, not after the Dallas Mavericks committed some $55 million to him over six seasons and basically promised him the starting job.

Of course, Haywood's sixth year isn't guaranteed, but that's still $6.9 million in salary this season and it escalates each season to about $9.8 million in the fifth year.

That's a lot of dough for a backup.

Of course, it was Haywood who first acknowledged this summer that the starting job would be his under the current makeup of the roster, and at that time Erick Dampier was still on it. Haywood thought he shouldn't have lost his starting job last season shortly after Dampier returned from injury.

But, since the club swapped Dampier for Tyson Chandler, coach Rick Carlisle has fallen in love with Chandler's enthusiasm, his vocal and physical presence on defense and his high-revving motor.

So much so that Haywood lost the starting job he never had. Carlisle tabbed the 7-foot-1 Chandler as the Mavs' starting center for the opener and there is no reason to believe that's going to change as the Mavs head into Game No. 7 tonight at the Memphis Grizzlies.

As a reserve, the 7-foot Haywood has been less than stunning. He's averaging 3.2 points and 4.3 rebounds -- one offensive board per game -- and 1.3 blocks in 19.2 minutes. Those numbers are very DeSagana Diop-like, who you might recall two summers ago the Mavs showered with more than $32 million over five seasons, only to be so disappointed in him that they traded Diop to Charlotte a few months later.

In the last three games, two against the Denver Nuggets and Monday's big win over the Boston Celtics, Haywood didn't log more than 16 minutes and totaled seven points and 13 rebounds. It must be noted that both opponents were missing multiple frontcourt players. Against Denver at least, the Mavs more often opted to go small to counter the Nuggets' height-challenged lineups.

But, against the Celtics, Chandler simply played so well (12 points, 13 rebounds, two blocks) that Carlisle stuck with him for a season-high 33 minutes, more than doubling Haywood's court time.

After the game, Carlisle said of Chandler: "This guy is becoming one of our heart-and-soul guys."

Tonight's game at Memphis should be an opportunity for Haywood to assert himself. The Grizzlies feature burly 7-foot center Marc Gasol and a powerful load in 6-9 forward Zach Randolph, who seemingly loves to play against the Mavs no matter whose uniform he's wearing.

The Mavs claim their length at center will help them compete against the likes of the Los Angeles Lakers' tall frontline if they are to meet in a playoff series.

However, Chandler's emergence could make for some interesting and very difficult decisions before the playoffs ever arrive. Chandler is working on the final year of a $12.6 million contract, a very attractive chip as the February trade deadline approaches. But, why would the Mavs want to deal their impressive, 28-year-old starting center who smiles endlessly when he proclaims that he's pain-free for the first time in two years?

If Chandler (7.2 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 1.5 bpg) remains healthy and puts together a bounce-back season, he will be a highly sought-after free agent by any team missing a weapon in the middle, and that's most. So much so, that with Haywood locked up and a looming CBA battle that could drastically alter the salary cap, the Mavs will be hard-pressed to keep Chandler unless he agrees to take a significant hometown discount.

But, why would a 28-year-old in his first year with the franchise do that? Especially considering that Jason Kidd's career likely has one more season to go after this one when his contact expires, and it's not as though the Mavs boast a young nucleus on the upswing.

Trade Haywood then? Good luck. He'll become eligible to be dealt on Dec. 15, but it would be shocking if team president Donnie Nelson can sweet talk anyone into taking Haywood with the money he's owed.

It leaves the Mavs in the strange situation of embracing an emerging player they probably can't keep, while the one they've locked up settles into a more diminshed role than he envisioned.

UNIVERSITY PARK, Texas – Jason Kidd will never say it, but it must have been infuriating to loft a beauty of a lob pass only to have Erick Dampier either fumble it out of bounds or fail to put it in the hole.

Brendan Haywood’s arrival was an upgrade in the hands department, but now Kidd thinks he has the perfect alley-oop partner in center Tyson Chandler.

The Dallas Mavericks remember Chandler as a healthy, 7-foot-1 pogo stick during their 2008 first-round playoff loss to the New Orleans Hornets when point guard Chris Paul consistently found Chandler up high for uncontested slam dunks.

Kidd, who had joined the Mavs just a few months prior to that playoff series, said Chandler is reminding him of that agile and active player through the first week of training camp.

“He can catch and he plays above the rim. It changes the game,” Kidd said. “It makes the game a lot easier because he’s so athletic offensively. And defensively too, he can rebound and block shots. With him healthy and the way that he looks right now, he looks like back in New Orleans when he was running the pick-and-roll with Chris Paul."

Chandler benefitted from his play with Team USA at the FIBA World Championships last month. He said his conditioning is excellent for this early in training camp and that he feels as healthy as he has over the last few years when he’s dealt with multiple foot and ankle injuries.

“I feel great. And when I feel great, I feel like there’s not many guys in this league that can play the way that I play,” Chandlers said. “So, it’s all about me feeling good out there and I feel good.”