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No Charles Barkley comment this season stirred more local debate than his "Father Time, bro" remark regarding Dirk Nowitzki's inevitable slippage that the Round Mound said was officially under way.

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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. Listen

It's true that Nowitzki struggled out of the gate and that an ailing right knee forced him out of the lineup for four games so he could train behind the scenes, a peculiarity to be sure for the typically precision-trained power forward. And yes, it is inarguable that Nowitzki finished the rapid-fire, 66-game regular season -- his 14th in the NBA -- with the lowest statistics (21.6 ppg, 45.5 FG%, 6.7 rpg) since his first two seasons in the league.

For the record, Nowitzki has no issues with Sir Charles, a hero of sorts to Nowitzki as young lad playing the game in his native Germany. Nowitzki borrowed Barkley's Olympic Dream Team jersey No. 14 for his own use and then flipped it to No. 41 in the NBA.

"I love Charles and I also love watching him on TV because whatever is running through his big head he’s going to throw out there," Nowitzki said during his lengthy Tuesday appearance on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM's "Galloway & Co. "That’s what makes it funny, so I’m still a huge, huge fan of his. I don’t see it as an insult or anything. It’s just he’s having his opinions and he’s throwing them out there and that’s what makes great TV and great radio because he’s the man."

But what about this Father Time thing anyway? Nowitzki turns 34 on June 19 and well, he isn't getting any younger. But was this season an aberration following the long championship run, his commitment to play for Germany in the Olympic qualifying tournament and then the uncertainty of the lockout that skewed his offseason training?

Or is Barkley right and the inevitability of Father Time played a quick game of catch-up just months after Nowitzki seemed invincible in leading the Mavs to the franchise's first championship?

"I had a tough time getting going this year. I’m very specific taking care of my body during the season; I eat right, I lift, I train, so it took me a while to get going with the whole lockout. There were too many games, not enough preparation time so I paid for that a little bit, but I think I can still play some really good basketball," Nowitzki said. "If you look at all the guys that really take care of their body like Nashy (Steve Nash) and (Jason) Kidd now is almost 40, and those guys, they can compete at a high level for a long time.

"Even (Tim) Duncan if you look at him he’s having a phenomenal year in his 16^th, 17^th year or whatever he is (actually 15th), so I still think you can play at a very high level and I still think I can do it. I’m going to prepare again like in the regular season, you have your routine, you come in, report in October and I’m going to spend the offseason getting my body ready again and we’ll see what happens next year and see who’s fighting alongside with me and who the warriors are and we’ll go from there."

Ninth in a 15-part series ranking the Mavericks' 2011-12 roster in importance of bringing back next season.

Surely one can look around the NBA and field a lineup of unfulfilled careers. With the Dallas Mavericks that search stops with Rodrigue Beaubois, the highly-talented guard whose career appeared headed toward the stars until the unfortunate day when the fifth metatarsal in his left foot snapped.

Nothing's been the same since. And everything's been a struggle.

Beaubois is heading into the most important summer of his young NBA career and he knows it.

"I cannot tell you what is going to happen, but obviously I know that this summer is going to be big for me," Beaubois said. "I have to work out a lot and make sure that I am ready because if they give me space (more playing time) I will have to be ready for that."

For the first time in three summers, Beaubois is healthy and able to train. He broke his foot in early August 2010 training with the French national team and underwent surgery soon after. He missed two-thirds of the following season because he re-injured the foot and then hurt it again in the final game of the regular season, forcing him out of the entire championship run and back into the operating room.

PODCAST
ESPN's Stephen A. Smith chimes in on the Dallas Mavericks' season, their free agency plans and more. Listen

Few inroads were made this season and so here we are at a crossroads. Beaubois is effectively entering the final year of his contract. The Mavs can make a qualifying offer next summer or they can say goodbye.

The Countdown ticks down to No. 7...

RODRIGUE BEAUBOIS
Pos.: G
Ht./Wt.: 6-foot-2, 180
Experience: 3 years
Age: 24 (Feb. 24, 1988)
2011-12 stats: 8.9 ppg (42.2 FG, 28.8 3FG, 2.9 apg)
Contract status: Signed through 2012-13
2011-12 salary: $1.2 million
2012-13 salary: $2.2 million

His story: The second surgery ruined another summer of work and development with the lockout adding another layer of frustration because it prevented Beaubois from working, or even visiting, with Rick Carlisle and the coaching staff. Once again, Beaubois' role this season is in total limbo because that's also where the Mavs' roster is. Will they sign Deron Williams and re-sign Jason Kidd to back him up at point guard? Will Delonte West and/or Jason Terry return along with Vince Carter to fortify the shooting guard position? And then there's the whole issue of whether he's a point guard -- which he mostly played to varying degrees of success this season -- or a shooting guard, or does it even matter? Or will that be determined simply by where there is room for him?

His outlook: Any number of backcourt variables that emerge after July 1 could open up playing time for Beaubois or again leave him buried behind a veteran crew. Or, in yet another scenario, Beaubois could get caught up in a trade to create additional cap space. Beaubois was essentially out of the rotation in the playoffs, leaving him with still virtually no postseason experience in three trips. Will the 2012-13 season be something of a rebirth for Beaubois in Dallas or the beginning of the end?

No. 15 Lamar Odom
No. 14 Brian Cardinal
No. 13 Yi Jianlian
No. 12 Dominique Jones
No. 11 Brendan Haywood
No. 10 Kelenna Azubuike
No. 9 Ian Mahinmi
No. 8 Vince Carter
No. 7 Rodrigue Beaubois
No. 6 Coming Friday

With the no-brainer contract becoming a done deal today, assuring that Rick Carlisle is signed up to coach the Dallas Mavericks through at least the 2015-16 season, the real work begins.

PODCAST
Coop and Nate weight in on Rick Carlisle's new contract with the Mavericks. Listen

When Carlisle arrived on the scene in 2008 as the successor to Avery Johnson, the roster included soon-to-be 30-year-olds in Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry and Shawn Marion, and a 35-year-old Jason Kidd. Wow, seems like spring chickens.

When Carlisle and the Mavs open training camp in October, the roster will include a 34-year-old Nowitzki and ...?

Who else is the $81 million question, or the $108 million question -- the amounts the Mavs or Brooklyn Nets will pay Deron Williams, respectively, whenever he chooses one over the other (interesting, of course, that Johnson coaches the Nets). Terry and Kidd are free agents and Marion isn't guaranteed to return.

Beyond Dirk, Carlisle doesn't know who will be on the 2012-13 roster in what promises to be a significant transition season coming of the 2011 championship followed by the first-round sweep out of the playoffs by the young hot-shots due north in Oklahoma City. It's not soft-pedaling things to say that the Mavs will battle mediocrity (36-30 this season) and even relevance, at least to the standard set during Mark Cuban's 12 years of ownership, if Williams opts to stay with the Nets.

Not that the perennial All-Star point guard promises a quick return to the Finals, but it would be a promising start. The free-agency list won't be laden with superstars or superstar potential to drape around Nowitzki.

Still, with or without Williams, Carlisle will indoctrinate a slew of new players into the system, a task he will no doubt attack with vigor, yet one that could be considered more daunting than the one he inherited even with the club having bottomed out emotionally in the first -round loss to the Chris Paul-led New Orleans Hornets in five games.

At least the Mavs took a game from those Hornets, the No. 2 seed then just like the Oklahoma City Thunder who swept Carlisle's Mavs to an early summer vacation less than two weeks ago. If the title team looked different this season, just wait until next season.

It will take a strong communicator to bring an unfamiliar group of players together and launch new era of winning basketball in Dallas. Carlisle proved he could bring a cast together during the championship season, coming off what had the makings of a devastating first-round playoff exit to the San Antonio Spurs the season before.

Carlisle believes the area he's grown the most over these last four years in Dallas is in communicating with his troops, a trait that cannot be undervalued in the NBA.

Or undersold, say, if Kidd relates his experiences with a flexible, open-minded Carlisle to a potential point-guard newcomer who happens to be friends with Kidd and shares the same agent.

"One of my strengths is that I’m an open-minded coach, I’m open to communication and I listen to the players," Carlisle said during the team's exit interviews on May 6. "I’m always working on being a better communicator as a coach and I work on that every single day and I’ve gotten better with it and I’ll continue to get better with it."

It could be the single most important aspect to the job as Carlisle is now officially on board to tackle the changing environment at the American Airlines Center.

DALLAS -- Rodrigue Beaubois' first order of business is going home to Guadeloupe and spending time with his mother and family after the untimely death of his father in February.

Then this summer becomes all about one thing for the young guard who is coming upon the final year of his contract with the Dallas Mavericks: getting better.

"I know one thing is this summer is going to be real important for me," Beaubois said. "I will start planning my summer and make sure that I do everything I can to come back ready. It is going to be the first summer that I will be able to work out so I am going to do everything I can to be back healthy, in shape and ready to go."

Two summers ago, Beaubois fractured his left foot working out with the French national team in preparation for the 2010 World Championships. He missed two-thirds of the 2010-11 season and then re-injured the foot in the season finale and missed the entire playoffs. A second surgery last summer prevented him from returning to the basketball court until training camp opened last December.

His contributions on the court this season were again minimal, spiced by the occasional flashes that had the team believing he was a superstar-in-the-making after his rookie season. Both player and team will now settle for him being a consistent contributor.

"Right now, shoot, he's our starting point guard," president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said during a Monday appearance on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM's Ben & Skin Show. "We're still excited about Roddy. He's one of the fastest young point guards in the NBA and he's still developing, so there's real good upside there."

Take that starting point guard thing in the proper context, of course. Jason Kidd, Delonte West and Jason Terry are all free agents. And of course, the Mavs will looking to snare big fish Deron Williams in free agency come July.

But the fact remains that Beaubois, unless he's scooped into a cap-space-clearing trade, remains a great, young hope for a franchise that selected him 25th overall in the 2009 draft (acquired in a trade with Oklahoma City). Beaubois played the majority of his time this season at point guard, particularly when West was out for six weeks, which has to be viewed as some progress in that difficult transition.

He averaged career highs in points (8.9), assists (2.9) and minutes (21.7).

"I cannot tell you what is going to happen, but obviously I know that this summer is going to be big for me," Beaubois said. "I have to work out a lot and make sure that I am ready because if there if they give me space I will have to be ready for that."

DALLAS – Just to be clear, Jason Kidd doesn’t consider himself to be a backup-caliber point guard at this point of his Hall of Fame career.

PODCAST
Mavs GM Donnie Nelson gives us an inside look at the team's summer plans as the franchise has financial flexibility for the first time in over a decade. Listen

Kidd would just be willing to back up Deron Williams and a “very short” list of other elite point guards.

The lockout-compressed season was rough on the 39-year-old Kidd’s body. He dealt with a variety of nagging injuries while averaging career lows in points (6.2), assists (5.5) and rebounds (4.1).

But Kidd, whose numbers ticked upward to 11.5 points, 6.1 rebounds and 6.0 assists during the Mavs’ brief playoff sprint, is confident he can help a team next season. He’s entering free agency looking for a good fit and a decent deal with a contender, not a bench to ride.

“I’m going campaigning for Most Improved Player next year,” Kidd deadpanned. “You guys are laughing. I’m serious.”

Kidd is completely serious in his belief that he can still contribute to a contender. If that means serving as a backup to an All-Star, Kidd said his ego can handle it.

However, Kidd admits that it would be a major adjustment considering his competitive fire.

“I would probably have to talk to Don Kalkstein a lot,” Kidd said, referring to the Mavs’ sports psychologist. “He helped me get the sportsmanship award, so he can definitely handle that job.”

On a serious note, Kidd said: “If I was young, it would probably be hard. But understanding and making adjustments, as a professional, you have to accept your role, and that's what I've done as I've gotten older, and so if that means coming off the bench, then I can handle that. That's just another challenge, and that's the way I would look at it.”

The challenge for the Mavs’ front office is recruiting a point guard good enough for Kidd to back up.

DALLAS -- It will be interesting to see how teams value certain free agents this summer and the money they're willing to spend with the new collective bargaining agreement in place and harsher penalties for luxury tax spenders beginning in the 2013-14 season.

The Mavericks will be players on the free-agent market for big fish like Deron Williams and also for cheaper labor to fill out the roster. At this point in his career, Jason Kidd will be considered cheap labor, at least by the Mavs. Same goes for Jason Terry.

"I feel like I can still help a team win, and hopefully it's back here," said Kidd, who has expressed interest in relinquishing his starting role if it means backing up Williams.

Does Kidd, 39, have a basement salary figure in mind for next season? Would he accept a veteran's minimum deal or perhaps the mini mid-level that Vince Carter signed in December with the Mavs? Or is there a team willing to pay him more than that?

PODCAST
Mavs GM Donnie Nelson gives us an inside look at the team's summer plans as the franchise has financial flexibility for the first time in over a decade. Listen

Kidd, who posted a career-low numbers across the board this season and dealt with three separate injuries, just completed a three-year deal that paid him in excess of $25 million. In the previous six seasons, he earned between $13 million and a career-high $21 million (2008-09). Kidd has earned more than $180 million in his career.

So how much does the 10-time All-Star and future Hall of Famer think he's worth heading into his final contract, one he said he would like to sign for two years to take him through 20 NBA seasons?

"It's more fit, but hopefully I do have a little value," Kidd said. "I don't want to come cheap or come free, but it's ... The finance part, that always takes care of itself."

How much would you pay Jason Kidd?

DALLAS – Don’t count on Jason Kidd to help recruit Deron Williams to Dallas.

Kidd wouldn’t mind backing up Williams next season, but he doesn’t plan on trying to steer the All-Star point guard to any particular team.

“I won’t have any influence on D-Will’s decision,” Kidd said during Sunday’s exit interviews at the American Airlines Center. “I only joke because we have the same agent and we’ll probably play a lot of golf this summer together, and so [there is] a lot of speculation. But he’s his own man and he’s going to make the right decision for what fits best for him to try to win a championship.”

Kidd will also have a decision to make as a free agent, so as he pointed out, he’s in no position to be a recruiter.

“I’m a free agent, so who am I recruiting?” Kidd said. “No, I will help whatever it takes to recruit, but I’ve got to find a home first.”

Dirk Nowitzki didn’t plan on being eliminated from the playoffs so quickly, so the Mavs' superstar doesn’t have a recruiting pitch for Williams prepared. Nowitzki joked that signing with the Mavs would allow Williams, a Rangers fan, to see his favorite baseball team much more often.

How about what the Mavs have to offer?

“It’s obviously way too early,” Nowitzki said. “It’s May and he knows he’s got a big decision to make. It’s obvious that we’d love to have him, but so would a lot of other teams, so we’ll just have to wait and see what happens there this summer.

“I was fortunate enough to spend some time around him during All-Star games. He’s a great dude and he’s from here, so I think it would be a great fit, but hey, that’s not my decision.”

Shawn Marion kept his recruiting pitch for Williams, a native of nearby The Colony, short and sweet: “Get yo’ ass home. Home is where the heart is.”

DALLAS -- Deron Williams is in a powerful position. The perennial All-Star point guard holds the futures of two franchises in the palm of his hands as he is set to become a free agent on July 1.

Could Williams' destination also be the final stop for Mavericks point guard Jason Kidd, also a free-agent-to-be as he attempts to play two more years and take his career a full 20 seasons?

Kidd on Saturday reiterated his interest in playing with Williams and also had some interesting insights into the fortunes of the new Brooklyn Nets.

“I think going to Brooklyn brings a lot of attention,” Kidd said. “The last professional team there was the Dodgers, so I think they’re going to be very excited. And then with the Russian owner [Mikhail Prokhorov], I mean, he’s not short on money so I think they’re going to go out and make a splash.”

Kidd, who ended this season on a personal high with 16 points, eight assists and seven rebounds in 38 minutes, said he would like to sign a two-year contract to take him through a 20^th season at age 41. He reiterated his interest in taking a backup role to the 27-year-old Williams, who hails from the Dallas area. Kidd and Williams share the same agent, Jeff Schwartz, and Kidd said he and Williams would get together on the golf course during the offseason.

“What’s wrong with that? That’s not a bad guy to help out,” Kidd said. “If it comes to that would not be a bad situation. I know I wouldn’t have to play 30 minutes.”

Kidd said he will listen to Mavs owner Mark Cuban first and that he expects to agree to terms with a team shortly after the July 1 start to the free agency period.

"We'll see what happens and we'll see what the Mavs are talking about first and we'll go from there," Kidd said.

Read the full story here.

DALLAS -- For years prior to winning the title last season, the debate has raged: Should Mark Cuban blow up the Mavericks?

Well, that point might actually be upon the Mavs' owner as his club faces the prospects of being swept out of the first round of the playoffs on the heels of winning it all. Not exactly the way a defending champion wants to go out, but it's a path that Cuban can't claim will have come as a total shock.

The owner decided to dismantle the title team and play the free-agent game in the summer. And once this season comes to a close, whether it melts away tonight or in Game 5 in Oklahoma City on Monday or somewhere stays alive beyond the that, the names on the jerseys are going to change.

Check out the list of names that could be making their final appearances tonight:

* Shawn Marion
* Brendan Haywood
* Delonte West
* Jason Kidd
* Jason Terry
* Rodrigue Beaubois
* Ian Mahinmi
* Brian Cardinal
* Dominique Jones
* Yi Jianlian

The only player guaranteed to be back is Dirk Nowitzki. A few guys would seem likely to be back, such as Vince Carter, who has two more years left on his deal, Brandan Wright, who the Mavs would figure to pick up the team option, and Kelenna Azubuike, who they acquired late in the season and have under contract for next season.

Otherwise it's wide open, and much will depend on where super free-agent-to-be Deron Williams lands. It will be a busy July around here. The Mavs would like to at least keep things going a bit longer in May.

Series: Oklahoma City Thunder leads, 3-0

When: 6:30 p.m.

Where: American Airlines Center

TV: TNT/TXA 21

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

What to watch: Level of play. Coach Rick Carlisle continued to emphasize Saturday morning that the Mavs' effort was up to snuff in Game 3 and that it was their level of play that let them down. In that case, the Mavs' season must hinge on whether they can make baskets, hold onto the basketball and keep the Thunder from making more baskets. If they do that, then they should win and extend the series.

Key matchup: Kevin Durant vs. Shawn Marion
As terrific as Marion's defense was on Durant in the first two games, Durant got off early in Game 3 and scored 21 of his 31 points in the first half. Needless to say, that can't happen again. Marion will turn 34 on Monday. Depending on how well he can defend Durant tonight will determine if he's celebrating another year in Oklahoma City before a Game 5 or while on vacation.

Injuries: Thunder -- G Eric Maynor (torn right ACL) is out. Mavs -- None.

Up next: Game 5 -- Mavs at Thunder, 7 p.m. Monday (if necessary)

When the Mavs signed Vince Carter, they viewed him as the kind of aging offensive player who still had enough skills to help them win a playoff game - or series. You know, kind of like Peja Stojakovic last season against the Lakers.

PODCAST
Charles Barkley explains how he always knew Father Time would catch up with the Mavs. He also says Deron Williams alone won't help the Mavs win a title. Listen

Well, for a quarter it looked like Carter might be able to provide that kind of spark against Oklahoma City.

He scored seven points in the first quarter, including a Vinsanity flashback - he drove through the lane and powered home a one-handed dunk in traffic - and a corner three with nine seconds left in the quarter.

The spurt ended a stretch of seven consecutive points that pulled the Mavs within 32-26, entering the second quarter.

He didn’t score again.

Carter finished two of eight from the field in 27 minutes in Dallas' 95-79 loss.

We shouldn’t really be surprised.

The Mavs have eight players in their 30s, and it showed during Game 3 and the season. Their bodies didn’t respond to the NBA’s compact schedule - 66 games in 123 days - and they haven’t been able to get all of their older guys playing well at the same time in the playoffs.

That’s what happens to older players. They lose the consistency that made them stars in their prime. They can dominate for spurts as Carter did for a few minutes in Game 3, but it’s difficult for them to maintain that high level of performance for a game or a series.

Here are three more areas of interest heading into Friday:

Three-headed center: Once again, the Mavs received virtually nothing from the center position and it played a role in their demise. Brendan Haywood, Ian Mahinmi and Brandan Wright combined to score nine points and grab eight rebounds in 30 minutes, but had no positive impact on the game. Haywood, the starting center, played just seven minutes.

Jason Kidd: The NBA's quintessential point guard is a facilitator by nature, but the Mavs’ stagnant offense turned him into a shooter in Game 3. That’s never, ever a good sign. Kidd, who made just four of 18 shots in the series’ first two games, finished second on the team with 12 points, while taking a season-high 12 shots. Kidd made two of his six three-point attempts. When Kidd is that involved in shooting and scoring, the Mavs rarely win.

Jason Terry has no impact: After three games, Jason Terry has had one great half, and that occurred in Game 1. He’s been a non-factor in the other five halves of this series. Terry scored 11 points on three of 12 shooting with six assists and three rebounds, but Mark Cuban pays him to score. Without his scoring, the Mavs had no chance.

DALLAS – The Mavs would be up 2-0 in this series if the NBA played 10-minute quarters.

Unfortunately for the defending champions, that isn’t the quarters. NBA quarters last a dozen minutes, and the Mavs have been getting killed by the Thunder in the final couple minutes of those frames.

PODCAST
Senior NBA writer Marc Stein shares his thoughts on Game 3 between the Mavs and Thunder. Who needs to step up for the Mavs to win other than Dirk or Jet? Listen

With the two games decided by a total of four points, the difference in the series so far is that the Mavs have crumbled in crunch time while the Thunder have thrived. Oklahoma City outscored the Mavs by a 10-4 margin in the final two minutes of Game 1 and 6-2 in the final two minutes of Game 2.

But it’s not just the fourth quarter. Oklahoma City has outscored the Mavs by a 52-29 margin in the final two minutes of the eight quarters in this series.

“All these things are just attention-to-detail things,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “Then you’ve got to make shots or you’ve got to put yourself in position to not foul or whatever the case may be. Ends of quarters in NBA games are difficult. Guys are skilled; they make plays. So you’ve got to be solid.”

Series: Oklahoma City Thunder leads, 2-0

When: 8:30 p.m.

Where: American Airlines Center

TV: TNT/TXA 21

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

What to watch: Can the Mavs get buckets in crunch time? Give the Thunder credit for closing, but the Mavs have also blown opportunities. The biggest culprit has been Dirk Nowitzki, who was such a dominant closer during the Mavs’ championship run last year. He committed two turnovers in the final 90 seconds of Game 1. In Game 2, Nowitzki missed a wide-open 3-pointer and had a baseline fadeaway roll around the rim and out. “It still comes down the stretch to make some big shots,” Nowitzki said.

Key matchup: Dallas defense vs. Russell Westbrook – Will Rick Carlisle make a major adjustment or just hope that Westbrook stops making so many midrange jumpers? Westbrook, one of the NBA’s most explosive penetrating threats, has lit up the Mavs primarily by shooting over Delonte West and Jason Kidd. Switching defensive stopper Shawn Marion onto Westbrook (28.5 points on 52.3 percent shooting in the series), but that would present a major problem defending three-time NBA scoring champ Kevin Durant. Marion said he will start the game on Durant again.

Injuries: Thunder – G Eric Maynor (torn right ACL) is out.

Up next: Game 4 – Thunder at Mavs, 6:30 p.m. Saturday

DALLAS -- The young and athletically gifted Oklahoma City Thunder lead the old-and-slow Dallas Mavericks 2-zip in this best-of-7 series, but it's not as if these baby ballers have stomped their Nikes on the throats of the Geritol gang.

PODCAST
Derek Harper explains what the Mavs need to do in order to climb out of their 2-0 series hole against the Thunder. Listen

"At this level and this time of the year, age, I think, it is also a plus. Experience is definitely something that counts," said Thunder shooting guard Thabo Sefolosha, a virtual old-timer on this squad at age 28. "But at the same time we want to pick the pace up and keep running, getting some stops and getting some easy baskets."

As the series shifts to the American Airlines Center for tonight's Game 3, the Mavs will seek a bit of karma-turning luck. In Game 1, Kevin Durant hit a 15-foot, off-balance shot over Shawn Marion to win it with 1.4 seconds to go. In Game 2, the Mavs rallied from a 16-point hole in the second quarter, but couldn't complete the comeback when Dirk Nowitzki's baseline jumper bounced around the rim and off.

The No. 2 seed Thunder could easily have found themselves in a hole as they hit the road, but coach Scott Brooks said he's not concerned that that his team, whose four best players are under the age of 24, wasn't more dominant on its home floor and in front of one of the loudest crowds in the league.

"We don't look at them as old guys. We're looking at them as a very good team, the defending champions," Brooks said. "I don't know how many guys they have from their championship team, but I know they've got their top four or five guys -- you have Dirk (Nowitzki), you have Jason (Kidd), (Jason) Terry, Shawn Marion, (Brendan) Haywood -- and that's a good basketball team. I don't look at them as a seventh seed, I look at them as the defending champs that are going to continue to fight.

"Every game has been down to the last couple of minutes and I expect that to happen the rest of the series."

DALLAS -- Mavericks point guard Jason Kidd won the 2011-12 NBA Sportsmanship award, the league announced Thursday morning.

The award, designed to honor a player who best represents the ideals of sportsmanship on the court, is voted on by NBA players. Kidd was selected as a regional finalist last month along with leveland’s Antawn Jamison, the Los Angeles Clippers’ Chris Paul, Miami’s Shane Battier, Minnesota’s Luke Ridnour and New York’s Jeremy Lin.

Former NBA players Greg Anthony, John Crotty, Antonio Davis, Eddie Johnson and Kenny Smith selected the six divisional winners from a pool of 30 team nominees. Each team nominated one of its players for this award.

The annual award reflects the ideals of sportsmanship -- ethical behavior, fair play and integrity -- in amateur and professional basketball, a key focus of the league’s NBA Cares program efforts.

Kidd, in his 18th season, won the award for the first time.

ALL-TIME NBA SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD WINNERS
Inaugural: Joe Dumars (1996)
1996-97: Terrell Brandon, Cleveland
1997-98: Avery Johnson, San Antonio
1998-99: Hersey Hawkins, Seattle
1999-00: Eric Snow, Philadelphia
2000-01: David Robinson, San Antonio
2001-02: Steve Smith, San Antonio
2002-03: Ray Allen, Seattle
2003-04: P.J. Brown, New Orleans
2004-05: Grant Hill, Orlando
2005-06: Elton Brand, Los Angeles Clippers
2006-07: Luol Deng, Chicago
2007-08: Grant Hill, Phoenix Suns
2008-09: Chauncey Billups, Denver Nuggets
2009-10: Grant Hill, Phoenix Suns
2010-11: Stephen Curry, Golden State
2011-12: Jason Kidd, Dallas Mavericks

DALLAS – For the most part, the Mavericks have done a decent job executing their defensive strategy on Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook.

He’s lit them up anyway, averaging 28.5 points on 52.3 percent shooting in the first two games of this series.

The question now is whether the Mavs make significant strategic adjustments or just hope Westbrook stops making so many midrange jump shots.

According to NBA.com’s advanced statistics, Westbrook is 14-of-26 on midrange jumpers in the series and only 5-of-11 on shots from inside the restricted area. By comparison, Westbrook shot 41.4 percent from midrange and 58.6 percent from inside the restricted area during the regular season, attempting virtually the same amount of shots from the two zones.

“You’ve got to pick your poison,” said Delonte West, who has started both games on Westbrook. “He’s got an explosive first step. He’s not an All-Star for no reason. Based on the past, you can live with him shooting contested jump shots. What you don’t want to do is open up the lane and give him driving lanes where he can score, pass, get fouled and get some momentum plays.

“I’ll guess we’ll live and die with contested jump shots.”

The problem is it’s tough for a guard like West or Jason Kidd to contest Westbrook’s shot because the freakishly athletic 23-year-old gets up so high. As expected, coach Rick Carlisle is playing any potential adjustments close to the vest, but he acknowledges that one possibility is using 6-foot-7 defensive stopper Shawn Marion on Westbrook more often.

That, of course, would open up a whole other set of problems with NBA scoring leader Kevin Durant, who the Mavs have held to 34.1 percent shooting in the series with Marion doing most of the dirty work.

Would Vince Carter start instead of West and defend Durant? Stick with the same lineup and ask Kidd to guard a superstar who is listed at 5 inches taller and 16 years younger?

“We’ve got to find a way to make him a little more uncomfortable,” Dirk Nowitzki said. “He’s just dribbling up and raising up at the foul line. There’s nothing you can do, because if you guard him with smaller guys – with Kidd or West – he jumps like 40 inches on his shot and you can’t touch it. He just raises up over them and gets it in.

“Yeah, it’s tough. But we’ve got to do a better job of making him a little uncomfortable.”

And hope Westbrook reverts to form from midrange.

DALLAS – The defending NBA champion Dallas Mavericks have reached a point of desperation after just two playoff games.

Sixth man Jason Terry, the longtime voice of the Mavs’ locker room, made that clear as he exited the team’s practice court Wednesday, stopping halfway up the staircase to make a sole statement to the media.

“Game 3 is like Game 7,” Terry said. “Thank you very much.”

The Mavs find themselves in this position after failing to close out the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first two games of the series. The Thunder, who were eliminated by the Mavs in five games in last season’s Western Conference finals, won Games 1 and 2 by at Chesapeake Energy Arena by a combined four points.

The Mavs’ hopes go from slim to virtually none if they fail to win Game 3 at the American Airlines Center. No team has ever come back from an 0-3 deficit in an NBA playoff series. There are 99 teams that have tried and failed in best-of-7 series.

Mavs point guard Jason Kidd attempted to downplay the team’s concern about the situation, but the two longest-tenured Mavericks acknowledged that it’s a win-or-else approach for Thursday night’s game.

“I think that the odds are obviously very stacked against you,” Dirk Nowitzki said when asked if he agreed with Terry’s statement. “It’s definitely a big game if we want to have a chance to make this a series.

“We’re looking forward to a great home crowd. We’ve had two days off to get some rest and look at some stuff and get better today. Hopefully, we’ll play our best game yet and execute a little better down the stretch and squeeze one out and put some pressure on them and make it a series.”

Teams that fall behind 0-2 are only 14-226 in best-of-7 series in NBA history. However, Terry and Nowitzki have experience on both sides of those rare comebacks.

The Mavs rallied from an 0-2 deficit to defeat the Houston Rockets in the 2005 first round, when Terry was the hero of the series. The Mavs lost the 2006 Finals to the Miami Heat after winning the first two games, a crushing defeat they avenged by clinching last season’s title in Miami.

Nowitzki was also part of a comeback from an 0-2 hole in a best-of-5 series, when the Mavs beat the Jazz in the first playoff series of his career.

As far as coach Rick Carlisle is concerned, the Mavs’ mission is to return to Oklahoma City with the series deadlocked.

“We need to win two games,” Carlisle said. “That’s our job now that we’re back home. Game 3 is very important. There’s no denying that.”