ESPN

During his pregame news conference, Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle won't confirm that backup point guard J.J. Barea will move into the starting lineup over DeShawn Stevenson for Game 4 of the NBA Finals.

"I'm not going to confirm that," was all Carlisle would say when asked about making a change in the lineup.

A source told ESPNDallas that Barea will start Game 4 to help the Mavericks offense.

Stevenson has shot well during the Finals (6-of-9 from 3-point range), but the Mavericks have been outscored by 17 points during his 50 minutes on the floor.

Barea, who is averaging just 4.3 points per game, is shooting 21.7 percent from the floor.

"Our starting unit has done well at times," Carlisle said. "I just think with our team the way we're structured we bring a lot of our better guys off the bench."

Jason Terry seemed surprised to hear a question about his struggles.

The Mavericks' sixth man responded by telling the reporter he didn't know what he was talking about and might need to watch the film.

But the fact is Terry is shooting a dismal 38 percent from the field in the NBA Finals.

And in discussions about other Mavericks helping Dirk Nowitzki -- who scored a game-high 34 points in a Game 3 loss to the Miami Heat on Sunday -- Terry's name and that of fellow guard J.J. Barea come up.

In Game 3, Terry shot 5-of-13 and scored 15 points. Barea, who has dazzled teams with his drives to the basket, went 2-for-8 from the floor.

"Inconsistent" is the word Terry came up with when asked about the bench play. "We've been very inconsistent,. Obviously, offensively is where we like to get in the paint and finish plays, and we haven't done that. A lot of that falls on my shoulders, and so again in Game 4, I will be real aggressive. I have to be for us to be successful."

In the last five minutes of Sunday's game, Terry missed critical shots.

With his team trailing 84-78, he missed a 3-pointer and, after an offensive rebound by Nowitzki, got the ball back and missed a floater.

Terry had another attempt, this time with the game tied at 86 and about a minute to play, but missed a 21-foot jumper from the corner, and Chris Bosh scored on the other end for the lead.

"We have to make baskets," veteran guard Jason Kidd said. "We had some great looks that didn't go down for us, especially late in the game. So we have to continue to take those wide-open looks, and hopefully in Game 4 they go down for us."

During the regular season, Terry averaged 15.8 points and shot 45 percent from the floor. But he struggled toward the end of the season, shooting less than 40 percent in five of his last 10 games in which he logged double-digits in minutes. In the postseason, Terry came alive. He shot 58.7 percent in the Western Conference semifinals against the Los Angeles Lakers, getting 23 and 32 points in Games 3 and 4, respectively.

But it seems Terry has fallen back to earth a little. He shot 36.9 percent in the conference finals despite two games in which he scored at least 20 points.

Through the first three games of the Finals, he's missed missed seven, six and eight shots. And he is battling a bone bruise to his right wrist suffered in Game 1.

But he won't use it as an excuse. He gave credit to the Heat for giving him different looks on defense Sunday night.

"A lot of my looks are contested, but hey, it’s the NBA Finals and they’re going to contest every shot," Terry said. "And hey, we have to be more and more aggressive, and we’ll see what happens."

There also was a thought that Barea would be an X factor for the Mavericks in this series. In a three-game stretch from the Western Conference semifinals to the conference finals, Barea scored 22, 21 and 11 points.

Since then, he has struggled.

He is getting to the basket but isn't converting. And Sunday night, he missed four of five 3-point shots. In three games in the NBA Finals, Barea is shooting 3-for-15.

"I think had some open looks, especially [some] 3s, and they felt great and some were long and some were short. They just didn't go down for me," Barea said. "I'm going to keep shooting them. This team needs me to make shots, and everybody needs to make open shots, and we kinda struggled with that tonight."

DALLAS -- Rick Carlisle forgot to ask for my advice regarding Wednesday's starting lineup, so I figured I'd publish it here for him to read at his convenience.

With Shawn Marion out, Caron Butler slides to small forward. Carlisle has a few options at shooting guard.

He's likely to go with proven veteran Jason Terry, although he might opt to keep Jet in the sixth man role. Rookie Rodrigue Beaubois would be a popular choice. JJ Barea has played well in the last couple of games. But DeShawn Stevenson gets my recommendation.

It's painfully obvious that defense has been a big problem recently for Dallas. Aside from Marion, Stevenson is the Mavs' best defensive stopper.

How about siccing Stevenson on Memphis star O.J. Mayo to start the game?

DALLAS – As great as Jason Kidd was, it took a kid getting off the bench to shift momentum in the Mavs’ favor in Tuesday night’s win over the Clippers.

Rookie Rodrigue Beaubois, whose stints on the floor have been rare recently, seized this opportunity when summoned by coach Rick Carlisle.

“We needed quickness, energy and scoring,” Carlisle said.

It took mere seconds for Beaubois to provide that, as he knocked down a corner 3-pointer on the first possession after finally removing his warm-ups late in the third quarter. He added a pretty floater soon thereafter for a personal 5-0 run that gave the Mavs the lead.

Dallas took the lead for good when Beaubois soared toward the rafters on the opening possession of the fourth quarter, snagging a backdoor lob from Kidd and throwing it down hard with two hands, igniting the AAC crowd and igniting his teammates with energy that sparked a 22-3 run.

“I never know when I’m going to get in, so I just have to be ready,” Beaubois said after scoring 10 points in 15 minutes. “It’s not easy. It’s difficult. But when I go on the court, I know I have to bring some energy.”

Beaubois has become a fan favorite despite racking up more than twice as many DNP-CDs as double-digit scoring games. It’s easy to become infatuated with the Mavs’ most dynamic athlete. The glimpses of his potential whet MFFLs’ appetite for more on the French import. DallasBasketball.com fans the flames with its Free Roddy B campaign.

But Beaubois continues to float in and out of Carlisle’s rotation … and it’s been mostly out since Jason Terry returned from facial surgery. Yet Carlisle constantly praises the 22-year-old’s progress.

“His all-around awareness and game continues to evolve,” Carlisle said. “He’s been best when he plays off the ball as a scorer besides Jason and even besides Barea at times. At the point position, he’s had good stretches and other times there’s a learning curve. I like him. I’m a fan. I’m a supporter.”

Key phrase, as far as the rotation is concerned: “Best when he plays off the ball.”

Right now, Carlisle sees Beaubois as an explosive option at shooting guard who is learning how to play point guard. The problem with that is there aren’t many available minutes at the 2 with Caron Butler and Terry sharing that job.

Right now, Carlisle clearly trusts JJ Barea more than Beaubois to be the backup point guard. With 11 games left, that isn’t likely to change before the playoffs, although Carlisle consistently says he could go with either player.

For now, Beaubois’ playing opportunities will probably continue to be few and far between. All the kid can do is continue to make the most out of them.

DENVER – Rodrigue Beaubois might be “pretty much untouchable” in Mark Cuban’s eyes, but that doesn’t mean the rookie is guaranteed a spot in the rotation.

Cuban declared that Beaubois was all but off-limits in trade talks Monday evening then sat within a few feet of the first-round pick for most of the game.

Beaubois played a minute and change during the Mavericks’ win over the Golden State Warriors. He picked up two quick fouls after checking in during the first quarter and never got back in the game, as coach Rick Carlisle opted to go with JJ Barea due to his edge in experience.

“There are going to be nights like this when I have to make a tough decision,” Carlisle said. “But Roddy is a guy that we’re still counting on. “

Other than being trade bait due to his expiring contract, Josh Howard has basically become irrelevant to the Dallas Mavericks.

The best thing the Mavs can say about Howard is that he is being professional about his drastically reduced playing time. Just how few minutes Howard has earned is stunning, considering his recent status as a franchise cornerstone.

Howard played a season-low 11 minutes in Monday's loss to the Utah Jazz. Eleven. He had two points, three rebounds, two turnovers and three fouls in that span.

The Mavericks call Howard their sixth man, but it's clear that the coaches have more trust in reserves Drew Gooden and JJ Barea at this point.

Jason Terry spiced up the TNT broadcast with a brutally honest, bold statement about the Phoenix Suns during his halftime interview.

"We've got to score on these guys,” Terry said. “They're not very good defensively. We've got to make them pay."

The Mavericks did a fine job of that … until the fourth quarter started.

The Mavs need a strong offensive finish to overcome a sorry defensive performance. They managed to score a grand total of 16 points in the final frame of a 112-106 loss in Phoenix.

Dallas didn’t get a fourth-quarter bucket from its two go-to guys. Dirk Nowitzki went scoreless in the fourth, when he attempted only one shot. Terry was 0-of-3 from the floor, with his only points coming on a pair of free throws.

Dirk and Jet, who each had 19 points through the third, rank among the NBA’s leaders in fourth-quarter scoring this season, but they were basically crunch-time spectators Thursday night, watching J.J. Barea dribble against a bad defensive team.

DALLAS -- The rookie has a chance to seize a role.

Jason Terry states it much stronger than that. Terry, a starter again after a season-and-a-half stint as the sixth man, says Rodrigue Beaubois better be ready to fill his former role as instant offense and energy off the bench.

Josh Howard is the Mavs' sixth man now. But Beaubois could get the majority of the backup minutes at shooting guard, playing time that had been JJ Barea's. He played a dozen minutes in Tuesday night's win over the Bucks, scoring eight points on 3-of-6 shooting.

"More important than Josh is going to be the rookie," Terry said. "The rookie steps instantly into my shoes. You see what he provides. He’s a spark. He gets up and down the court quick. He may make a mistake, but he’s going to make more good things happen."

The hope at the AAC is that Beaubois can someday replace Jason Kidd at point guard when the Hall of Famer finally retires. But Beaubois' opportunity right now comes at the 2, where he doesn't have to make as many decisions and can focus his offensive energy on filling it up. His athleticism, perimeter shooting stroke and ability to penetrate makes him a unique scoring threat for the Mavs.

"We need him," Terry said. "We need him because he’s young, he’s energetic. He gives you that fire. He’s going to cause hell on the other team."

Roddy Beaubois stuffed the box score in the epic rout of the Knicks yesterday. He took advantage of his first significant stretch of playing time in more than a month by totaling 13 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals in 24 minutes. And he produced a highlight getting all sorts of SportsCenter airtime with his spinning, over-the-head, and-1 flip.

But Beaubois also showed why Rick Carlisle doesn't trust him to run the team, even as a backup point guard. Five turnovers in 24 minutes? Yikes.

Beaubois' carelessness with the ball wasn't a problem Sunday, when the Knicks were apparently more interested in watching the AFC championship game than playing the Mavs. But the Mavs can't afford a rookie learning on the job at point guard while they fight for playoff positioning in the ultracompetitive Western Conference.

That's why, when Jason Kidd is available, Beaubois' burn at point guard will continue to come in garbage time.

Of course, a pretty strong case can be made that Carlisle ought to give JJ Barea's minutes at the 2 to the longer, quicker, better-shooting, higher-jumping, more dynamic Beaubois. But those minutes are few and far between when Josh Howard is healthy.