ESPN

DALLAS -- If anyone needs the All-Star break, it's Shawn Marion. Badly. The man is exhausted.

After successfully chasing Kobe Bryant for 37 minutes Wednesday night, the latest in a mammoth, eight-game defensive grinder, Marion, the lone Dallas Maverick to play in all 34 games prior to the All-Star break and the indisputable first-half MVP, is deserving of and desperately in need of a recharge.

"Honestly, It’s been really, really, really bad for me," Marion said after the Lakers' 96-91 win in which Marion pressured Bryant into more turnovers (seven) than he made baskets (four). "It hit me in Philly (last Friday); I was tired, I was beat up. It’s not easy trying to fight off and contain these little fast guys and guys who get all these shots up, and I ain’t 27 no more, 25 years old no more. I’m going to do what I can to sustain it and make sure I put ourselves in a position to guard them better."

Since Jason Kidd's return to the lineup at Minnesota on Feb. 10, and because coach Rick Carlisle chose to continue to start Vince Carter at shooting guard instead of re-inserting feisty defender Delonte West, Marion has been charged with not only defending the league's top wing players, but manning up on quicker point guards that Kidd and Carter simply can't keep up with.

West fractured his finger on Feb. 15 and Roddy Beaubois has been away from the team for a week, losses that have exacerbated the backcourt mismatches. The 6-foot-7 Marion is easily the only small forward in the league that can claim a two-week stretch defending Ricky Rubio, Chris Paul, Ty Lawson, Jrue Holiday and Lou Williams, Jeremy Lin, Paul Pierce (in lieu of suspended Rajon Rondo) and then finally Kobe.

Those assignments have boosted his minutes and put a strain on his offense. He's logged between 36 and 38 hard, two-way minutes in three of the last four games, and has averaged 33.5 minutes over his last eight. Marion, 33, caught two breaks with blowouts over two depleted teams, Denver and Boston. Those are the only two games in the last eight in which he's played fewer than 30 minutes.

His offensive game paid the price Wednesday when the Mavs could have used more. He missed 10-of-13 shots and had eight points, yet still corralled eight boards, six offensive. It was the third time he scored in single figures during the eight-game stretch. By the time Marion finished fighting through muscled-up Lakers screens, the last thing he wanted to focus on was the nine games in 12 nights Dallas will play starting Tuesday.

"It’s tough, it’s very tough," Carlisle said, who reflected back on his playing days with the Celtics. "This was always one of the things Kevin McHale always used to joke about and complain about is that [Larry] Bird would be on one end hitting shots on a guy and talking trash to him and then McHale would have to guard that guy on the other end. And when you shoulder the kind of defensive responsibilities that we’re asking Shawn to shoulder, it’s going to take a toll on your offense and every night somebody’s got one of those perimeter players, it doesn't matter who it is."

Marion played "really exceptional" defense, as Carlisle described it, on Bryant, who has scored 29 total points in two games against Marion and the Mavs, equaling his league-leading season average. Marion stripped him in a late-shot clock situation in the third quarter that led to a Dirk Nowitzki 3-pointer. He forced a travel in the fourth by suffocating Byrant along the sideline and then he forced a bad pass.

Bryant finished the game 4-of-15 from the field with 15 points and is 11-of-37 in the two meetings. Yet, the Mavs haven't managed enough offense to win either.

Carlisle has tough decisions to make before the Mavs return to practice on Monday. West's injury complicates things and might hamstring Carlisle from making changes, but the coach has to wonder how much more he can ask of Marion defensively on a nightly basis. When West returns, Carlisle might have no choice but start West and bring Carter off the bench so that West can start games against most opposing point guards.

"The way it’s been going, he’s going to be on that guy," Carlisle said of Marion. "I’d like to give him a break sometimes, but on a night like tonight when we’re down and we’ve got no [Lamar] Odom, we’ve got no Beaubois, we’ve got no West...getting ourselves whole is a lot of what this is going to be about."

Except West won't be ready when the Mavs begin another monster stretch on Tuesday. And Marion, for better or worse, will assume the brunt of it.

How it happened: The Dallas defense bounced back from a rare poor performance by shutting down a Boston team that is bad offensively even with Rajon Rondo and Kevin Garnett.

With Rondo and Garnett unavailable, this was an easy win for the Mavericks over the Celtics, who have lost six of their last seven games.

The Mavs got another dominant performance from Dirk Nowitzki (26 points, 16 rebounds) and a nice night from Jason Terry (16 points, 6-11 FG) and didn’t need much else from an offensive standpoint.

The Mavs, whose 10-game streak of holding opponents to less than 100 points was snapped in Sunday’s loss to the New York Knicks, smothered the Celtics defensively for the first three quarters. Boston had 53 points and 14 turnovers entering the fourth quarter, which was essentially all garbage time.

What it means: The Mavs beat up Boston’s B team. It’s Dallas’ seventh win in eight games, but it’s difficult to give a win over the Celtics any grand meaning when Garnett and Rondo aren’t even in the building.

Play of the game: If there’s such a thing as a dagger early in the third quarter, Dirk’s uncontested 3-pointer from the right wing qualifies. Jason Kidd fired a cross-court out-of-bounds pass to Nowitzki, whom the Celtics somehow neglected to cover. Nowitzki took a dribble, measured the shot and knocked it down to give the Mavs an 18-point lead with a few minutes into the second half.

Stat of the night: Nowitzki and Paul Pierce, the man picked immediately after Dirk in the 1998 draft, were polar opposites in the plus-minus category. Nowitzki was plus-27, Pierce minus-27.

DALLAS -- This is really just unfair. The Celtics have lost two more players, Jermaine O'Neal and Chris Wilcox, to injury as the Mavs continued to ramp up the lead.

Dirk Nowitzki has a game-high 26 points and 11 rebounds in 25 minutes. Shawn Marion, who ended the quarter with a sweet reverse tip-in, has 11 points, as does Jason Terry.

The Celtics are being led by Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, both of whom have 15 points. Boston has not scored more than 19 points in any quarter.

DALLAS -- Jason Kidd stole Ray Allen's pass into the paint midway through the quarter to give Kidd his 2,515th career steal, pushing him past Michael Jordan to become No. 2 on the NBA's all-time steals list.

The theft led to a Dirk Nowitzki jumper that was part of 10 consecutive points scored by the big German. He finished the half with 21 points and 10 rebounds.

Sounds like all fun and games, but as poorly as the massively undermanned Celtics are playing, Dallas might think it should be leading by more than 10. Boston, playing without starters Rajon Rondo and Kevin Garnett, plus reserve forward Brandon Bass, are shooting 40.5 percent. The Mavs aren't doing much better at 40.9 percent, which means no one besides Dirk is doing much on the offensive end.

OK, Jason Terry is 3-of-4 with two 3s for eight points.

But, to the point, Dirk is 8-of-18 from the floor and the rest of the team is 10-of-26 for 23 points.

Paul Pierce leads Boston with 11 points. Allen and Texas-ex Avery Bradley have eight points each.

DALLAS -- The severely undermanned Boston Celtics managed to stay in it early by doing what they do best -- not allowing many points. They don't score many either and with playmaker extraordinaire Rajon Rondo suspended, don't expect a lot of points.

Dirk Nowitzki has seven points and that vaulted him to No. 20 on the NBA's all-time scoring list. He also recorded his 1,000th career block.

The Celtics went 6-of-20 from the field, just better than Dallas' 9-of-24.

Brendan Haywood and Dominique Jones each have four points. Paul Pierce and Texas-ex Avery Bradley both have six points.

Rick Carlisle has had a knack for timely ejections in leading the Dallas Mavericks and Wednesday's early third-quarter hysterics proved to be a game-changer.

Carlisle had seen enough of Boston Celtics forward Kevin Garnett climbing all over his superstar Dirk Nowitzki without a whistle, so when it happened again less than two minutes into the third quarter, a furious Carlisle stomped all the way down court until he was practically standing in front of the Celtics' bench.

Waving and pointing and shouting at second-year referee Josh Tiven, Carlisle had to be restrained, almost unsuccessfully, by assistant coach Terry Stotts. Tiven fired back with with consecutive technical fouls to give Carlisle the early exit. At the time, Dallas had let a lead slip away and Boston was up three and then five after the technical free throws were good.

"It's my opinion, but Kevin Garnett shouldn't be allowed to bear hug Dirk coming off the screen," Carlisle said after the 90-85 victory, the Mavs' third in a row to run their record to 6-5 and over .500 for the first time this season. "I wanted to make my point. If it costs me a few dollars so be it."

Once Carlisle made his way to the locker room, energy returned to the wilting Mavs. They went on a 24-6 run and turned a five-point deficit into a 66-53 lead.

Boston would rally and tie it on a late Paul Pierce 3-pointer, but Dirk Nowitzki, who had nine of his 16 points in the fourth quarter, had the last laugh on Garnett by getting around him and converting a difficult drive and foul for a three-point play the old-fashioned way with about five second to go.

"It's a fun situation to be in," Nowitzki said of the game-winning possession. "Everybody's looking at you and your team really depends on you, so I like to be in the position where I can make something happen."

Credit Carlisle with the assist.

You'll be hard-pressed to find a game this season that includes so many of the league's all-time scorers on one floor. In tonight's game between the Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics, features five of the top seven active scorers in the NBA – Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Vince Carter.

Here's a look at where they rank among active players and their career points:

1. Kobe Bryant - 28,192

2. Kevin Garnett - 23,426

3. Dirk Nowitzki - 22,981

4. Ray Allen - 22,429

5. Tim Duncan - 21,781

6. Paul Pierce - 21,486

7. Vince Carter - 20,611

DALLAS -- When Peja Stojakovic joined the Dallas Mavericks in January, it gave them the rare trio of players that ranked among the top eight of NBA all-time 3-point shooters -- No. 3 Jason Kidd, No. 4 Stojakovic and No. 8 Jason Terry.

With Stojakovic announcing his retirement Monday after 13 seasons, he will leave the game having made 1,760 shots from downtown. However, he won't be staying at No. 4 for long. Five players behind Stojakovic and in top 10 are active and three -- No. 5 Chauncey Billups (1,735), No. 7 Rashard Lewis (1,674) and Terry (1,650) could all pass Stojakovic this season.

No. 9 Paul Pierce (1,578) and No. 10 Steve Nash (1,565) will move past Stojakovic if each plays two more seasons.

Kidd (1,795), just 35 made 3s ahead of Stojakovic, is safe for now.

The shortened 66-game schedule could cut it close for Terry. He needs to drain 111 3-pointers to pass Stojakovic. Terry made 127 from long range in 82 games last season. Three time in the past six seasons, Terry has finished with at least 162 bombs in as few as 74 games.

As for two sharpshooters as teammates, May 8, 2011 will live forever on You Tube. That was Game 4 of the stunning sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers. Terry buried 9-of-10 from beyond the arc and scored a game-high 32 points, and Stojakovic was a perfect 6-of-6 for 21 points in the 122-86 rout.

That game would prove to be Stojakovic's curtain call of sorts. In the Western Conference finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder and then the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat, Stojakovic just couldn't keep up defensively and was a non-factor, making just five 3s in the last nine postseason games he would play.

But, in that monumental Lakers series, Stojakovic came off the bench to bury 11-0f-21 from deep and averaged 12.5 points.

New Mavs forward and former Los Angeles Laker Lamar Odom recalled that game and the series, saying, "It was a barrage."

And Stojakovic was a prime gunner.

Dallas Mavericks center Tyson Chandler still doesn't know where he'll play basketball next season, but he does have quite the itinerary for the next two weeks.

Chandler will join a star-studded cast of NBA players on a whirlwind adventure of six planned exhibition games played on four continents starting Sunday in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The World All-Star Classic is then scheduled to barnstorm London, Macau and Melbourne, Australia all in a span of 10 days.

However, ESPN The Magazine's Chris Broussard reported Wednesday that LeBron James, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony have backed out of the globe-trotting trip and that could end the tour after the initial stop in San Juan -- and it increasingly appears that San Juan will be the lone stop. Still expected to be on the voyage is Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, Amare Stoudemire, Blake Griffin, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo.

Chandler, who has been playing pickup games in L.A. with a variety of NBA players, is hopeful the whole deal goes down.

"I’m looking forward to it," Chandler said Wednesday from his home in Southern California. "I’ve never been to London and I’ve never been to Australia. I’m looking forward to getting to play again with some great talent and the opportunity to see new lands."

If the tour does make it to all four destinations, Chandler will log more than 26,000 air miles and 50 to 60 hours of flying time from liftoff in L.A. on Saturday bound for San Juan to London to Macau to Melbourne and back to L.A.

The players, who are being well-compensated to participate, could find themselves in a bit of a pickle if the world tour manages to go the full distance and somehow the NBA and players association manage to get a labor deal done during talks that renewed Wednesday in New York. A resolution and quick start to training camp could be an issue after such a physically draining trip.

Chandler said he has paid close attention to the negotiations and has spoken several times with union chief Billy Hunter and NBA union president Derek Fisher, and has attended union meetings.

The 7-foot-1 center, who breathed new life into an aging Mavs team that won the franchise's first NBA title, said he believes the lockout is fully in the hands of the owners. He believes the owners are split among common market size and that their internal divide is not allowing the process to move forward.

"I really feel it’s up to the owners at this point. We put an incredible deal on the table and they put their deal on the table and said take it or leave it, so we had to leave it," said Chandler, who will become one of the most sought-after free agents and a top priority of the Mavs to re-sign whenever the lockout is lifted. "Honestly, I feel like it’s between them. Different owners want different things. Personally, I believe that within the ranks they have differing opinions, but have to be as one during negotiations.

"At some point they have to do what’s right for the entire game. Right now, what’s going on is not what’s best for either side."

SALT LAKE CITY -- Corey Brewer and Dominique Jones were the last two Dallas Mavericks on the Energy Solutions Arena floor as the rest of the team headed for the bus.

Brewer and Jones were shooting with coach Rick Carlisle. Jones, who is recovering nicely from a broken foot, knows he won't be playing any time soon. Brewer can only wonder.

The 6-foot-9 small forward apparently won't get a chance tonight against the depleted Utah Jazz. As of the morning shootaround, Brewer said his understanding is that he will be inactive for a second consecutive game. It will mean that in the last nine games, Brewer will have either been inactive or a DNP-CD (Did Not Play-Coach's Decision), five times. In the other four games, he played a total of 41 minutes.

"It's tough, yeah," said Brewer, who joined the Mavs on March 3 and has played in seven of 11 games. "But, that's the NBA."

Brewer chose to come to the Mavs and signed a three-year contract. Upon being traded from Minnesota to New York and then being released by the Knicks, at least a half-dozen teams showed immediate interest in signing him, including the Boston Celtics, San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder.

Brewer's second choice?

"Celtics," Brewer said.

How might things have been different for Brewer had he gone to Beantown? It's impossible to know. The Celtics traded at the deadline for forward Jeff Green, a front-line starter for the Thunder who now plays 22 minutes a game off the bench behind Paul Pierce.

The Mavs will have 10 games left after tonight, so time for Brewer to earn playing time prior to the playoffs is shrinking. Add the fact that the team will have little practice time during this six-game road trip and Brewer will have few opportunities to make a greater impression.

With Shawn Marion and Peja Stojakovic both healthy, suddenly there's little room at a position that had been a swinging door ever since Caron Butler went down Jan. 1.

For a long, lanky forward who figured to give the Mavs another defensive option against wing scorers, Brewer certainly didn't expect to come in and start.

He also didn't think he would be wearing a suit on the bench.

DALLAS -- The most dominant Big 3 in recent seasons, to no surprise, belongs to the Boston Celtics. Since Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen joined Paul Pierce in Beantown, the trio has led Boston to a championship and a second NBA Finals appearance in three seasons.

They continue to be an unwavering force, ranking as the league's top three-man combination so far this season. On their heels is the most ballyhooed Big 3 assembled since the Boston bunch. Riding a 12-game win streak, the Miami Heat's trio of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh now rank as the NBA's second-best threesome.

Rankings are best measured on plus-minus rating, meaning how many points the trios outscore or are outscored by their opponents when on the floor together. According to ESPN Stats and Information, The Celtics' Big 3 is a plus-229. Miami's, after Saturday's fourth-quarter comeback at Washington, is a plus-217. They're a plus-150 during the win streak, and Saturday's nailbiter pushed another Big 3 into third place.

Any guesses which trio that is?

They belong to the Dallas Mavericks, starting with Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd. Who's the third member of the NBA's third-best Big 3?

Center Tyson Chandler. Nowitzki, Kidd and Chandler are plus-210, well ahead of Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Derek Fisher of the Los Angeles Lakers (173).

Chandler averages only 8.6 points, but it's the job he's done at the other end of the floor that's made a significant impact.

To that end, Nowitzki paid Chandler yet another high compliment after Sunday's practice, just before the Mavs were set to fly to Miami for a rematch with the streaking Heat on Monday night.

"It’s almost like when K.G. went to Boston," Nowitzki said of Chandler's arrival. "I don’t think Ray or Paul Pierce were great defenders before K.G. got there, but K.G., with his energy, his defense and his mentality and his high-octane self, he kind of changed the whole momentum on the defense. I think that’s what Tyson did here just with his overall willingness to defend. He talks out there, always a loud communicator, pushing everybody in the right spots. I think that’s what Tyson brings to our team."

DALLAS -- Caron Butler has found the healing power of the hyperbaric chamber.

"It's like being in an airplane," said Butler, who will miss his second game tonight since suffering back spasms Monday against Boston. "Your ears start popping and then everything starts loosing up."

The Dallas Mavericks' small forward is optimistic that he'll be rid of the back spasms that forced him out of the game against Boston four nights ago and ready to go for Monday's home game against division rival New Orleans, the first of back-to-back games against the undefeated Hornets. The Mavs at New Orleans on Wednesday.

"That's the plan," said Butler, who has been receiving treatment daily, including the hyperbaric chamber. "It's like night and day from the last game I played in."

Butler said the injury happened in the third quarter when he went up for layup and Celtics forward Paul Pierce fouled him on the arm on his way up. Butler said he felt his back lock up and he really felt when he shot the first free throw and then again on the second.

"I shot [the second one] and said I've got to get out of the game," Butler said.

It took four more possessions for a stoppage of play to get Butler out. During one possession he put up a "horrific shot fom the top of the key." It banged off the lower portion of the backboard and that was how his night ended.

Shawn Marion will again start in place of Butler at small forward.

Butler said if he can't play Monday that he should be ready to play at some point next week. The Mavs play Chicago at home on Friday and at Atlanta on Saturday.

DALLAS -- The last remaining members from the Dallas Mavericks' 2006 Finals team are Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry.

Their run started together in 2004-05 when Terry replaced Steve Nash. Nash and the Phoenix Suns wound up beating the Mavs in six games in the West semifinals. You might remember the dagger 3-pointer Nash hit from the top of the arc as Terry sagged off of him.

You also might recall during that frustrating series that Nowitzki verbally lashed out at Terry and he went so far as to question the guard's basketball IQ. The two have since been through numerous battles, triumphs and disappointments, and both keep fighting. Perhaps more than ever, the two must carry the scoring load for a team trying to prove it is contender material.

They combined again for a magnificent finish Monday night, scoring the team's final 15 points to defeat the Boston Celtics, 89-87. It was an important home win against the defending East champs that snapped a two-game home skid and gave the Mavs (4-2) their first home win over the Celtics (6-2), and just their second overall, since The Big Three united three years ago.

The Mavs entered this one with a new look. Terry, who has bounced in and out of the starting lineup at coach Rick Carlisle's wish, had started all five games so far and averaged 19.2 points. But lack of scoring punch off the bench was troubling, and that situation came to a head in Saturday's loss to the Denver Nuggets.

So Monday night, Terry, consenting with Carlisle, was back on the bench. DeShawn Stevenson, who had played a total of two minutes in the first five games, got the starting nod and quickly buried two 3-pointers in the first quarter. Terry didn't enter until nearly nine minutes into the period. He started slowly but ended strong.

Terry scored 11 of his 17 points in the second half. He had six in the fourth quarter, including a 3-pointer from the wing with 1:13 to play that tied the game at 87-87. Forty-five seconds earlier the Celtics led 87-82, but a 7-0 run, capped by Nowitzki's 16-footer over Glen Davis with 17.4 left, iced the victory.

With 5:44 to go, Terry's driving floater ended a four-minute scoring drought and ignited the 15-7 finishing kick.

"He's been great accepting that role, embracing that role and really doing whatever we need him to do," Nowitzki said of Terry. "But he also knows -- starter, off the bench -- he knows the ball is coming to him. And he also knows he's going to be on the court down the stretch and he's going to get the ball in his hands and we need him to make big shots.

"His role, starting or not, is not going to change much. We want him to score. We need him to score and we need him to be aggressive. And he's one of the best clutch shooters I've ever seen in this league."

The Mavs moved to 4-2 on the season as they work through chemistry and other on-court issues. After leading 50-40 at halftime, Dallas struggled through an awful offensive third quarter, making just four field goals while seeing its lead evaporate.

The fourth wasn’t exactly textbook offense either, but defensively the Mavs stepped up and held Boston to 38.1 percent shooting in the final period.

Tyson Chandler played his best game as the Mavs’ starting center with 12 points, 13 rebounds and two blocks. Shawn Marion made life tough on Paul Pierce late. Jason Kidd had two big assists on the final two baskets, including a laser kick-out to Terry for the game-tying 3.

But, it was Terry’s unselfishness again that might yet define this team. He continues to do whatever is asked when other players might balk.

“It’s something that’s tough, especially when you’ve had success," Terry said of transitioning back to the bench. "I had a good run here the first five games and then being thrust back off the bench is an adjustment. You change your routine up a little bit, but hey, for the betterment of this team I’m here to do it.”

After the Nuggets’ bench outscored the Mavs’ bench 40-19 on Saturday, Carlisle knew he had to make the change. Against Boston, Dallas’ bench scored 19 points by halftime, led by J.J. Barea’s nine points. In the end, the Mavs’ bench outscored the Celtics’ reserves, 35-21.

“As starters, we were good. We were getting off to a great start,” said Terry, who made 2-of-3 from behind the arc and added four assists. “And then we were lacking something, whether it was energy, whether it was scoring, or maybe both. But I was able to provide a spark. It looked like J.J. seemed a little more comfortable with me out there able to make plays with him. It’s something we’re going to continue to look at.”

DALLAS -- The Mavericks didn't wait until the fourth quarter to meltdown offensively. They've managed just nine points through more than eight minutes of the third quarter and the Boston Celtics made up a 10-point halftime deficit to lead, 62-59.

Rajon Rondo recorded his 10th assist of the game on a pretty alley-oop to Kevin Garnett. After Caron Butler banked a shot off the side of the backboard, Ray Allen drained a 3-pointer to give the Celtics the lead, their first since 6-4.

DALLAS -- The Dallas Mavericks picked a bad time for a two-game home losing streak. Snapping the skid won't be easy Monday night when the Boston Celtics come to town.

Since the Big Three -- Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen -- joined forces in Beantown, the Celtics have won all three meetings in Dallas. The good news for the Mavs is that Boston plays at Oklahoma City Sunday night (although the second night of a back-to-back didn't stop Denver from leaving with a win Saturday). The bad news is Boston is undeniably the Big Four now with point guard Rajon Rondo truly running the show.

He's averaging 11.1 points and an eye-popping 14.7 assists, more than four more than the NBA's next best, Jason Kidd (10.8). Speedy, full-service point guards like Rondo tend to terrorize Dallas defenders.

"Rondo’s their key facilititaor. Containing him is a priority," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. "And look, the other area he impacts the game is with his defense and his ability to deflect and steal the ball. He was the league leader in steals last year and so you’ve got to have an awareness of where he’s at on the floor."

Starting two-guard Jason Terry would figure to get first crack at Rondo, who is just too quick for Kidd. Even against the Nuggets, it was Terry who started off on point guard Chauncey Billups, while Kidd took off-guard Aaron Afflalo.

Through six games, Rondo is averaging a career-high 41.3 minutes a game, so multiple Mavs will be assigned to Rondo, who might force Dallas in a zone more often than usual. The 6-foot-1, fifth-year pro has had just one game to start this season in which he did not record double-digit assits. He settled for nine. He posted 17 dimes in the season-opening win over Miami and had a career-high 24 against the Knicks.

Rondo's recent line against the Milwaukee Bucks: 17 points, 15 assists, eight rebounds and three steals.

His 82 assists through the first five games set an NBA record, and he has the Celtics averaging more than 100 points a game. In Sunday's 92-83 win at Oklahoma City, Rondo had 10 more assists and recorded his third consecutive double-double.

"Whether we’re playing man or zone or whether Jet’s guarding him or whether J-Kidd’s guarding him or Jose Juan Barea’s guarding him, it’s going to be the same priorities: contain," Carlisle said. "The other thing he’s really good at it is he’s a really good offensive rebounder for a point guard. He’s a lot like [Oklahoma City's Russell] Westbrook. And they put him around the basket a lot, too, in their spacing scenario. So, they’re a terrific team, he’s a terrific player. It’s a challenging game for us."