Basketball - NBA Breakdown of the Dallas Mavericks

DALLAS MAVERICKS 41-11
      
The San Antonio Spurs are no longer the runaway favorite to win the Western Conference. After a 13-game winning streak Dallas now appears  to be on par with the Pistons and Spurs. Even after losing Finley and Nash this could be the Mavs team in the Nowitzki-era.
       
Dallas is still great offensively. They're 5th in offense with 100.2 PPG, 5th in FG% and 5th in turnovers. Dirk Nowitzki once again is in  the top-10 in scoring and the Mavs have 7 players averaging 9.7 or more.
       
But the big difference with this year's Mavericks is their defense. They are 8th in allowing PPG with just 92.9 points. They force their  opponents to shoot the 10th lowest FG% in the League and have the 5th most rebounds. Daniels and Howard add the defensive presence this  team has needed for years.
       
The team still has some issues. Erick Dampier is having a terrible year with just 5.8 points and 7.9 rebounds. DeSagana Diop hasn't done  much better in his time at Center but has replaced him in the starting lineup. Jason Terry is also having a rather disappointing year.  Sure the 16.4 PPG are nice but he's the PG and he's averaging just 3.9 APG. Somehow the Mavs are 27th in the NBA in assists and Terry has  to be the guy to improve that.
       
Injuries have also hurt the Mavs. Daniels and Stackhouse have missed considerable playing time, as have Howard and Van Horn. Doug Christie  was waived shortly after the season started but has not been picked up on waivers. Between him and Dampier there's a lot of wasted money  being paid by the Mavs.
       
While this team doesn't have the experience that San Antonio has they're nearly as deep when healthy. Adrian Griffin has been a solid  pickup since joining the Mavs. He and Dampier, Daniels, Harris, Van Horn and Stackhouse are a part of a very productive bench.

The Mavs have done what the Kings and Colts have had so much trouble doing: becoming a stellar defensive team while maintaining their  offensive prowess. A team that's great in either offense or defense will always be a contender. But to be great in both fields makes them  on par with the Spurs and Pistons. In the end, they will have to show us they can win in the playoffs before we will start to believe they  are good.