By David Lord -- DallasBasketball.com
      That stinkfest we all witnessed Wednesday against the Hawks is why I have been so pessimistic about the prospects for Mavs’ success this year – and I said that long before this week’s Nellie pronouncement that “They tricked me. … We got our teeth kicked in. And now we're down there with the whales at the bottom of the sea. ... Potential gets pretty old at this time of year. It's nice to talk about potential in training camp. But if you haven't reached your potential, it's discouraging.’’
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      And even after Friday’s bounce-back performance – a 120-104 victory over Boston -- my pessimism about that makes me question a lot of the rosy things we’ve been told, all the way up to even the alleged greatness of rookie Josh Howard.
      I say this mix of players doesn’t seem to be willing to work hard, consistently. I think they were waiting for the perfect trade to bring them the "final piece" rather than work hard and find a way. I believe Nellie is dead-on when he says he might have to give up giving this team a ‘wake-up call’ speech every three games or so.
      In terms of effort, Howard – who scored a season-high 19 against Boston -- is allegedly an exception on this team. But does that make everything about him positive, and every tale of his defensive prowess believable?
      Not to me. Not at a time when the Mavs deserve to be examined more closely.
      I say that for a player who is supposedly a "great defensive player," Josh Howard plays the most atrocious fundamental defense I have ever seen.
      What stuns me is that he is touted as some sort of defensive savior, and I question Nellie's judgment when he lauds Howard's defensive prowess -- because such prowess is a myth.
      Howard doesn't move his feet (instead, he reaches), and he uses terrible technique on defense. At times, he has been manned up on a good opponent, and he has shown an ability to be a stopper of sorts. But those moments are so few and far between that I must conclude that his rep is based on a fraud.
      Why do people say he is good on D? He gets beaten off the dribble with ease and with regularity. (Notice he picks up a lot of fouls, often for trying to strip the ball after his guy has gone past him.)
      His positioning is often horrible. He just sags off his man, and frequently plays "bumblebee defense" (chase the ball). In essence, he is undisciplined on defense. That is a recipe for disaster in the NBA.
      To be fair, he has potential, because he is quick, athletic, fluid, and can jump. But when he gets on the floor right now, he is not the second coming of Michael Cooper, Dennis Rodman, or Ron Artest. Not even close.
      I think the Mavs braintrust perhaps have gotten fooled into believing he can play D, and just aren't paying attention. They put him on the floor thinking that adds to the D. But instead it backfires.
      I noticed against the Hawks that Howard played lots of minutes in the first half, when Atlanta shot over 60 percent and scored 69 points, 31 of them by Stephen Jackson, exactly the sort of player who should be contained by the sort of player Howard is supposed to be.
      In the second half, Josh was confined to the bench. Coincidence? I think not.
      Said Nellie: "This team has to take responsibility to start playing better and be more consistent and do the things that winning teams do – and not do the things that losing teams do, which is go out there with a lack of effort. The team knows I'm angry at them. The coach is angry and embarrassed. They have my message. I don't pull punches with my players. I tell my players the way it is, who's doing it and who isn't. We speak very direct behind closed doors."
      I appreciate that Nellie probably chewed out a bunch of guys between the Atlanta and Boston games. I pray Josh Howard was among them.
      I think the answer on defense is to have the regulars play their butts off on on defense. Adding a "defensive savior" gives them an excuse to be lackadaisical. When that defensive wizard plays the worst defense on the floor to boot, failure is inevitable. You saw it once again Wednesday.
      Nellie said that while his players “need to be accountable, you can put it on my shoulders because I take responsibility for the way the team is playing. … And by the way, that falls directly on my shoulders. If this team doesn't achieve its potential, look right at me as the reason.’’
      Good enough. Coach, help your cause. Reduce Josh Howard’s role until the production matches the accolades. And Mavs, stop believing your own hype.