From 'Rock-Bottom' To 'Rockin' New Year'

   To say that a home loss to the miserable T’wolves … arriving in Dallas with a 6-24 record, having lost nine straight to the Mavs, coming off a grueling OT win just 24 hours before, part of a four-games-in-five-nights death march, led by a coach who apparently thinks his nap time is around 8:30 p.m. CST … to say that a Mavs’ home loss to the miserable T’wolves would represent a night of “hitting rock-bottom’’ would be an insult to both “rocks’’ and “bottoms.’’

   So Dallas avoided rock-bottom and notched a 107-100 victory notable because the Mavs’ comeback from a 29-point-deep burial plot is the largest in franchise history.

   We take you inside a 2008-ending Tuesday night with the Mavs at American Airlines Center via your All-Access Pass:

   HOW BIG WAS IT?: The Mavericks trailed by 29 in the third but outscored the Timberwolves 66-30 the rest of the way. That’s as big as it gets in Mavs franchise history.  (This tops a 25-point comeback over Denver in ’94.) In the NBA, such a thing hasn’t happened in five years, since the Suns did it to the Celtics on Dec. 5, 2003 against the Celtics.

   Here’s the core of the comeback: During a period that bridged the third and fourth quarters, the Mavs outscored the visitors 54-21. Minny had one more spurt that tied it at 98-all with 2:35 left. But Dirk Nowitzki got inside twice for two baskets, ball movement freed Josh Howard for a corner 3, and Jason Kidd put his toe on the line (it’s like he’s doing that on purpose now!) for a dagger 2 (but almost 3) as the Mavs made eight of their final 10 shots.

   THE EJECTION SEAT: That’s three guys kicked out in four games for Dallas, with coach Rick Carlisle being ordered to go hang out at Chili’s (yes, the AAC has a brand new Chili’s adjacent to the building!). ‘Cept this ejection came with some actual purpose.

   Unlike Josh Howard’s early shower in Portland (when he played too-cool-for-school) and unlike Dirk’s thumb in Utah (when frustration got the best of him), Carlisle’s first-half ejection was in protest of Minny’s roughing up of his star.

   “There were a couple of plays there where I thought Dirk was getting hit and there should have been fouls called. So I took the referee to task and got thrown out,’’ Said Carlisle, who was ejected with 6:30 to play in the half after Nowitzki was struck in the face but without a whistle. “Frankly, I was tired of watching (the game) anyway, the way it was going.’’

   Notably, Carlisle wasn’t around when he officially recorded his 300^th win as an NBA coach.

   DWANE CASEY, C’MON DOWN!: So Carlisle’s at Chili’s or in his office or wherever and that means assistant coach Casey slides up the bench. Just so happens, Casey’s last head coaching job was with. … the T’wolves. And that the guy who fired him was … McHale. Who just happened to be. … sleeping with his eyes open, I think, on the opposing bench.

   “Fate,’’ Carlisle said, “works in weird ways.’’

   Classy handling of the postgame presser, by the way, by Carlisle. Lots of ejected coaches never show up to meet the media. Carlisle was available, and then passed the microphone to Casey, who received his well-earned – and fate-influenced – moment in the spotlight.

   ABOUT THAT ROUGH STUFF: Nowitzki had 24 and 13 and there’s nothing new about that, except. .. this time he did it while frequently being battered about the face. They stuck some cotton whatitz up his snout in the third quarter lest his jostled nose turn the AAC into the prom scene from “Carrie.’’ And then The UberMan plowed his way to the offensive basket and angled his way to defensive stops with much more ferocity than usual.

   I really, really, really get tired of defending Dirk’s level of toughness. But here’s a backhanded concession I’m willing to make: This was a different level of toughness, a notch above.

   Maybe we should keep this Minnesota assailant Craig Smith around for practice or something, just to get Dirk good and bloody and fired up.

   CASEY’S GAMEPLAN: Well, it wasn’t complicated.

   In the fourth quarter, I say the Mavs attempted to run everything through Jason Terry. Everything. Clear-out stuff at the top of the key, with baseline movement working toward open spots in the corners.    Nothing more than that. I bet this fourth quarter marks a season-low for pick-and-rolls. Dwane waved his arms a lot. Waving arms must mean "clear-out for Jet.''

   YOU WOULDN’T LIKE HIM WHEN HE’S ANGRY: Oh, and by the way, one more thing about Ejection Fever: The UberMan is now talking about the NBA’s decision to put him in timeout for his bad behavior in the bad city of Utah. And he’s pissed, with words more stinging than any blow he delivered to Harpring’s puss.

   MINNESOTA IS CHILLY THIS TIME OF YEAR: While we’re throwing the confetti, let’s not lose sight of this. Minnesota came in ranked 26th in the league offensively and 26^th in the league defensive. (Balance!) Al Jefferson is a horse inside (he worked for his 21 points) and Randy Foye shows promise (he had 18).

   But they are 6-25 and GM Kevin McHale’s decision to fire Randy Wittman and “come on down’’ has provided Minnesota with nothing more than a coach who is exactly as overwhelmed as the GM is. (Luckily, they can save money by sharing clothing purchases and the Big & Tall Men stores.) Seriously, did McHale really allow a 29-point flood – Dallas was behind 70-41 early in the third quarter – without bothering to use a momentum-curbing timeout? Yes, Minny finished the game with a pocketful of timeouts.  

   Hey, Kevin, those things aren’t like arcade tokens; you can’t use them again on your next visit.

   McHale is 2-10. My math says Wittman was 4-14. Wittman wins!

   Oh, I’ve got another one: Minny’s down five with about 50 seconds left. Why doesn’t McHale foul?

   No use of fouls. No use of timeouts. I dunno. … maybe Kevin had postgame dinner plans at Chili’s with his old Bird-era Celtics teammate Carlisle?

   I HEARD BOOING: I’ve heard a couple of game accounts that claim that the Mavs fans didn’t boo their Beloveds at halftime when the homies were down at intermission. I heard different. Way different. The packed house (way to go, y’all!) gave voice to more negativity than I’ve heard all year.

   And heck … maybe it helped.  

   Or maybe it was just Cowboys fans who hadn’t yet done that 5,000-mile bile-change on their lungs.

   Of course, there was cheering, too.

    Said Jet: “The fans propelled us to this victory. We didn’t want to let them down going into ’09.’’
   THE TRADE-RUMOR FRONT: The notion of chasing the Kings’ Brad Miller is apparently popping into some important heads. We’ve covered this ground before, but here goes: Dallas better get him on the cheap. Because while Miller has his mid-range jumper and his deft passing skills, he’s a defensive liability who I think would be hard-pressed to get burn over Erick Dampier.

    Let’s just make sure Damp gets credit – and plays. Dampier, who apparently worked together with the coaching staff in the decision to let him guard Big Al one-on-one, was good for seven points and 12 rebounds.

   PLUSES AND MINUSES: Here’s a beaut, if you’re into such things:

*Jason Kidd was brilliant defensively, with two crafty steals in the final few minutes. He scored 14 and had seven rebounds. But his double-double was accented by his 16 assists, many of them highlight-reel stuff, including his tennis-ball-with-English-style long-bounce pass on the break.

   So Kidd was a+10.
   *Josh Howard was Robin, with 23 points  And he was a SMART Robin, with a BBIQ that told him at one point in the fourth that the shot clock was about to expire and that his serendipitous offensive rebound would need to be flung back up toward the rim and holy crap it went in!

   When serendipity meets savvy!

   So J-Ho was a +11.
   *Jason Terry scored 24 of his 29 points in the second half. He was a co-Batman.

   Jet was a +18.

   Let’s call them “The Three J’s 2.0.’’

   JASON TERRY FOR MV. … OK, JUST FOR SIXTH MAN: Dude’s on a crazy run, though.

The Mavs needed to close the game to open the fourth. Fine. Terry scored 12 points as the Mavericks began the final period outscoring the Timberwolves 22-7. I know I’ll get hooted down for saying this, but through the first three months of the season, the NBA perimeter plays who do a better job of creating and then making their own shots is a short one. Kobe and LeBron and D-Wade and Pierce and Devin and then Jason Terry has got to be somewhere in there, doesn’t he?

   YOU DON’T SEE THIS TOO OFTEN: The Mavs shot 36.8 percent in the first half. They allowed the T’wolves to make 60.5 percent of their shots. I think I’ve never before seen such a thing from a team that eventually won the game.

   BAD THING ABOUT KIDD: TO APPRECIATE, YOU HAVE TO ACTUALLY WATCH: Yeah, yeah, I’ve heard of Devin Harris. Bad trade and all that.

   Here’s my consolation prize, and yes, I’m going to make you read it all again: Kidd scores 14 points, including the dagger toe-on-the-arc’er. Kidd contributes seven rebounds, and immediately centers the break on almost every one of them. (There aren’t more than a couple of NBA teams now that produce in transition like Dallas does.) Kidd totals 16 assists, and really, somebody go do a YouTube compilation of The Week In Jason Kidd Passing, will ya? Kidd nabs four steals. Tricky stuff. Kidd get a block. Because, I mean, he might as well, right?

   You know what else? With all the failed bits, then all frantic stuff, the Mavs committed just eight turnovers as a team. That’s another one you don’t see too often. And that’s all Jason Kidd.

   Oh, and you want a rub-off factor, a “makes-his-teammates-better’’ argument? As we’ve noted before, Jason Terry has quickly become a master of playing “wide receiver’’ to Kidd’s QB on the break. Multiple times in the fourth, Jet led the pack as Kidd was taking charge of the ball on the defensive end, and their anticipation and rhythm together was gorgeous.

    Said Jet: “This guy has added four or five years onto my career. I don't have to work. Any time you are out there on the floor you just have to stay alert. If you get out and run the lanes he is going to make your job easy on you.’’

   FISHELLANEOUS: Carlisle is the 52^nd head coach to reach 300 wins. His career record is 300-223 (.574). … Kidd’s 16 assists are a season-high. …. Jet’s two blocks are a career-high. … Devean George is no longer a pet; he’s been mothballed for two games and here, Antoine Wright – who hadn’t started since Nov. 29 in Sacto – was a first-teamer. … JJB left the game with a shoulder strain, part of the reason Kidd and Jet were each in the 40-minute range. … the quintet that closed it out: Dirk, Kidd, Josh, Jet and Damp, and let’s hear it for convention!

   MEANWHILE, BACK IN THE STANDINGS: The Mavs – winners of 17 of their last 22 since the 2-7 launching of the Rick Carlisle Era, a record that during the period is the sixth-best in the NBA – are now 19-12. (And San Antonio lost at home to the Bucks.) I am told the Mavs are taking the day off on Wednesday. It’s earned – not just due to the win, but also for avoiding a loss that would’ve embarrassed “rocks’’ and “bottoms’’ to have been associated with it.

144am dec 31 2008