Dirk's Dilemma: Broken Cristal

   Dirk Nowitzki is being shadowed by an off-the-floor controversy in the name of Cristal Taylor that brings with it some facts (or what I believe to be facts), some rumors (and some incendiary ones) and some conclusions (that I’ll arrive at carefully). Let’s begin with Dirk’s mostly-solemn post-practice statement on Thursday to discuss the news that Ms. Taylor was arrested earlier this week at his Preston Hollow home:

 THE QUOTES

   "It's pretty obvious that I'm going through a tough time in my personal life right now," Nowitzki told the assembled media. "Like I always have, I want to keep my private life private. I really am not at the stage where I can talk about it yet and feel comfortable talking about it. I'm more than happy to answer basketball questions, but I think at this point, I just can't talk about it."

    Nowitzki then proceeded to field questions about the Mavs-Nuggets series, one in which he has played well despite Dallas being down 0-2 going into Saturday’s Game 3 at home.

   "(Teammates) know I'll be ready, I'm a true warrior," said Nowitzki, keeping his sense of humor in what seemed like a sly reference to TNT’s Chris Webber and that numbskull’s diss of Dirk.

    But then the press conference steered back to Dirk's relationship with Taylor, the 37-year-old woman who is in jail allegedly due to multiple felony warrants and with multiple aliases.

    "I'm just not commenting on that," Dirk said evenly, and multiple times, in response to reporters’ prodding.

 THE FACTS

    *Cristal Taylor is more than just Nowitzki's “house guest.’’ She is/was his girlfriend and her side’s claim that they are/were engaged seems legitimate enough given the large diamond she’s recently worn on her left ring finger.

   *She may be duplicitous – and she may have deceived the Mavs star -- but she is not a “stalker.’’ Their relationship dates back more than a year, when the two allegedly met at a hotel in Houston. Last summer, Dirk told reporters that he had a girlfriend.

   *It was Nowitzki himself who, in a sense, started the legal ball rolling by hiring a private investigator to look into Taylor’s background. Almost certainly, that agent came into contact with Dallas authorities who were working with an FBI task force.

    *Taylor was arrested and taken into custody on several outstanding warrants. One is a probation violation from Missouri, the other second a theft of service charge from Jefferson County, Texas. From what we can gather, there is a $20,000 bail set for one of the charges as Taylor is at Lew Sterrett, but the other charge does not allow for bail.

     *Reports say Taylor has used at least eight different aliases in the past, including Chrystal Ann Taylor, Crystal Ann Taylor, Debra Johnson, Shana Mancini, Krista Santiago, Crystal Ann Santiago, Cristal Westerhaus and Crista A. Westerhays. It is our understanding that Nowitzki was unaware of the aliases until he was informed of them by his private investigator.

     *Taylor does frequent Mavs games and is certainly acquainted with Nowitzki’s friends and family. She has attended team functions with him and there is video evidence of the couple spending time together in the kitchen of his home, where she apparently lives. She was at the home on Wednesday morning when she was arrested – two hours before Nowitzki and the Mavericks’ flight returned back to Dallas from Denver.

THE RUMORS

    *I am told that Taylor engaged in an argument with Dirk early this week, and that her tone turned frighteningly dark.

     *Taylor might be pregnant. That’s the word from the jail – or at least what Taylor’s side says is the word from the jail -- where it is said she underwent a urine test and was told of her pregnancy by authorities.

     *Dirk has changed the locks on his house and has been bunking at the home of a Mavs executive for the last two nights.

     *Taylor considers the couple to be “married.’’

     *Taylor’s friend is spreading the suggestion that Nowitzki has known all along about her dubious past – but that neither Dirk or Cristal knew specifically that authorities were looking for her. Meanwhile, we’re hearing that when they first met, Nowitzki was under the impression that she was a decade younger than she actually is.

     *Dirk’s family has been not especially enamored with Ms. Taylor – and their objections are one of the reasons Nowitzki isn’t already married to her. Taylor’s side is leaking the idea that Dirk proposed to her last New Year’s Eve. There are rumors that there were wedding plans for last Christmas that got cancelled and more wedding plans for this summer that … well, they’re probably cancelled, too.

THE CONCLUSIONS

   *Nowitzki and Taylor had a falling out – maybe as a result of the private investigator’s findings, or maybe it was the falling out that precipitated Nowitzki’s desire to know more about her. Or, quite likely, they were/are simply a couple with serious relationship problems. Problems can especially arise, of course, where legal and financial issues are about to be knotted (such as with a pre-nup).

     *Whether Taylor is some sort of “hardened criminal’’ seems open to interpretation. Taylor’s largest legal problem seems to stem from a “theft-of-service’’ charge that alleges she received expensive dental services but did not pay for them. The other charge – while it does originally stem from counts of forgery and stealing – is a probation violation charge. My point is, we may not exactly be talking about Lizzy Borden here.

     *Dirk and the Mavs are smart to have addressed this quickly, however carefully. Around here, it’s known as “The Leon Lett Rule’’; if an athlete runs away from a question, that question tends to chase him relentlessly and for the rest of his life.

     * Jokes? I got a million of 'em. Jokes about her ethnicity, her looks, her age? Nope. Today, you'll have to scrounge around elsewhere for those.

    *It seems obvious to me that if Ms. Taylor was completely honest with Nowitzki about her past (and her theft-of-service problem), he would be in position to solve that problem by paying that bill. Nowitzki’s salary allows him to write a check for a dental bill. The fact that he didn’t do so suggests that he didn’t know about it.

     *There is the possibility she is acting out as a woman scorned; Taylor’s best friend is the “source’’ (or one of the sources) who has been phoning TV stations and releasing photographic evidence that makes it clear that the two were indeed a couple. It seems like a vigorous attempt to defend, protect and even martyr the jailed woman. (Sidebar: The best friend is acting as the “source’’ while asking that she not be identified. It’s another of the sort of real-life goings-on that seem to mimic what somebody saw on “Law & Order’’; everyone in the Mavs organization who is at all close with the players’ families and friends are aware of the identity of the not-so-secret “source.’’

     *All of the claims of a pregnancy are coming from people associated with Taylor, but not from the authorities.

    *How much of a distraction is all this as Nowitzki prepares to go back to work? Conventional wisdom says it’s a large one. But if my timetable is correct, Dirk was dealing with conflict with Taylor while at the same time putting on a one-man show in the loss to Denver with his 35 points.

    So whatever Nowitzki’s flaws might be (chosing fiancee’s?) … focus isn’t one of them.

    * Nowitzki is extremely protective of his private life – which makes it all the more odd that he would involve himself romantically with someone who he would later learn has a felony warrant out for her arrest. My friend Brian Cuban, a lawyer and Mark’s brother, notes that he doesn’t “view the Dirk story as anything. Life hits everyone. It's a personal issue that should be treated as such by all.’’

    I agree with Brian about how we have to deal with “life’s hits.’’ (Who among us hasn’t struggled through an unfortunate relationship?) I also think Dirk's feelings for the woman -- which are likely complicated at this moment -- are a matter of privacy. And I appreciate Brian’s sensitivity. But this is a case where a “personal’’ issue and a “professional’’ issue and a “legal’’ issue and a “celebrity’’ issue all bleed into one.

    Dirk’s handling of the press conference was as wise and as forthright as can be expected; now it is hoped he handles his private issue with the same skill.