Mavs Morning Donuts: Enjoy Them As Best You Can

    I theorized yesterday that the Mavs might “prove to be out of gas’’ on the second night of a back-to-back – especially when that first night was the demanding 27-point-turnaround win over Utah. I even theorized that if indeed Dallas “proves to be out of gas,’’ “so be it.’’

   Funny how I felt that way in the glow of the Utah win. … but now after a 114-107 OT loss at New Orleans, I’m suddenly less accepting … because of what could have been.

   Donuts. Enjoy them as best you can.

    DONUT 1: This should take our minds off Dirk scoring 12 in New Orleans (while at the same time recalling that he scored 40 the night before): The UberMan Countdown to 20,000 Points.

    DONUT 2: And speaking of Dirk, isn’t this The Understatement of The Night?:

     “Dirk fouling out was a very difficult break for us,’’ said coach Rick Carlisle, which is the NBA-coach-who-doesn’t-want-to-get-fined way of saying, “Geez, I cannot believe those three blind mice blew their whistle on a moving-screen call because Dirk’s jersey brushed up against Chris Paul’s pants leg.’’

     It’s true, though. The “difficult break’’ part, I mean. Nowitzki finishes with 12 points while being rendered unavailable for the final 2:38 of regulation and 5:00 of overtime?

    Hmm. 2:38 + 5:00 = 7:38 … which is just about the amount of time Dirk needed on Tuesday to create an all-time signature moment.

    So yeah, it was “a very difficult break’’ to not be able to see what Dirk could do with another 7:38.

     DONUT 3: A hopeful businessman is going to get rich … and all he has to do is persuade Mark Cuban that the hopeful businessman has a secret.

     DONUT 4: No Mavs practice today. Dallas doesn’t play again until Saturday (the Raptors are in town), and I’m sure Rick Carlisle will push ‘em on Friday. … but this seems like a fine lick-our-wounds Thursday.

     DONUT 5: As we noted yesterday afternoon, Donnie Nelson’s D-League team doesn’t yet have a name, but as the Frisco-based club is prepping for its 2010-11 season launch, it has management. Spud Webb is the basketball-ops guy, Del Harris is the GM and Nancy Lieberman is the coach.

     I’ll be in Frisco tonight to visit with all three of them … and I’ll get back to you.

     DONUT 6: The “FISH on FOOTBALL’’ stuff is up and running at Blogging The Boys. Stats, snark, insight, quote, news, more snark. ... please head on over to Mike Fisher’s new Cowboys home at BtB and enjoy! Show your support for all things FISH and check it out!

     DONUT 7: Your DallasBasketball.com T-shirt is available! The “DallasBasketball.com classic’’ and “The UberMan’’ and the “Fish for Lunch’’ and “The DUST Chip’’ are yours for the taking! Please visit the DB.com Store today!

    P.S.: Some very fashionably astute Mavs fans who live in San Antonio have ordered up “the classic’’ DB.com shirt just in time for the Nov. 11 Mavs-at-Spurs meeting. Look for ‘em on the TV!

    DONUT 8: The Mavs’ search for a PA announcer – and for your vote – marches on.

    DONUT 9: I occasionally rip Clippers owner Donald T. Sterling in this space for representing much that is wrong with pro sports, and for having a personal and business style that leads directly to the failure of his teams. Here’s a deeper explanation of what I’m talking about – and a call for the NBA itself to do something about it.   

    DONUT 10: Damp is now up to 9.3 points per game and 10.4 rebounds per game. And because of all the putbacks and the offensive rebounds and even the alley-oop receptions – wow, I wonder why Erick seems so focused? – he’s shooting a notable 67 percent.

    But New Orleans can top that.

    DONUT 11: Chris Paul is shooting 64 percent! He’s at 30 points a game and he’s a foot shorter than Damp and part of what CP3 does is launch 3-pointers – where he’s shooting 80 PERCENT! – and the kid cannot miss.

    You knew Paul was going to get his last night. (Though Quinton Ross might’ve helped, I guess, and maybe someday Roddy …) But at some point, is he going to “get his’’while being inched back to his career 47-percent shooting?

   DONUT 12: The older I get, the more I learn how little some of us learn. An NBA commentator – a person who writes (and therefore) reads for a living – doesn’t know that calling Yi Jianlian a “Chinaman’’ is offensive?  

   DONUT 13: Mary Carey is a famous porn star who once ran for governor of California. N*SYNC is some sort of boy band. Dwight Howard is a Bible-quoting superstar basketball player from Orlando. So, anyway, what were they all doing together in a bathroom with their pants down?