Waiting on the Mavericks vs. Pacers

Remember when the Mavs lost their first four games of the season and everyone thought there was trouble in Big D? Avery Johnson calmly endured the early losses realizing he let his key contributors rest throughout the preseason so they needed a few games to get up to regular season speed. Now I'm thinking Avery and the Mavs were just spotting the league a few games to make it interesting. Since that fourth early loss the Mavs have rattled off a 29-4 record to stand atop the NBA and seem to be developing a killer instinct.

In three of their last five games, the Mavs have trailed at the end of the third quarter only to win the deciding twelve minutes of play and earn the W. Of course, one of those games was against the Pacers last Thursday. The Mavs made winning down the stretch look easy and it obviously wasn't an aberration. So there should be no excuses for the Pacers effort on Friday night. Their loss in Dallas is still fresh in their minds so they should know exactly what it will take to come away with a win this time. Other items of interest:

• Check out Mavs Moneyball for the latest Mavs chatter. Former Pacer Anthony Johnson has been a frequent topic of trade rumors but it seems like the rumors have died down for now.
• Mark Cuban's blog is always entertaining. A congratulatory post on the occasion of Bob Knight becoming the winningest D1 coach also includes a public thank you to Knight for words of advice through the years.

You said, and I'm paraphrasing: "Everyone has got the will to win, its only those with the will to prepare that do win"

Words for every athlete and those of us who partake in the Sport of Business to live by

Thanks Coach.


• The Pacers moved into third place in the Central Division on their night off as the Bulls blew an 18-point third quarter lead to lose 86-83 to the Nets.
• Chris Webber is shopping for a team after Philly bought out his contract to let him go. He's trying to pick a contender that is willing to take him, which might not be so easy. Obvious speculation has revolved around his hometown team in Detroit. After seeing him play earlier in the year and move around like an aging Robert Parish, CWebb may do more harm than good to a contender.
• Austin Croshere and Anthony Johnson make their first visit to Conseco Fieldhouse since summer trade sent them to Dallas. Cro should enjoy a warm welcome from Pacer fans as a thank you to all of the classy years he spent in Indy. He was a solid player for several years but his contributions to the community and the time he invested in various causes were far more valuable in retrospect.