The Mavericks played great defense tonight as they held the Grizzlies to 38.8% shooting from the floor, but, the Grizzlies outscored them 22-15 in the 4th quarter and that was the difference in this game. Dirk Nowitzki led the way for the Mavericks tonight with 27 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists. Carlon Butler was a busy guy too as he finished up with 18 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals and 1 blocked shot. Jason Terry (13 points, 3 rebounds and 5 assists) and Shawn Marion (12 points, 7 rebounds and 1 steal) also helped out the Mavericks cause tonight. The Mavericks are now 1-1 on the year.

The Mavericks shot 54.7% from the floor last night and they held the Bobcats to 39.7% shooting from the floor which helps explain this rather easy victory in Dallas last night. Dirk Nowitzki led the way for the Mavericks last night with 28 points and 13 rebounds. Jason Terry got a rare start at shooting guard and he turned in a pretty darn good game with 22 points, 1 rebound, 6 assists and 4 steals. Caron Butler only shot 5 of 16 from the floor but he still finished up with 13 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists in this game. Jason Kidd turned back the clock for the Mavs last night as he finished up with 12 points, 2 rebounds, 18 assists, 3 steals and 1 blocked shot. The Mavericks are now 1-0 on the season.

The Dallas Mavericks were 55-27 last season but they have done very little to improve the roster over the summer while watching other teams get better. I think the Mavericks are still a playoff team but I think they are going to be a lower seed than usual. I would have to bet on the under as far as wins in 2010-11 for the Mavs. The Mavericks are 22-1 to win the NBA title which is decent value if you like them.

50-year old head coach Rick Carlisle led the Mavericks to a 55-27 (67.1%) record during the regular season but they got knocked out in the first round of the playoffs losing 4 games to 2. Carlisle has a regular season record of 105-59 (64%) in his two years with the Mavericks and he is 7-9 (43.8%) during the playoffs. Mark Cuban is a owner who wants results and I’m fairly certain that he would be very upset with another early exit in the playoffs in 2010-11. Carlisle now has a career record during the regular season of 386-270 (58.8%) and he is 37-41 (47.4%) during the post season. Carlisle is a good coach but the Mavericks have not made much in the way of improvements on the roster so he has his work cut out for him.

The Mavericks re-signed 30-year old Brendan Haywood and he will start at center in 2010-11. Haywood played in 77 games (67 starts) for the Wizards & Mavericks last season and he averaged 30.6 minutes, 9.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, 0.6 assists and 2.1 blocked shots per game. He has now played in 607 games (469 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 24.6 minutes, 7.7 points, 6.4 rebounds, 0.6 assists and 1.5 blocked shots per game. Haywood seems to be playing the best basketball of his NBA career right now and the Mavs need him to keep up the good work.

28-year old Tyson Chandler gives the Mavericks another big guy to bang under the basket. He played in 51 games (27 starts) for the Bobcats last season and he averaged 22.8 minutes, 6.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 0.3 assists and 1.1 blocked shots per game. Chandler has now played in 588 games (391 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 27.6 minutes, 8.1 points, 8.8 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 1.4 blocked shots per game. Chandler will also likely pick up a few minutes at power forward this year.

23-year old Ian Mahinmi is a young player the Mavericks really like. He played in 26 games (0 starts) for the Spurs last season and he averaged 6.3 minutes, 3.9 points, 2.0 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game. Mahinmi has now played in 32 games (0 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he has averaged 5.9 minutes, 3.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game. It’s going to be hard for Mahinmi to get much P.T. this year but the Mavericks like his potential.

22-year old Alexis Ajinca came over with Tyson Chandler over the summer in a deal with the Bobcats. Ajinca played in 6 games (0 starts) for the Bobcats last season and he averaged 5.0 minutes, 1.7 points and 0.7 rebounds per game. He has now played in 37 games (4 starts) in his two years in the NBA and he has averaged 5.7 minutes, 2.2 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MAVERICKS CENTERS IN 2010-11: B

32-year old Dirk Nowitzki is still one of the best players in the entire NBA and he’s showing no signs of slowing down. Nowitzki played in 81 games (80 starts) for the Mavericks last season and he averaged 37.5 minutes, 25.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.0 blocked shot per game. He has now played in 920 games (895 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 36.7 minutes, 22.9 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.0 blocked shot per game. Nowitzki can also play center when the Mavs decide to play small.

27-year old Steve Novak might get a few minutes behind Nowitzki this year. Novak played in 54 games (0 starts) for the Clippers last season and he averaged 6.7 minutes, 2.1 points, 0.6 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game. He has now played in 195 games (4 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 10.1 minutes, 4.1 points, 1.1 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Novak has shot 40.3% from three point range in his NBA career which is his best asset.

Tyson Chandler and Ian Mahinmi will also likely get some minutes at power forward when Dirk Nowitzki needs a breather.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MAVERICKS POWER FORWARDS IN 2010-11: A

32-year old Shawn Marion is starting to slow down. He played in 75 games (all starts) for the Mavericks last season and he averaged 31.8 minutes, 12.0 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. Marion has now played in 820 games (805 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 37.1 minutes, 17.3 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocked shots per game. Marion’s whole game is slipping a bit so don’t be surprised if Caron Butler gets a lot of minutes as small forward this year.

33-year old Brian Cardinal is a long range shooter and little more. Cardinal played in 29 games (0 starts) for the T-Wolves last season and he averaged 9.2 minutes, 1.7 points, 1.0 rebound and 0.8 assists per game. He has now played in 356 games (33 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 15.7 minutes, 5.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. Cardinal has shot 36.9% from the three point line so far in this NBA career.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MAVERICKS SMALL FORWARDS IN 2010-11: C

It all starts with 30-year old Caron Butler who will start at shooting guard but he will also log quite a few minutes at small forward this year. Butler played in 74 games (all starts) for the Mavericks & Wizards last season in which he averaged 37.6 minutes, 16.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.6 steals per game. Butler has now played in 560 games (527 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 36.6 minutes, 16.6 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.7 steals per game. Look for the Mavericks to be much better this year due to the fact that they will have Butler from Day #1.

33-year old Jason Terry might see his minutes drop a tad in 2010-11 but make no mistake he still has a lot of game left. Terry played in 77 games (12 starts) for the Mavericks last season and he averaged 33.0 minutes, 16.6 points, 1.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.2 steals per game. He has now played in 877 games (615 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 33.9 minutes, 16.2 points, 2.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Terry will give the Mavericks instant offense off the bench once again in 2010-11.

21-year old rookie Dominique Jones has a huge upside as a scorer. He played in 33 games for the South Florida Bulls last season and he averaged 37.1 minutes, 21.4 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.7 steals per game. Jones played in 95 games in his three years with the Bulls in which he averaged 36.5 minutes, 18.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Don’t look for Jones to get much P.T. in 2010-11 unless Caron Butler or Jason Terry get injured.

29-year old DeShawn Stevenson was an absolute stiff last season as he is one of the most overrated players in the entire NBA. Stevenson played in 64 games (18 starts) for the Wizards & Mavericks last season and he averaged 13.8 minutes, 2.1 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game on a pathetic 28.2% shooting from the floor. He has now played in 645 games (247 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 23.4 minutes, 7.9 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. The Wizards made the Mavericks take DeShawn Stevenson if they wanted Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood which they did.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MAVERICKS SHOOTING GUARDS IN 2010-11: B