29-year old shooting guard DeShawn Stevenson has picked up his player option for the 2010-11 NBA season with the Dallas Mavericks. Stevenson played in 24 games (5 starts) for the Mavericks last season and he averaged 11.1 minutes, 2.0 points, 1.1 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. He finished up last season playing in 64 games (18 starts) with the Wizards & Mavericks in which he averaged 13.8 minutes, 2.1 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. He has now played in 645 games (427 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 23.4 minutes, 7.9 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. The Mavericks had to know that Stevenson wasn’t going anywhere as he would have had a hard time finding a new gig because he’s not a very good player. The Wizards forced the Mavericks to take him if they wanted Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood so they bit the bullet.

The Mavericks were outscored 28-20 in the 4th quarter of this game and it doomed them in the end. Dirk Nowitzki led the way for the Mavericks as usual in this game with 35 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. Jason Terry also had a decent game with 17 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists off the bench. Jose Juan Barea played 32 minutes in this game off the bench finishing with 14 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists. The Mavericks are now down 2-1 in this series.

Backup forward Tim Thomas has left the Mavericks to care for his wife who is ill. He won’t likely be back the rest of the year. Thomas has played in 18 games (1 start) for the Mavericks this season and he is averaging 15.8 minutes, 7.5 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game. This might hurt the Mavericks bench a tad as Thomas played well for them this season. But, I don’t blame him for leaving the team as there are a lot of things more important than basketball.

The Dallas Mavericks are playing some great basketball lately and have now won 12 straight games.  Their winning streak has given them the second best record in the Western Conference and they are now only 2.5 games behind the Los Angeles Lakers.  There isn’t one guy who you can attribute the Mavericks’ recent success to, as all five starters have been playing some solid basketball.  Dirk Nowitzki, of course, is their leader averaging 28.3 points during the winning streak.  It is the role players who have really been stepping it up and they are the difference makers for the Mavs lately.  Guys like Caron Butler and Shawn Marion have really been playing well.  Butler averages 16.8 points per game on the season, but in the past six games he is averaging 18.2 points.  Marion is averaging only 11.5 points per game this season, but in his past four games he is averaging 18.5 points.  Then there is Jason Kidd who has been having some monster assist games, dropping 10 dimes per game during the current winning streak.  The rookie Rodrigue Beaubois has been playing great recently, averaging 16.3 points, 2.5 assists, and 2.0 rebounds in the four games he has played this month.  If the Mavericks continue their stellar play in the playoffs, they just might be the surprise of the year and make a run at the NBA Title.

Shooting guard Jason Terry will have surgery tomorrow to repair a fractured orbital bone (eye socket) that will cause him to miss the next 10-14 days. Terry has played in 62 games (12 starts) for the Mavericks this season and he is averaging 33.9 minutes, 17.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.2 steals per game. It will be impossible for the Mavericks to replace Terry. Jose Juan Barea and Rodrigue Beaubois will likely both see a bump in minutes with Terry out of action. Barea has played in 61 games (18 starts) for the Mavericks this season and he is averaging 20.2 minutes, 7.7 points, 1.9 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game. Rookie Rodrigue Beaubois has played in 37 games (13 starts) for the Mavericks this season and he is averaging 11.2 minutes, 5.3 points, 1.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. Complicating matters further is the fact that the Mavericks would like to give Jason Kidd some time off to keep fresh for the playoffs but they might not be able to do that with Terry out of action.