Preview: Raptors (1-1) at Mavericks (0-3)

Earl K. Sneed previews the Mavericks' Friday night matchup against former assistant coach Dwane Casey and the Toronto Raptors, as the Dallas team tries to shake off a last-second loss to Oklahoma City.

DALLAS — Maybe the best thing that could happen for the Dallas Mavericks is to wake up Friday morning knowing they have another game back on their home floor.

Immediately having to turn their attention from Thursday night’s heartbreaking 104-102 loss in Oklahoma City on two-time scoring champ Kevin Durant’s game-winning 3-pointer as time expired, the Mavericks (0-3) enter Friday night still searching for their first win of the young season. And after dropping back-to-back home games in blowout fashion to Miami and Denver to open the season, the Mavs know they can’t let another opportunity go by the wayside on the American Airlines Center floor.

“We have to make our own breaks,” Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said after the last-second loss on Thursday night. “To me, that’s what personalizing the game means. We have to make our breaks, and right now, the basketball gods are not on our side. We have to get them on our side. You don’t do that unless you do things right all the time. We’re making strides, but we’re not there yet.”

The Dallas team is the first defending champion to start 0-3 since the 1969-70 Boston Celtics began the season with four straight losses. Now the team prepares to say welcome back to Toronto coach Dwane Casey, who is often credited by Carlisle as being the catalyst behind last season’s defensive prowess.

Just four games into the defense of their first NBA championship in franchise history, the Mavs welcome back a key contributor from last season’s squad via the sideline, with Casey accepting the head position north of the border after serving as the top assistant under Carlisle. The team’s former defensive coordinator is also responsible for implementing the zone defense that became a staple in Dallas’ game plan en route to the Larry O’Brien Trophy.

In his first season at the helm for Toronto, Casey will again try to change the defensive culture of the Raptors (1-1), a squad believed to be offensive-oriented around the league. Meanwhile, the Mavs will try to replicate the defensive intensity they displayed under the tutelage of the coach, with assistant Monte Mathis taking over Casey’s duties while newcomer Tony Brown joins Carlisle’s staff.

“[The defensive system] is gonna remain the same,” Carlisle explained. “We’ll build flexibility into our defensive system based on our personnel and whatever changes or tweaks we have, but our basics are gonna remain the same for the most part.”

With Casey now on the opposite sideline, the Mavs will also take the court hoping to fill the void left by the departure of last season’s defensive “heart and soul” as described by Carlisle, with center Tyson Chandler moving on to New York after a sign-and-trade deal.

Against the Thunder, the Mavericks’ trio of big men — starting center Brendan Haywood and reserves Sean Williams and Ian Mahinmi — more than made up for Chandler’s lost production, scoring 19 points and pulling down nine rebounds between them. The Mavs will need more from the active bigs if they are to finally claim their first notch in the win column against a Raptors’ frontline of Amir Johnson and Andrea Bargnani.

“We always say, ‘Next man up.’ That’s what we said last year, that’s what we have to do this year,” Haywood said. “Next man up, somebody else isn’t there, you have to step up and be prepared to step into their role.”

“The way they played [Thursday night], we’ll forget about Tyson real soon,” reserve Jason Terry added.

Meanwhile, the Mavs will try to take the same overall team effort from Thursday night’s losing cause and put it forth one night later, this time hoping that the end result is slightly different. And after not finding themselves in a double-digit hole like in the first two games — claiming their first lead at the end of a first quarter against OKC — the Mavericks know that if they execute to the same degree as they did against one of the league’s elite then that elusive win to start the 2011-12 campaign will soon follow.

“I like the fight we showed,” said leading scorer Dirk Nowitzki after a 29-point, 10-rebound night against the Thunder. “For the first time, trying to get up and play together and fighting for each other out there. That’s what’s gonna get it done in this league.”

“If you looked at those first two games, that wasn’t the Mavericks at all. [Thursday night], this was the Mavericks,” Terry added.

Note: The team returns to Dallas to face off with the Toronto Raptors on Friday night, with that game set to air on Fox Sports Southwest at 7:30 p.m. CT. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling (214) 747-MAVS (6287).

Single-game tickets are on sale and available at the American Airlines Center North Box Office, online at mavs.com, via phone by calling 214-747-MAVS or 1-800-4NBA-TIX and all Ticketmaster outlets (Fiesta Grocery Stores, Wal-Mart, Simon Mall in Garland and the Shops at Willow Bend in Plano).

Rivalry Pack: Aside from being a season ticket holder, the only way for Mavs fans to attend either of the two Los Angeles Lakers games is through the Rivalry Pack. Tickets to the Feb.22 and March 21 games vs. the Los Angeles Lakers can be purchased as part of a three-game package that includes one (1) of the three premium games and two (2) additional regular season games.

RPL Nights: RPL Nights return for the sixth season and will feature special discounted tickets for 10 pre-selected games. Tickets normally priced $9 will be $2, $15 will be $10, $31 will be $20 and $42 will be $32.