Practice Report (03/03/12)
Earl K. Sneed reports from the Dallas Mavericks' Tuesday practice, where the team welcomed back an ailing Lamar Odom and looked to bounce back from Monday night's loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Practice Report (03/03/12)
DALLAS -- While tornadic activity swirled outside of the American Airlines Center on Tuesday, the Dallas Mavericks dealt with their own whirlwind inside the building after suffering a 94-75 home loss to the Los Angeles Clippers the night before.
Looking to make the proper corrections needed to bounce back from the lopsided loss in time for Wednesday night's matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies, the Mavericks (30-24) welcomed back newcomer Lamar Odom after the versatile forward missed the loss due to a stomach ailment.
"[Odom] practiced today and did some things," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. "This has been tough for him. Because of the illness, he's lost some weight. So, he's gonna battle back. I expect him at shootaround tomorrow and we'll see where things are tomorrow night."
And with Odom's status for Wednesday still unknown, the Mavs also returned to the practice court still without point guard Jason Kidd.
Kidd will likely miss the entire week due to a strained right groin. Without their floor general, the Mavs struggled to make up for the loss of the future Hall of Famer in the backcourt while shooting a dreadful 39 percent.
Still, Carlisle expressed the utmost confidence in the duo of Delonte West and Rodrigue Beaubois as the two prepare to assume Kidd's role against a Grizzlies team that is one-half game ahead of Dallas for the No. 5 spot in the Western Conference standings.
"D-West and Roddy are gonna have to get the job done for us, in large part," Carlisle said. "I believe in West and Beaubois and they've both proven this year that they're capable still. You know, right now, they're the two guys that are gonna have to get it done for us in Jason's absence."
"J-Kidd is very important for us. He's one of the best point guards to ever play this game, so every time he's out we have to make an adjustment," Beaubois added. "We didn't do it yesterday, so we have to make sure that we do it tomorrow. ... I mean, J-Kidd is J-Kidd. I'm not J-Kidd, so I just have to play my game. Everybody has to step up and play our game, just play their own game and not try to play like J-Kidd. I think we just need to play together and not play like J-Kidd."
Note: The Mavericks return to action at the American Airlines Center on Wednesday night when they play host to the Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizzlies lead the season series 1-0 after a 96-85 home win on Feb. 29. That game will air locally on Fox Sports Southwest at 7:30 p.m. CT. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling (214) 747-MAVS.
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).
