Practice report (11/13/12): Carlisle preaches defense, rebounding amid three-game skid
Earl K. Sneed reports from the Dallas Mavericks' Tuesday practice, as the team tries to end its current three-game losing streak Wednesday night against Washington.
Practice report (11/13/12): Carlisle preaches defense, rebounding amid three-game skid
DALLAS – After studying film of Monday night’s 90-82 home loss to a visiting Minnesota team to run his team’s current losing skid to three straight games, Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle's emphasis during Tuesday’s practice was clear and simple: defense and rebounding.
Critiquing his team’s lackluster performance and its inability to contain Minnesota’s dribble penetration Monday night, Carlisle believes that better attention to those two areas of focus will ultimately make the difference, after Minnesota also finished the night with a 49-35 rebounding advantage.
And as they try to get back to their success during a 3-0 homestand just last week, the Mavericks (4-4) hope to address their defensive and rebounding inadequacies in time for the Washington Wizards’ visit to the American Airlines Center on Wednesday night.
"I might sound like a broken record. Defense and rebounding. Defense and rebounding. Defense and rebounding. Containing dribble penetration. Defense and rebounding," Carlisle matter-of-factly said following Tuesday’s team practice.
He added: “We’ve gotta personalize our effort, individually and as a team. And right now, we’ve gotta dig ourselves out of this losing streak. The way you do it is you start with a jumpball and you’ve got to dig in on every possession. Simple as that.”
With four-time All-Star small forward and defensive catalyst Shawn Marion slated to miss his fifth straight game with a sprained left MCL, however, addressing the defense and the attention to details on the glass will continue to be a daunting challenge for the short-handed Mavericks on Wednesday night. Meanwhile, while the coach’s emphasis on defense and rebounding is clear, the Mavs’ offense has also clearly suffered.
During their three-game winning streak at home, the Mavericks saw their starting unit lead the offense to consecutive 30-point first quarters and triple-digit scores in all three victories. But, during their last three games, the Mavs have produced opening quarters of just 23, 21 and 17 points while quickly finding themselves behind on the scoreboard.
And with point guard Darren Collison vowing to help lead the Mavericks back on track against a 0-5 Wizards squad, the floor general admits that it will take a more well-rounded performance from the opening tip.
“Well, I just think it’s a combination of offense and defense,” Collison explained. “For one thing, on the offensive end, we’re not making the shots that we normally make the last few games, and the result of all that is we’re being too stagnant. We’re not really moving the ball from side to side and making the defense move. And then on the defensive end, we’re just not buckled down and tied in like we need to be. You know, we have the personnel to do it. We’re capable of buckling down on the defensive end and getting some stops. And then, you know, look, we’re not gonna always win games shooting at a high percentage. Sometimes you’re gonna have to win ugly games, and I think last night could have been an example of that. We just didn’t get it done on the defensive end.”
The Mavs will try to change that Wednesday night, hosting the winless Wizards. The game will air locally at 7:30 p.m. CT on Fox Sports Southwest. Tickets for the game remain available and can be purchased by calling (214) 747-6287 or by visiting Mavs.com.
