[BGMaverick9]

After taking Sunday off, the Dallas Mavericks returned to the practice court on Monday afternoon. The team does see the finish line with only 16 games remaining. "We'll continue to evaluate everything," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said when looking at the final stretch. "The key thing, in my mind, is that we keep working at getting better everyday, but we're not going to get into a thing where we're running guys way up...We've got a lot of depth, we want to use it." The final 16 games will see the Mavericks face off against potential teams they could see in the playoffs, but the coach stands firm on not trying to look too far ahead. "At this point, we've just got to focus on our own game and the game at hand," Carlisle said

The first game of the final 16 will be against the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday in Portland. The Trail Blazers acquired Gerald Wallace at the trade deadline, making an active team that much more active and athletic. The athleticism can cause problems with deflections and attacking the glass for extra possessions. Portland is known as a low possession team, so protecting the rim will be a major issue for the Mavericks.

the rest at http://www.mavsmoneyball.com/2011/3/...6-and-portland