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By constantly tinkering, Dallas Mavericks' Carlisle may have found something that works

Given the latest turn in the Mavs' fortunes, let's consider the possible explanations:

A) The Mavs averaged 111 points over their three-game winning streak because Rick Carlisle gave Jason Kidd the keys to the offense.

B) An embarrassing loss to the Celtics shamed the Mavs into at least trying to play consistent defense.

C) Darrell Armstrong, 3-0 since his return as an assistant, has Riley-esque potential.

D) This streak, too, shall pass.

E) All of the above.

If you answered, E, this season has taught you not to get carried away.

Still, if this latest success is no guarantee of what's to come, starting tonight against Portland in American Airlines Center, at least we appear to be learning something about the Mavs and their coach.

Since taking over for Avery Johnson, a man who liked to impose his will, Carlisle has earned a different reputation. Practices are easier, which hasn't pleased Dirk Nowitzki, a notorious gym rat. But this isn't a young team, either. The last thing Kidd needs is to be pounding his soon-to-be-35-year-old dogs up and down a practice floor.

Carlisle also proved to be a tinkerer. Until the last couple of weeks, he'd trotted out more lineups than you'd see in a week's worth of Law & Order episodes.

A pro sports culture primer: Athletes don't like to be surprised. They want to know if they're going to play and how much, and they want their boss to be straight up about it. Otherwise, they pout.

I should add that players pout no matter what you do, but the condition is aggravated by long skids into nowhere.

And when Boston blew out the Mavs in the Garden last week, the future looked really, really bleak.

Carlisle says he knew his team would bounce back against Golden State because that's what it's done after bad losses all season.

And, just in case, he asked Mark Cuban on the flight home from Boston if he could hire Armstrong.

"I wouldn't say the Boston loss was the reason it happened," said Carlisle, who coached Armstrong in Indiana, "but it contributed to everyone being willing to do it."

Armstrong brings the same qualities as a coach that he showed as a player: upbeat, energetic, a teacher and leader.

Carlisle wouldn't necessarily concede that Armstrong might reach a corner of the locker room that he can't. But he said he first solicited the opinions of Nowitzki, Kidd, Jason Terry and Josh Howard, who gave four enthusiastic thumbs up.

Carlisle wasn't finished retooling just yet, either. He'd already settled into a basic rotation with the improvement of a healthy Antoine Wright. But it didn't fix much. Despite all the complaints about defense, the offense was no prize, either. Under Johnson, Kidd had basically been relegated to a spot-up shooter, a role that carried over under Carlisle.

Then from the Florida road trip came reports that Carlisle was letting Kidd run the offense. Instead of the coach calling, say, 75 percent of the plays, the numbers would now be reversed in the point guard's favor.

"It's been happening gradually to a certain degree," Carlisle said. "I've gained a real comfort level with his feel of the pulse of the team. It also allows things to happen out of the flow of the game, without losing any momentum.

"Hey, you've got a Hall of Fame point guard, use him to the best of his abilities."

Well, yeah.

If the point guard is happy on offense, it stands to reason that he'd be more energetic on defense, too. From the looks of it, it's catching.

Question: Can success last? Hard to say. The Mavs remain a flawed bunch, but so are many teams, including the Lakers with Andrew Bynum out three months.

Give the Mavs a month to see if the changes take. But whatever else happens, give Carlisle credit. When he's willing to make changes on the fly, and none serve his ego, it's an indication that at least you might have the right coach.

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