Dallas Mavericks

Laker fans have almost become numb to Kobe Bryant's heroics. They've seen his game-winners. They've witnessed all the times he's dropped 40-plus points. They know Bryant will play through pretty much any injury. These fans may still marvel at what Bryant does, but by now it's almost expected. Yet hardly anyone could anticipate Bryant somehow pulling off what he did in the Lakers' 109-93 victory Wednesday over the Dallas Mavericks. After beating Jason Kidd on a backdoor cut, Bryant received a pass over the top of the rim from Lakers forward Pau Gasol.

Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki is prioritizing winning a championship over money. He wants his team to be able to sign a superstar free agent, such as Clippers point guard Chris Paul or Lakers center Dwight Howard, and is willing to take a major pay cut to enable it to happen. "At this point of my career, it's all about competing and winning," Nowitzki said Thursday, according to ESPN. "It's not about money. Obviously, [Mavericks owner Mark] Cuban took care of me for a long, long time.

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Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban told reporters Tuesday night that he would consider drafting 6-foot-8 former Baylor women's basketball star Brittney Griner. Griner later tweeted: "I would hold my own! Lets do it. " Writers from around Tribune Co. discuss whether Griner should be given a chance to play for the Mavericks. Check back throughout the day for their opinions and feel free to join the conversation with a comment of your own. John Altavilla, Hartford Courant I am all for the idea of shameless, aimless promotion in professional sports.

Here are three reasons the Lakers would have no problem beating the Dallas Mavericks in the 2012 NBA playoffs. 1. Motivation. The Lakers may have adopted a grinding mentality under Coach Mike Brown. But they've still shown that external circumstances drive them. Whether it's locker-room drama or responding to teams they don't like, the Lakers have and always will thrive on conflict. In this case, the Lakers are still stewing over Dallas sweeping them in the 2011 Western Conference semifinals.

OKLAHOMA CITY AT DALLAS When: Monday at 5:30 p.m. PST. TV: NBA TV. Update: The schedule makers must have really wanted to find out in the season's first nine days if the Thunder is ready to lower the boom on the NBA's defending champions. Oklahoma City prevailed, 104-102, on Thursday in the first meeting between the presumed Western Conference powers when Kevin Durant made a three-pointer at the buzzer to beat the visiting Mavericks. Now the teams will meet again four days later, giving Dallas a chance to pick up the pace following an abysmally slow start.

Since taking over Dallas' NBA team in January, Mark Cuban has become the league's biggest maverick. The Internet billionaire has thrown around millions to round out trades, hired nearly a dozen assistant coaches and treated players like guests at the Ritz-Carlton. He even let Dennis Rodman live in his mansion. Cuban has jokingly jawed with Michael Jordan and attended MJ's $15,000 fantasy camp.

Requiem for a heavyweight, NBA style. The Dallas Mavericks were a very good basketball team in the late 1980s--so good they won 55 games in 1986-87. They won 53 and reached Game 7 of the Western Conference finals the next season. So good that Detlef Schrempf was the eighth man in the rotation. So good that they could trade Dale Ellis, a future 20-point scorer, to Seattle for Al Wood and not regret it.

Former Dallas Mavericks Coach Dick Motta accepted the head coaching post with the Sacramento Kings today with a promise to make the Kings better but a warning that he is not a miracle maker. The Kings, currently third worst in the National Basketball Assn. with a 7-20 record, said Motta will take the reins of the Kings after tonight's game against Denver. Motta retired from the Dallas Mavericks in 1987 after 19 seasons as an NBA head coach in Chicago, Washington and Dallas.

LAKERS VS. DALLAS Thursday, 7:30 p.m. TV: TNT The stakes are the same, but the scene has shifted. On March 12, the Lakers went to Dallas, 11/2 games behind the Mavericks, winners of 20 of 24 including the teams' only previous contest, for No. 2 in the West. A win would have given the Mavericks the season series and a 21/2-game lead with 16 left ? and left the Lakers looking at playing Dallas and San Antonio on the road, back-to-back, in the playoffs, assuming they got to the Spurs.

Lakers 101 - Mavericks 81 (final) The Lakers won their most important game of the regular season (at least until the next one), defeating the Dallas Mavericks, 101-81, on Tuesday night at Staples Center. Kobe Bryant notched a triple-double with 23 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. He also had four steals and two blocked shots, playing the first 47 minutes of the game without a rest. Dwight Howard scored 24 points with 12 rebounds. Pau Gasol also tallied a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and was four assists shy of the triple-double.

The Lakers (38-36) will host the Dallas Mavericks (36-37) on Tuesday night, in a game that may have serious playoff implications. The Mavericks are 1 1/2 games behind the Lakers in the Western Conference. A Dallas win would make conference record the tiebreaker, which is currently too close to call. A Lakers' victory would put the Lakers up by 2 1/2 in the head-to-head tiebreaker (3-1).  It would also keep the Lakers tied in the standings with the Utah Jazz. The Jazz won the season series over the Lakers.

Lakers on Sunday AT DALLAS When: 10 a.m. PST. Where: American Airlines Center. On the air: TV: Channel 7; Radio: 710, 1330. Records: Lakers 27-29, Mavericks 25-29. Record vs. Mavericks: 1-1. Update: Dallas won its last three games and scored 100 or more points in 16 of its last 18. Dirk Nowitzki has had a fairly quiet season since returning from arthroscopic knee surgery, averaging 15.4 points and 5.9 rebounds in 25 games. Nowitzki, 34, averaged 21.6 points and 6.8 rebounds last season.

Lakers 103, Mavericks 99 (final) Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki battled head to head on Sunday with ninth place in the Western Conference standings up for grabs. Bryant and the Lakers prevailed to improve their record to 28-29.  The Dallas Mavericks dip to 25-30. Bryant finished with 38 points on 13-of-21 shooting to lead all scorers, putting in 14 fourth-quarter points including a difficult jump shot with 46.9 seconds left to put the Lakers up by four. Nowitzki scored a season-high 30 points on 11-of-19 shooting to go along with 13 rebounds.  The Mavericks missed a chance to tie the score in the final seconds when O.J. Mayo's three-point attempt didn't drop.

DALLAS — Maybe the old legs of the Lakers were cracking and burning with the early tipoff. Maybe Dwight Howard's self-acknowledged lack of conditioning cost him another game at the offensive end. But maybe the Lakers still have that familiar burst of offense from the one guy who can throw them all on his shoulders when needed. Kobe Bryant turned back the calendar with a impressively efficient 38-point effort in a 103-99 victory Sunday over the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center.

The Lakers heard Mark Cuban's comments about Kobe Bryant. They weren't amused. The Dallas Mavericks owner said in a radio interview Friday that the Lakers should consider using their one-time amnesty provision on Bryant this summer. Bryant has one more season and $30.5 million left on his contract. He is one of four players the Lakers can waive via the money-saving device after this season. "We're aware of Mark Cuban's comments and feel they are inappropriate," Lakers spokesman John Black said.