Dallas Mavericks Blog – Page 62 – NBA Blog

Dirk Nowitzki out 6 weeks after knee surgery

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that Dirk Nowitzki underwent arthroscopic surgery to his right knee. The surgery was performed at Texas Sports Medicine by team orthopedic surgeon T.O. Souryal. Nowitzki is expected to resume on-court activities within approximately 6 weeks.

Nowitzki has missed the last three preseason games with right knee effusion. His lone preseason appearance took place in Berlin on Oct. 6 when Nowitzki scored 8 points in 34 minutes of action.

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With Jason Terry gone, Vince Carter down to be Mavs 6th man

“I’m down for it,” Carter said when asked if he wanted to be the new sixth man. “I’ll come in and help the team, remain verbal — I do that well. I just try to keep us going forward and not regress. When the second unit comes on the floor, they have to keep it going. I just try to do a little bit of everything to help the team.”

Carter has all the requirements of a good sixth man. He can shoot the 3-pointer. He still has the capacity to get to the rim and he’s not afraid to do other things besides score, as his seven rebounds in 19 minutes against Phoenix on Wednesday suggest. But he also had 15 rapid-fire points in his time on the court. That sort of production looks and sounds sixth-man worthy.

Terry proved that the sixth-man job is a crucial one for the Mavericks. It started with Don Nelson more than a decade ago. He always tried to have a designated scorer off the bench, whether it was Antawn Jamison (a sixth-man of the year) or Jerry Stackhouse or Nick Van Exel.

— Reported by Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News

DJ Mbenga jailed at 4 a.m. for cop altercation

WFAA, citing a Dallas police report, gave this account:

Mbenga was trying to leave the restaurant just as a pair of Dallas police officers were walking in.

The 7-foot center put his palm on the chest of one of the cops and said, “You move out of my way.”

The officer stopped and responded, “You don’t touch police, let alone make that statement.”

To which Mbenga — in hindsight, perhaps inadvisedly — responded: “You want to go? I do what I want, so you move out of the way!”

As the officers escorted Mbenga out of the restaurant, he continued to argue with them.

The officers smelled alcohol on his breath and noted his “unsteady balance” and bloodshot eyes. They said he failed three of six field sobriety tests.

The 32-year-old was handcuffed and taken to the Dallas County jail.

— Reported by the Dallas Morning News

Delonte West suspended by Mavs

Dallas Mavericks guard Delonte West has been suspended for conduct detrimental to the team, Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said.

Carlisle did not specify a timetable for West’s suspension.

Sources told ESPNDallas.com that West’s suspension stems at least in part from an outburst in the locker room after the Mavs’ 123-104 preseason win Monday over the Houston Rockets. He had 2 points, 2 assists and 1 rebound in 16 minutes during the win.

— Reported by Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas

Dirk impressed with speed of Darren Collison

After close inspection, Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki is very impressed with the speed point guard Darren Collion has displayed thus far in training camp.

“He’s one of the fastest guards I’ve ever played with,’’ Nowitzki said of one of his new teammates. “Obviously, he’s got to use that speed to our advantage.

“He’s got to push the ball off makes, misses — it doesn’t really matter. He’s got to fly up the court and get the wings running with him.’’

— Reported by Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Blog)

Dirk Nowitzki practices but does not rule out knee surgery

Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki put in a full practiced today after getting his swollen right knee drained.

Though he seemed more optimistic about the knee than he did during last week’s trip to Germany and Spain, he didn’t rule out the possibility that he’ll have to have arthroscopic surgery.

“We’ll see how it responds over the weekend,” Nowitzki said. “I’ll be all right, hopefully.”

“Hopefully” is probably not the prognosis Mavericks fans want to hear about the status of Dallas’ 15th-year, perennial All-Star. Nowitzki didn’t specify which day he had the knee drained, but said it’s the second time he’s had it drained in recent weeks. He said he also had it drained “a couple of times” last season.

— Reported by Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News

NCAA investigating relationship between agent Rich Paul and Texas guard Myck Kabongo

The NCAA is looking into the possibility that Rich Paul, the representative of Miami Heat star LeBron James, provided improper benefits to University of Texas sophomore guard Myck Kabongo, sources told Yahoo! Sports.

James and two former Texas Longhorns – Cleveland Cavaliers forward Tristan Thompson and San Antonio Spurs guard Cory Joseph – are represented by Paul’s new management company, Klutch Sports. Paul also called NBA front offices on behalf of Kabongo before this year’s NBA draft, sources said.

“We’re aware of the situation,” Texas basketball media relations official Scott McConnell said. “But we have not heard any decisions from the NCAA.”

McConnell declined further comment but confirmed that the NCAA has interviewed Kabongo, and said the Texas compliance department was aware of the issue.

“At the end of the day, here’s the main thing, it’s no crime to have a relationship with the kid,” Paul told Yahoo! Sports. “Of course, I know Myck through Tristan and Cory. I haven’t been contacted by the NCAA and I wouldn’t put a kid in harm’s way. My time in Cleveland was getting [former University of Kentucky star] Michael Kidd-Gilchrist prepared for the draft. I live in Cleveland.

“I would never disrespect anybody’s program. I love the game of basketball. I understand the business of basketball, but I’m about doing it the right way.”

— Reported by Adrian Wojnarowski and Pat Forde of Yahoo Sports

Dirk Nowitzki sits out preseason game with swollen right knee

A swollen right knee kept Dirk Nowitzki out of the Dallas Mavericks’ 99-85 loss at FC Barcelona Regal on Tuesday, with Pete Mickeal and Juan Carlos Navarro each scoring 19 points for the 17-time Spanish champions.

After only leading by two points at halftime, Barcelona outscored the Mavericks 32-16 in the third quarter to open up an 18-point gap. Center Chris Kaman led the Mavericks with 15 points. Darren Collison was next with 14, and Elton Brand had 10.

Nowitzki was expected to play but was ruled out just before tip-off.

”Last year I dealt with (swelling in the knee),” Nowitzki said. ”We did treatment twice and the swelling didn’t come back. Hopefully it will respond next week and I can play through the year.”

— Reported by Joseph Wilson of the Associated Press

Mavs guard Roddy Beaubois suffers sprained ankle

Mavericks’ guard Roddy Beaubois had to be helped off the court with 1:16 to go in the third quarter Saturday after injuring his left ankle.

Beaubois hit the floor and quickly grabbed his left ankle. He could not put any weight on his left foot as Maverick personnel on each side helped him limp off the court to the locker room.

The injury was diagnosed as a sprain, team officials said.

— Reported by Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News

Dirk Nowitzki expects to play beyond 2 more seasons

Between appearances, interviews and a nighttime workout with his teammates, Dirk Nowitzki had time to fight through the jet lag and drop a noteworthy development into a conversation on one of the many bus rides he made Thursday.

The closer he gets to the end of his current contract in 2014, the more the Mavericks superstar expects to play beyond the upcoming two seasons. This is a bit of a change of heart for him. He’s always said he’ll weigh his options after his deal expires following the 2013-14 season.

Now, he sees extending his career as a more likely option.

“It’s kind of hard to plan longer than two years ahead when you’re 34,” he said. “But I definitely want to finish my contract strong, hopefully have a couple good years.

“So if it’s still fun and I feel well, then I’m more than happy to play longer.”

— Reported by Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News