Category: Dallas Mavericks Blog

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Rudy Fernandez needs back surgery, will miss rest of season

Rudy Fernandez

Denver Nuggets guard Rudy Fernandez will require surgery on his lower back and is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season.

Fernandez, 26, missed 12 games this season due to a lower back strain, and the injury recently flared up against Dallas on March 19, prompting further evaluation and more diagnostic testing. A date for the surgery has yet to be scheduled.

In 31 games for the Nuggets this season (one start), Fernandez averaged 8.6 points, 2.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.03 steals in 22.9 minutes. He was acquired by Denver, along with Corey Brewer, from Dallas in exchange for a future second-round pick on Dec. 13, 2011.

Mavericks waive forward Sean Williams

Sean Williams

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have requested waivers on forward Sean Williams.

Williams (6-10, 235) played eight games with the Mavericks after signing as a free agent on Dec. 21. In those appearances, he averaged 3.6 points, 1.6 rebounds and 8.1 minutes while shooting .750 (12-16 FGs) from the field and .833 (5-6 FTs) from the free throw line.

Williams also saw considerable time assigned to the Texas Legends of the NBA Development League. He played 24 games with 23 starts for Texas and averaged 14.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.54 blocks and 1.0 assist in 28.5 minutes while shooting .496 (132-266 FGs) from the field and .766 (85-111 FTs) from the free throw line.

The Mavericks roster now stands at 14 players.

Dirk scores 27, Mavs beat Spurs

dirk nowitzki

No matter who or how many San Antonio Spurs were on Dirk Nowitzki, or how much they pushed, prodded or swatted at the 7-foot All-Star, he kept making big plays for the Dallas Mavericks.

“He probably doesn’t get enough credit for being the competitor that he is, and for being so tough-minded,” teammate Lamar Odom said of Nowitzki. “There’s nothing soft about Dirk. He’s tough.”

Nowitzki scored 27 points, fought for loose balls and screamed out in exhilaration several times as the defending NBA champion Mavericks won 106-99 over the Southwest Division-leading Spurs on Saturday night for their third consecutive victory.

After winning at home against Washington and Charlotte, the NBA’s two worst teams, beating San Antonio was much more impressive, even if the Spurs were playing the second consecutive night. Dallas never trailed and the only tie was at 2-all.

“It was a playoff battle. Anytime we see the Spurs it’s a fun game, great atmosphere, both teams really trying to get the win. As expected, it was a physical game,” Nowitzki said. “They went small some, tried to mix it up. At the end they were double-teaming some. I thought as a team, we always made the right play, find the open guy. That was definitely big.”

— Reported by Stephen Hawkins of the Associated Press

Brendan Haywood out at least 5 games with injury

Brendan Haywood

The Mavericks are going to be without Brendan Haywood again for a while.

Coach Rick Carlisle said Friday that the veteran center will miss at least the next five games because of a sprained right knee he suffered in Thursday night’s game against Charlotte.

The next five games are against San Antonio, at Denver, home against the Lakers, at San Antonio and at Houston. Haywood’s first game back could be March 27 at home against Houston.

Haywood missed four games last week because of a sprained left ankle.

— Reported by Carlos Mendez of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Mavericks recall Sean Williams from D-League

Sean Williams

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have recalled forward Sean Williams from the Texas Legends of the NBA Development League.

Williams (6-10, 235) has played seven games with the Mavericks after signing on Dec. 21.  In those appearances, he averaged 4.1 points, 1.9 rebounds and 9.0 minutes while shooting .750 (12-16 FGs) from the field and .833 (5-6 FTs) from the free throw line.

On March 13, Dallas assigned Williams to the Legends, but recalled him after center Brendan Haywood suffered a right knee sprain on March 15 against the Charlotte Bobcats.

Williams has played 24 games with 23 starts for Texas and averaged 14.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.54 blocks and 1.0 assist in 28.5 minutes while shooting .496 (132-266 FGs) from the field and .766 (85-111 FTs) from the free throw line.

Mavs re-assign Sean Williams to D-League

Today the Dallas Mavericks re-assigned Sean Williams to the Texas Legends, the Mavericks’ NBA Development League affiliate. The assignment marks the 50th time an NBA player has been assigned to their NBA D-League affiliate during the 2011-2012 season and the second assignment for Sean Williams this year.

Williams (6-10, 235) has played in 22 games for the Legends the season averaging 15.0 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks in 28.5 minutes. Currently Williams is shooting 50.6% from the field while making a career best 76.6% of his free-throw attempts as a Legend.

In seven games for the Dallas Mavericks this season, Williams averaged 4.1 points on 75.0% shooting, 1.9 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks in nine minutes.

The Texas Legends (21-18) are currently on an eight game winning streak and next play Wednesday against the Idaho Stampede (16-24) at Idaho Center Arena in Boise, Idaho at 8:00PM CST.

Suns get first win over Mavericks in 9 tries

Jared Dudley
jared dudley
Enjoys Twitter

The Phoenix Suns finally got the best of the Dallas Mavericks. Barely.

Jared Dudley scored 12 of his 18 points in a third-quarter comeback and Phoenix held on to beat Dallas 96-94 on Thursday night, the Suns’ first victory over the Mavericks in nine tries, four this season.

“This is definitely big for us,” Dudley said. “We’ve struggled against this more than any other team, especially at home.”

Dallas blew out the Suns in Phoenix 122-99 on Jan. 30.

Grant Hill scored 10 of his 15 points in the second half for Phoenix, but missed two free throws with 15.4 seconds left. Dallas had two chances after that, but Rodrigue Beaubois missed a driving layup, then couldn’t hit an open 18-foot jumper at the buzzer…

Marcin Gortat added 16 points and 12 rebounds as the Suns won their fourth straight home game, their longest streak in nearly two years. Steve Nash had 11 points and 11 assists.

Vince Carter and Dirk Nowitzki had 18 points apiece for Dallas in the Mavericks’ fifth road loss in a row.

— Reported by the Associated Press

All quiet for Mavericks in trade market

There’s a little more than a week left before the trade deadline and the Mavericks aren’t in the middle of the rumor mill.

“Our phone hasn’t been ringing at all about anybody and we’re not calling anybody,” owner Mark Cuban said. “I told Donnie to take calls, but we’re not making calls. There you have it.”

This isn’t normal around these parts. But it is expected.

The Mavs are trying to contend for a championship while maintaining the financial flexibility to create major space under the salary cap this summer. They aren’t going to make a deal before the deadline that reduces their odds to repeat.

— Reported by Tim McMahon of ESPN Dallas

Odom says meeting with Carlisle before extended layoff was positive

Lamar Odom
lamar odom
Keeps up with the Kardashians

Lamar Odom said his meeting with Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle on Feb. 21 was positive despite the nature of the discussions.

The meeting came the day before the Mavs played the Lakers, a game Odom missed when he returned home to Los Angeles to tend to a personal issue.

“I had to make myself think it was a positive that he’s coming to talk to me,” Odom said before Monday’s game against Oklahoma City. “When you’re in this business and when they don’t talk to you is when it’s a problem.”

Odom said he knew he had a decision to make, but he didn’t inform Carlisle at the time.

“We had a great meeting with him to make sure that he understood that our expectation is not that he be concerned about his stats,” Carlisle said. “It’s that any time he steps on the floor he’s completely into the game playing full out with as much intensity and presence and energy as he can, and the other stuff will take are of itself.

“We had a very positive meeting that day and the next morning he got a phone call that there’s a serious thing going on and he had to leave us for a while.”

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