When Dirk Nowitzki was sidelined for the first 27 games of the 2012-13 season while recuperating from knee surgery, the nightly question was: When’s he going to be back?

Now, he’s been back for a week and three games, and the nightly question is: When is Dirk going to play like Dirk?

Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle urged everyone to exercise patience, which is a little difficult for fans when their team is 12-18 with a five-game losing streak.

“There shouldn’t be any evaluation until at least the middle of January,” Carlisle said before the Mavericks-Spurs game Sunday. “I don’t think anybody should analyze anything. This is a tedious process. And he’s not just back right now to play the games. He’s back to get his career to the point where he can play a few more years.”

via Jan Hubbard of ESPN Dallas