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As a result, the Mavs have been getting kicked around a bit lately. Sure, they’ve won 20 of their last 23 games, but over the last five games or so they’ve been a little sloppy. They allowed a struggling Indiana team to shoot over 60% from the floor for much of their game last week, then choked on an 18-point halftime lead to lose to Memphis while Rudy Gay was in street clothes, barely beat the foundering Minnesota Timberwolves and gave away a win to the Hornets, who were playing without Chris Paul. It’s not exactly been a brilliant recent stretch for Dallas, and Carlisle believes his team needs to toughen up and respond to a more physical level of play they’re facing of late.

"I see more and more teams taking physical liberties on our guys," says Carlisle. "So much of this game, to me, is about disposition, both physically and mentally. We’ve been good this year, but I always feel like we can be better and more consistent and that’s really where it’s at. We’ve been through a stretch of games where we really have taken care of business, but we’re in the middle of a stretch right now where the caliber of competition is much higher, the travel is much more of a factor and it’s much more challenging."

Last night the Mavericks took on the much-improved New York Knicks, and it got physical right away. Amar’e Stoudemire challenged Tyson Chandler repeatedly on the first couple of possessions, and Chandler went right back at him on the other end. Midway through the first quarter Stoudemire was on the bench with an ice pack wrapped around his shoulder from a play in which he tried to put a hard foul on Chandler, who scored and injured Stoudemire in the process. Meanwhile, the Mavericks attached Carmelo Anthony and got him in early foul trouble, so for much of the first quarter the Knicks were playing without either of their All-Stars, and Chauncey Billups was sitting out with an injury of his own. Dallas would build a 26-point lead in the first half.

"I talked to the guys before the game (last night) and told them that what we’ve done over the last four weeks has been terrific, and we really have taken care of business," Carlisle explains. "The challenge at hand is becoming much more difficult, and that’s our physical disposition and the fact that teams are taking advantage. A guy (Marco Belinelli) threw (Shawn) Marion out of bounds (in New Orleans) and got a $10,000 fine. (David) West took a cheap shot at Dirk and threw him over the bench. Those kinds of things concern me. I just know that in this league your disposition is so important, your posture and your disposition and your approach have to be absolutely focused and absolutely consistent."

For most of the season, Carlisle has been pleased with the way his team responded to the physical play, but every team goes through a lull at some point. The Miami HEAT just snapped a five-game losing streak that many in Florida thought was the end of the world, the Los Angeles Lakers los their focus for a bit before the All-Star break, and the Spurs lost that one game last month . . .they all go through it. Carlisle just wants to inspire his team to snap out of their recent lapse and get back on the championship course they all hope to be setting.

"Generally, we react pretty well, but it’s a matter of being consistent with our approach and our disposition from the start of the game to the finish. We’re an aggressive team, we get off to good starts, and when teams hit us with runs we generally respond very well. There’s not one team in this league that can’t be better, top to bottom, for 48 minutes. We’re in there with a lot of teams like that. … I’m not talking about getting into fights or anything like that. I’m talking about making a stand on the court and converting those kinds of things into consistently aggressive play. Those are things that we generally do, but I’m going to keep pushing guys to do it better. With what we’re trying to do we can’t be mediocre at anything, and that’s a fact."

For a more specific take on what the Mavericks need to do to shake off the "soft" label, Mr. Clutch Jason Terry shared his view of how the Mavs should go about addressing some of the physical play they’ve been receiving.

"Man, it’s tough, especially for a player like myself, who opposing teams’ defenses are geared to stop, myself and Dirk. They’re going to do whatever it takes to get you frustrated or get you to play outside of your game, and that’s where the holding, grabbing, some flagrant fouls come into play. What you have to do is pick your spots, not do it in front of referees. I know I’ve had a habit in the past, you know, a guy hits me coming off a screen or something and they don’t call it, and I come right back down the next play and take a shot. You’ve got to pick your spots and know when to do it, but just because you can cheap shot a guy doesn’t mean you’re tough. We like to say ‘get buckets,’ and that’s what Dirk does. He may not hit you with an elbow, but he’ll shoot a dagger in your face when it’s needed most." 

It’s been quite a year for Amar’e Stoudemire, going from trade rumors at the 2010 trade deadline to the Western Conference Finals in Phoenix to moving to The Big Apple and now teaming up with Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups. Stoudemire talks with HOOPSWORLD about the business of basketball getting in the way of possibly winning a championship in Phoenix, his new situation in New York, why Chauncey Billups is such a huge addition, and more in this exclusive interview:

The Return Of Yao Ming?

There aren’t too many basketball fans around the world who wouldn’t love to see Yao Ming return to action next season. Even if you don’t like the Houston Rockets, there’s something about watching a 7’5" man play with the kind of finesse that Yao Ming possesses that simply fires the imagination. His passing ability, his shooting touch, his 90% mark from the free throw line – there are so many things about Yao’s game that are counter-intuitive that it makes watching him the purest form of love of the game of basketball. The mere possibility that he could overcome his latest foot injury and return to the Rockets is enough to keep Houston’s playoff hopes . . .even championship hopes . . .alive.

{AUTHOR_BOX}Unfortunately, the situation isn’t that easy. It’s not as easy as saying, ok, Yao’s healthy, let’s get back in the playoff picture and fight for a championship. You see, Yao Ming’s contract expires this summer, and the Rockets have to make a decision about just how much faith they want to place on the possibility that Yao might be able to play effectively next season. 

Before the trade deadline the Rockets figured to be one of the top players in this summer’s free agency frenzy. They had Yao and Shane Battier coming off the books and opening up close to $25 million in cap space. Of course, they sabotaged some of that plan when they traded Battier and his expiring contract to the Memphis Grizzlies for Hasheem Thabeet, who is on the books for a little over $5 million next season. If the team opts to re-sign Yao, as well, they will actually have little or no room to add additional players, depending on how the new Collective Bargaining Agreement looks.

Frankly, it almost puts the Rockets in a lose-lose scenario. If they keep Yao and he gets hurt again, they spend another year wondering what might have been and sitting just far enough below the playoff picture to assure themselves of poor draft position. If they don’t re-sign Yao and he signs elsewhere, he could have a miraculous bout of health and lead some other team to the playoffs, making the Rockets look bad in the process. 

The good news is the Rockets have a while to evaluate Yao before they have to make a decision. He told the Houston Chronicle‘s Jonathan Feigen that he is ten weeks away from doing any work on the court, and it will be some time after that before a determination can be made as to whether or not Yao is even capable of playing basketball again. Given the seeming inevitability of a lock-out, the Rockets will likely have an extended amount of time in which to evaluate Yao and decide whether or not to commit the majority of their resources to giving him one more shot as their franchise cornerstone. 

How the Rockets choose to address that situation will likely turn out to be the franchise’s defining moment for the foreseeable future.

Hawks Game Rescheduled (Reminder)