01/02/13: Mavericks chat with SportsDay beat writer Eddie Sefko

Well, whaddaya know? The Mavericks are undefeated in 2013, at least for a few more hours. But I'll get this on record right off the bat: they will play very hard and give the Miami Heat a tough time tonight. Not saying they will spring the upset. But they'll be playing loose and the Heat has all the pressure. Just expect a competitive game. That's all I'm saying. And with that, we'll open up the chat and let you guys and gals vent about all things wrong with this team.

What a nice, cheery start to the chat. Listen, Mark Cuban is a lot of things. He can be difficult to deal with on a daily basis and he's often too arrogant and brash to do anybody any good. But one thing he definitely is not is a quitter. He will compete in everything he does and that includes rebuilding this team to the point that it's at least involved in a championship conversation. It's not going to happen this year. But Dirk Nowitzki was talking last night about the overall scheme of things and he said the decision was made in each of the last two summers to go for a home run in free agency and if it didn't work, fill the roster with one-year players and take another swing the following summer. They'll connect sooner or later and hit one out of the park. Or at least get an extra-base hit. Cuban is two years removed from a title. Jerry Jones is ... well, I don't know for sure, but something like a million years removed from a title. There is no use in rehashing the decision to bust up the title team. It was done and the Mavericks have moved forward. Or backward. Or however you want to look at it. But now it's on them to make something happen in terms of bringing a viable superstar talent to town. And the sooner, the better.

Check back with me in about 80 years.Then we'll know. But I doubt Tyson chandler is going to go down as one of the best players ever in his sport.

I can only assume that C Manns is a pen name for Mrs. Wright or Mrs. James. Listen, I like both of those players. But neither is ready to take on the 25-to-30 minute job per night at center. James is just learning the game and Wright is limited in the rebounding department, too, if you haven't noticed. Kaman isn't a perfect player, but he's played pretty well for stretches of this season. Admittedly, he doesn't pass the ball enough. But he's a good defensive rebounder and if you watch him at the defensive end, he's not completely bankrupt. Of all the problems this team has, he may be one of them, but he's not near the top of the list.

For the right deal, everybody not named Dirk or Elton Brand is available. They can't trade either one of those guys contractually. And I have a hard time believing that Marion would be included in any deal unless it was for a difference-maker who is a lot of years younger. I still think Toronto (Calderon), Detroit (Stuckey) and maybe Minnesota (Ridnour) are candidates to deal point guards before the deadline.

No.

Much depends on the rest of this season. O.J. has been a godsend for this team. They needed somebody who could score while Dirk was out and he answered the call. If he continues to have the kind of season he's having when Dirk regains form, then the Mavericks are going to start winning some games and might be a playoff team. If not, then the decision making process gets tougher. Either way, Mayo will opt out of his player-option year and test the market. Will the Mavericks pony up? Only if they are able to secure a big-name free agent first with their availabe money. Then they can re-sign guys like Mayo and Collison, if they want.

Pretty deep hole, for sure. But right now 17-15 is in the playoffs in the West. So don't tell me how rugged the conference is. You don't have to be great to make the playoffs. You just have to be above .500 to be in the mix. The Mavericks are six games below it, but the schedule turns their way over the next month or two. Write them off at your own risk. We've all seen Dirk do what Dirk does. Again, it's a long climb. But the Mavericks are only a hot streak away from being right in the stink of things.

Oh, I think he's a keeper. But I look at this thing knowing that the Mavericks are going after Chris Paul or Andrew Bynum or Dwight Howard this summer. That will be the priority. Everything else falls in after that and if somebody wants to throw big money at Mayo, who will be next in line after those three free agents, then he'll have no choice but to take it. He's worked hard and he deserves a nice contract next summer. He'll get it from somewhere. I just don't think it'll be from the Mavericks unless they make big moves before then.

Carlisle is on the first year of his new contract. He has the hammer in that regard. He's going to outlast a lot of the players in the locker room. So they have no choice but to buy into what he's selling. The chemistry is lacking because of many reasons, but the return of Nowitzki already has put a lot of players in a better frame of mind. And a few wins won't hurt. They have some chances coming up to build some momentum and judging from what I saw out of Dirk in the Washington game, he's not terribly far away from playing 30 minutes a night. Patience is a tough thing to have in the "now" world of the NBA, but it's an absolute necessity with this team right now.