A pup among the big dogs

No way Dirk could've done any worse on Williams today

The upstart Dallas Mavericks went toe to toe with one of the NBA's apparent big dogs -- the Cleveland Cavaliers -- and came up about three feet short.

Behind Mo Williams' seven three pointers, the Cavs won 111-95 putting both teams at 12-5.

Hotshot Lebron James labored a little to get his 25, but he was in the passing mood totaling 12 assists.

After about Williams' four three pointers, if I were coach, I would've maybe tried the younger, quicker, longer Roddy Beaubois instead of the ancient Jason Kidd, the shoot-first Jason Terry or the completely inept J.J. Barea.

But I'm not the coach. I watch from the sidelines and TV sets and make judgements. I'm sure there's a damn-good reason why Beaubois only got nine minutes in a 16-point blowout.

Furthermore, the lack of depth on this team is showing. I know that they're missing Josh Howard and Erick Dampier, but the walking wounded look beaten. They garnered a mere 24 rebounds. Outside of Dirk Nowitzki and Terry, there's little there offensively. If Kidd's shot ain't going, he's worthless. Drew Gooden was ineffective. Shawn Marion simply isn't the player we maybe we thought (semi-electric) we were getting.