Why the Dallas Mavericks won't win the NBA Championship

J-Ho with decent game, but absent for the second half

The Dallas Mavericks will not make it past the second round of the NBA playoffs and here's why.

They can not defend if their ever-loving lives depended on it particularly on the perimeter.

The five on the floor with a minute left of the game tonioght against Portland: J.J. Barea, Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, Dirk Nowitzki and Drew Gooden.

Good fucking grief. That, friends, is called the lay-up drill defense because for all intents and purposes that's what the Blazers did all night in their 112-109 overtime win at the American Airlines Center.

Andre Miller was the biggest culprit. He lived at the rim getting 31 attempts, making 22 and scoring 52 points to completely pull down the pants of Barea, Terry and Kidd as all three toro'd Miller on his trip-by-trip journey to the basket.

I can not believe that Rick Carlisle looks at the court at Barea, Terry and Kidd with Steve Blake, Jerryd Bayless and Miller just ripping the Mavs a new asshole. Then he looks at his bench and sees Quinton Ross and Roddy Beaubois and thinks, "I realize I'm about to give up a home game to a conference rival because J.J. Barea couldn't guard a Special Olympics player, but that's OK. He's cute."

Miller played 42 minutes, shot the ball 31 times and went to the free-throw line just eight freakin' times. If Barea and Co. are going to do nothing else, couldn't they put a forearm into his back and put him on the floor.

What a waste. The Blazers shot 53 percent -- the billionth team in a row to do this to the Mavericks as of late. Over the season, their defensive numbers are fine. But as of late you can almost guarantee that the opponent will shot at least 50 percent.

Notes:
1. I guess Nate Batum is the new Dirk-killer. Maybe not.

2. Bayless has been on the Mavericks trade rumor list for the last year and a half. Always have loved the guy and the was great tonight.

3. Is Josh Howard so bad defensively now that we're putting Shawn Marion on Andre Miller?

4. The thing about Miller is that he's a notoriously bad jump shooter. I would've given him the space and let him take the jumper but not get around me.

5. Three-point shooting contest: Erick Dampier vs. Eddie Najera.

6. Jason Kidd out-assisted the Blazers on his own, 10-9.