Dirk Nowitzki injury reaction: Not yet time to panic

The Mavericks should be able to make it through Dirk Nowitzki's absence just fine.

Dirk Nowitzki dealing with identical knee injury as in 2011-12

Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki is contending yet again with a bad right knee, the same issue that he dealt with last season.

Dirk Nowitzki injury update: Mavericks star has knee drained again

Dallas Mavericks power forward Dirk Nowitzki participated in the team's practice on Friday despite having his right knee drained for the second time this month, per a report. Arthroscopic surgery remains an option should the swelling continue.

Chauncey Billups Influenced O.J. Mayo's Decision To Sign With Mavericks, According To Report

The Dallas Mavericks made a couple of key offseason moves to bolster their backcourt by trading for point guard Darren Collison and signing free agent combo guard O.J. Mayo.

After four years in Memphis, mostly spent coming off of the bench, Mayo was looking to raise his game with several teams interested in his services. According to ESPN Dallas, Mayo sought the counsel of veteran guard Chauncey Billups to help sort out his decision.

Billups suggested Dallas due to his past experience playing for Rick Carlisle in Detroit at a similar point in his career.

"He said (Carlisle) is a great coach for me to help expand my game," Mayo said.

Billups, like Mayo now, was a No. 3 overall pick in his mid-20s who hadn't lived up high-lottery expectations when he signed with the Carlisle-coached Pistons in the summer of 2002. Detroit was Billups' fifth NBA team, and while he showed promise as a part-time starter the previous season in Minnesota, he had yet to prove he could be a premier point guard.

Carlisle gave Billups that opportunity in 2002-03, when he started for a 50-win team that advanced to the conference finals. That was the only seasons Carlisle coached Billups, but Billups gives Carlisle credit for helping him become a five-time All-Star and one-time NBA champion who is now known as Mr. Big Shot.

Mayo won't be taking many big shots in Dallas this season with Dirk Nowitzki remaining the first option in crunch time, but the Mavs will certainly benefit from Mayo becoming a threat to make plays down the stretch.

For more on the Mavericks, be sure to visit Mavs Moneyball. For additional pro basketball coverage, head over to SB Nation's NBA hub.

NBA Rumors: Would Mavs Offer James Harden The Max?

Mavericks Offseason: Rodrigue Beaubois Taking Boxing Classes To Increase Toughness

Dallas Mavericks guard Rodrigue Beaubois is taking boxing classes in an effort to increase his toughness, Mavs owner Mark Cuban said during a radio interview on Tuesday (via ESPN Dallas' Jeff Caplan).

Beaubois -- who has averaged 8.1 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 17.1 minutes per game during his three-year NBA career -- has never been known for being the toughest guy on the Mavs' roster. He was once labeled as untouchable by Cuban and the Mavs, but his development has slowed a bit over the past two seasons. However, Cuban thinks that stepping into the ring will only help Beaubois become a better player:

"I told Roddy and the folks around him, I said he's got to learn to throw a punch and take a punch. So he's been taking some boxing classes, he's been working out, he's bigger, he's stronger. He's going to have a chance to compete, just like everybody."

The Mavericks added guards O.J. Mayo and Darren Collison earlier this offseason, giving Beaubois plenty of high-level competition for minutes in the Dallas backcourt.

For more on the Mavericks, be sure to visit Mavs Moneyball. For additional pro basketball coverage, head over to SB Nation's NBA hub.

The Forgotten Dominance of Dirk Nowitzki

In the Dirk Nowitzki edition of Aaron McGuire's 370-part Player Capsule series, McGuire turns an eye towards Dirk's electric 2011 Finals run and discusses the sadness of forgotten brilliance.

Dallas Mavericks Projected 7th In West By ESPN

Mark Cuban may be claiming that the Dallas Mavericks are in a better position without Deron Williams, but the computers over at ESPN.com aren't buying it.

In their latest statistical projections for the 2012-2013 season, the site has Dallas finishing the year in seventh place with a 46-36 record, exactly the same spot they were in at the end of last season. Their winning percentages -- 56% in 2013, 54% in 2012 -- are nearly identical as well, despite a heavy roster turnover at nearly every position.

The only returning starters are Dirk Nowitzki and Shawn Marion, as the team continued their wholesale purge of the 2011-2012 champions, bringing in Chris Kaman, OJ Mayo and Darren Collison while jettisoning Jason Kidd, Jason Terry and Erick Dampier.

They are younger and more athletic than they were last season, but if they can't move out of the bottom of the playoff picture, they are facing another first-round date against either the Oklahoma City Thunder or the new-look LA Lakers, which could make for another short post-season stint in 2013.

For more coverage of the Mavericks and the run-up to the new season, stay tuned to Mavs Moneyball as well as the SB Nation Dallas StoryStream.

Mark Cuban Says Mavericks Are In 'Better Position' Without Deron Williams

In an interview with ESPN Radio in Dallas on Tuesday morning, Cuban said, "I think we're in better position now than we would have been if we would have gotten (Deron Williams)."

Dallas Mavericks Hire Jim O'Brien As Assistant Coach

The Dallas Mavericks added Jim O'Brien on a multi-year assistant coach contract on Monday, according to ESPN's Marc Stein.