Going 1-3 over the last week without Jason Kidd in the last week was enough for the Dallas Mavericks to drop 10 spots to No. 18 in the NBA Power Rankings by SB Nation's Tom Ziller.
The Mavs have had one of the worst seasons by a defending champion and are battling for a playoff spot. Ziller wrote:
The Mavericks are not even close to 2007 Miami bad and no one will ever touch the 1999 Bulls, but this is probably a bottom five NBA afterglow season. Let's just hope they make the playoffs.
The Mavs currently are in seventh place, but are in a logjam for the final playoff spots in the West. Lamar Odom is out for the season after being placed on the inactive list, but Kidd should return Tuesday after missing the last four games with a strained right groin, which is good news for Mavs fans.
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