nash4136

Jason Terry is one of the most optimistic people around and it shows in the
new tattoo on his right biceps. It's a picture of the NBA championship
trophy.


There's no date on the ink.

"That's the first thing my wife asked me when I got home," he said. "I'm
leaving it open for when we get one."

That's when. Not if.

And that's not all.

"I'm leaving the spot open on the other arm, too," Terry said, just in case
he needs a place for multiple trophies.

That's the way the Jet rolls down the runway. He just knows this is the year
the Mavericks will find the right mixture of talent, chemistry, luck and
everything else to be a championship unit.

Hey, if the Rangers can make the World Series ...

"They're doing it," Shawn Marion said. "Those guys got some hot bats at the
right time."

While the Rangers have reached the ultimate finish to a season, the Mavericks
are just beginning. Opening night is Wednesday.

That's the same night the Rangers open the Series.

Terry started at shooting guard Friday in a 97-96 win over Houston in the
preseason finale. Coach Rick Carlisle has kept a tight lip on who will start
the opener against Charlotte. But it appears Terry has the inside track, at
least until Roddy Beaubois returns from left foot surgery.

Any plans to use Terry at point guard are on the shelf for the moment. Terry
started at the point Wednesday at Orlando, but the backup to Jason Kidd will
be J.J. Barea for the time being.

"It was an opportunity to let him [Terry] play the position in Jason's
absence," Carlisle said. "Barea's going to be coming off the bench anyway.
Jet can do it. But we're better when he's playing off the ball."

Injury update: It's no secret he's been ruled out of the season opener.
Beyond that, it's a guessing game as to when the second-year guard will get
out of the walking boot and into some sneakers.

"We're going to make sure he's right," Carlisle said. "When you're looking at
a 180-day marathon, you can't afford not to look at the big picture with a
guy like that. Same with Tyson."

That would be center Tyson Chandler, who suffered a gash near his right
thumb that required two stitches on Wednesday. Chandler has said he expects
to be ready for the opener, though Carlisle was more cautious.

"If you talk to him, he's extremely optimistic, but he's not a doctor and he
is an optimistic guy," Carlisle said. "I like the fact he's optimistic, and I
wish he was a doctor.

"Signs seem to be somewhat favorable after two days, but who am I to say?"

Jones spelled by Stevenson: In the third quarter of Friday's game, rookie
Dominique Jones was pulled for what Carlisle called a defensive mistake.

In came DeShawn Stevenson. The Mavericks are finding it's good to have two
players virtually identical physical stature who can offer such a different
look. Jones puts pressure on a defense and Stevenson plays better defense.

"Right now, his mistakes probably get amplified a little because of his
inexperience," Carlisle said of Jones. "Stevenson went in there and did a
heck of a job. D.J.'s made great progress. And the other good news is that
Stevenson's ready. He's going to go in there and give you toughness and play
the game the right way."

Briefly: Brendan Haywood had what Carlisle called "by far his best game" of
the preseason in battling Yao Ming on Friday. Haywood had nine rebounds and a
key late basket that helped the Mavericks rally for the win. ... The team was
given Saturday off and will resume practice today.



現在的德州焦點都在遊騎兵身上，創隊50年以來，共3次打進季後賽，今年是第一次
拿下季後賽系列賽的勝利，昨天更是一舉打進世界大賽， 小牛們也關住著遊騎兵到
底能不能一舉拿下世界大賽冠軍。

而目前看起來Jet會是小牛開季先發名單的得分後衛，至少直到Roddy Beaubois因傷
歸隊。

而右手受傷的Tyson Chandler也表示他已經準備好開季賽了， 不過總教練Carlisle
則是謹慎多了，他說：如果你跟Tyson聊天的話，你會知道他是個很樂觀的人，但是
他不是醫生。你很高興他是個很樂觀的人，但也希望他會是位醫生。

小牛的新的球季，才正要開始，這應該也給了小牛們一些正面的鼓舞。禮拜四(台
灣時間)小牛要在達拉斯迎戰山貓，而這也正是遊騎兵世界大賽的第一戰，希望兩隊
都能有個好采頭。


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