From Frying Pan to Fire

My beloved Mavericks are a mess. In a week they've gone from three chances to show they can hang with the big boys to demonstrating that they can't (loss to L.A., loss to Boston, loss to San Antonio) and finding themselves in a dogfight with Golden State and Denver for one of the last two spots in the playoffs in the West (both of whom they play in the upcoming week.) Oh yeah, and the only bright spot in this horrible run-Dirk Nowitzki-went down with an ankle and a knee sprain yesterday, ensuring that if the Mavs get in the playoffs at all, it will be without the services of their MVP. Frankly, some of us fans are wondering exactly what the point of a playoff appearance would be if it's going to result in a first-round elemination like last year. Check our archives and you'll see that I was definitely a proponent of the Kidd trade, but I'm seriously beginning to wonder what is wrong with this team at this point. I'm not sure anybody knows.