Rodgers is welshing on his bet to wear a 9ers jersey

Admittedly, it’s a hard sell at first. After all, this new group of Mavericks is made up largely of cast-offs who don’t have a championship ring among them. It’s a far cry from the familiar faces who defined the Mavericks for much of the last five seasons and won a championship just over a year ago.

"He makes (my game) a lot easier. I can move without the ball and just trust that he'll make the right decision. It's as simple as that. I really don't have to work (as) hard to get opportunities. I find openings within the defense, and he makes the defense pay."

Center Dwight Howard verifies everything Bryant said.

"(Nash and Bryant) know how to play basketball," Howard said after practice."Being the guards, they understand how the offense has to run, and Steve has done an excellent job in finding the open guy. We're just going to play off that.bsgr34

“I thought he did OK,” Carlisle said. “He’s a really good offensive player around the basket. Defensively, there are some things we have to work with him on. In the pick-and-roll defense, he tends to stay back and zone up and our coverage is more aggressive. It’s a mindset; just something he’s got to get use to, but he did some good things.”