LOS ANGELES - For weeks, all we've heard is how the Western Conference is so tightly bunched that a win or loss could vault a team two or three spots up or down in the playoff seedings.
During that time, the Mavericks have won a few games, lost a few, won some more and guess what? They haven't budged off that No. 8 hole in the standings.
For a while, that was good news. It meant the Mavericks didn't slip to ninth.
Now, with the Phoenix Suns effectively out of the picture, the Mavericks can only move up. But it's not happening. And today will dish out an up-close look at why the Mavericks and everybody else in the West wants to avoid the No. 8 seed.
The Mavericks meet the top-seeded Los Angeles Lakers today at Staples Center.
"It's a possession-by-possession time of the season,'' Mavericks assistant coach Dwane Casey said. "Every possession could determine whether we're destined to be in third place or destined to be in eighth place.
"We could easily move up, or we could easily stay where we are.''
The Lakers have a death grip on the No. 1 seed. San Antonio has the inside track to the No. 2 slot, but by no means are the Spurs out of reach for any of the six playoff hopefuls trailing them.
Behind the Spurs, it's chaos. On Thursday morning, 11/2 games separated Nos. 3 through 8. When the Mavericks lost to Golden State on Friday and Houston won, that margin moved to 21/2 games.
"We're still in the eighth spot,'' Dirk Nowitzki said. "We moved a little closer, but we haven't moved up. All these games are big. We can't afford to lose any of them.''
The most surprising aspect of the West race has been Houston's ability to stay on top of the sextet chasing the Lakers and Spurs. The Rockets lost Tracy McGrady for the season and haven't missed a beat. In addition, Utah has been on a torrid run coinciding with the return of Carlos Boozer.
Denver has started to slide, but the Nuggets had some breathing room before they hit their rough patch. Portland and New Orleans have been mostly steady.
And the Mavericks haven't been consistent enough to catch any of them. Their loss at Golden State after quality wins at Phoenix and Portland was Exhibit A for why the Mavericks are stuck in their difficult position.
A win today would be huge for two reasons: It would help the Mavericks in their quest to finish higher than eighth, and it would send a message to the Lakers and everybody else that they are not to be overlooked as money time in the season approaches. But, clearly, there are two schools of thought about facing the Lakers.
"I feel it's important to do everything possible to move up,'' Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. "That's been my tact the whole time since the conversation about seedings has come up. There's still a lot to be decided. We're going to have to win our share of games to make sure we get in.''
Then again, if the goal for the Mavericks is the big trophy, there probably will be no avoiding the Lakers if they want that pursuit to come to fruition.
"They're the best team in the Western Conference, period,'' Jason Terry said. "The road to the championship is going through them. We don't fear any team in the playoff race right now. It's wide-open.''
Added Nowitzki: "We've definitely got to let it all rip against the Lakers. It's a great setup against a great team and, hopefully, everybody will be ready to play.''
