They have won five of their last seven, including four in a row before losing to Chicago on Tuesday. ... Former Mavericks assistant Paul Westphal is their coach and has directed them to a surprising 5-5 record so far. ... The Kings lead the league in offensive rebounding at 13.8 per game and are fourth overall in rebounding, averaging nearly four more per game than opponents. ... Don't be quite so quick to give Brandon Jennings the rookie of the year award yet. Kings guard Tyreke Evans has had five consecutive games of 20 or more points. ... Forward Jason Thompson had five consecutive double-doubles until the streak was snapped by the Bulls.

Scouting the Mavericks

They have won 10 consecutive games at AAC against the Kings. ... Drew Gooden is working on a string of three consecutive double-doubles, averaging 16.7 points and 12 rebounds during that span. ... The Mavericks rank fourth in the league in blocked shots at more than six per game. ... Rookie Roddy Beaubois has been a fast starter in the last four games, all starts, and has adequately replaced Josh Howard as the high-energy first-quarter spark. But that's not necessarily his role, coach Rick Carlisle said. "We're not looking for a guy to be our first-quarter scorer,'' he said. "We're looking to play 48 solid minutes of Basketball. And some nights, it's 53 minutes.''

Eddie Sefko