DALLAS _ If this is the way it's going to be, Rick Carlisle is going to have a tough time keeping Yogi Ferrell out of the starting lineup.
Or at the least, it'll be tough not to up his minutes off the bench.
Ferrell, the rookie sensation who turned a 10-day contract into a two-year contract with his aggressive play in the first week of his Mavericks' career, was the best Maverick guard on the court for much of the game in Saturday's 94-86 loss to the Toronto Raptors.
Two games removed from the starting lineup, Ferrell has responded to being relegated to the bench with serious attitude.
He's come out like he wants the starting job back. He had 10 points, four assists and four rebounds in just 18 minutes against Toronto.
In the first half against the Raptors, Ferrell was a major reason why the Mavericks chopped a 16-point deficit to a more manageable 54-44 at the half. The Mavericks were plus-seven while Ferrell was on the court. Everybody else for the Mavericks was at least minus-1 or worse during their time on the court.
That's not the be-all, end-all stat. But it's meaningful. And Ferrell brought the energy level _ lacking much of the way _ back to where it kept the Mavericks competitive.
This is an interesting time for the Mavericks and Ferrell. Coach Rick Carlisle is experimenting and trying to figure out what combinations work best and where pieces might fit in the future.
Carlisle said after making the move to get Nerlens Noel into the lineup and bring Ferrell off the bench behind starter Seth Curry, Devin Harris and J.J. Barea that he thought Ferrell's future was as a "utility" player in this league. That doesn't sound like a glowing endorsement.
But when you think about it, that's what Barea has been throughout his career and he's been a valuable, starting piece of a championship team.
"As a young guy, keeping yourself ready and understanding you have to develop a definable skill set that you can bring to a team and be able to execute it whether you're the starter or the first guy off the bench or the third point guard off the bench _ that's what success in this league is all about," Carlisle said.
It's been interesting to watch the last few games because it's the first time this season the Mavericks have had all their primary players healthy and that Carlisle has had to make decisions with regard to active/inactive lists and who gets playing time. And when that playing time comes.
The Mavericks were down 79-64 when Ferrell came back into the game early in the fourth quarter. They immediately went on a 10-0 binge to turn it into a game down the stretch. Ferrell had an assist, three rebounds and a steal during the run, which got the Mavericks closer than they'd been since the first quarter.
Serge Ibaka's two buckets made it 83-74 with six minutes to go.
The Mavericks' starting backcourt was largely to blame for the slow start that put the Mavericks in as much as a 13-point hole in the first quarter.
Wesley Matthews, who took a hard tumble into the front row of seats chasing a loose ball in the third quarter, and Seth Curry combined for just six points through 3{ quarters.
Matthews has been icy for a while now. He was 0-for-7 from 3-point range against the Raptors.
Meanwhile, Ferrell, Devin Harris and J.J. Barea had combined for 23 off the bench at that point.
When Ferrell hit a 3-pointer with 4:37 left, the Mavericks were within 83-77. But the Raptors scored the next four points and the Mavericks didn't have enough punch in the final three minutes to press the Raptors.
