DALLAS _ If this is what it's going to be like with Nerlens Noel as the Mavericks' starting center, Rick Carlisle will gladly take on whatever challenge comes his way when it comes to building the rest of the lineup.
The new Maverick big man made his first start Friday night against Memphis and delivered exactly what Dallas has been missing for a long time. His 15 points and 17 rebounds set the tone for a 104-100 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies at American Airlines Center.
Noel, starting alongside Dirk Nowitzki and Harrison Barnes on the front line, also had a strong night defensively against Marc Gasol, who never got going offensively for the Grizzlies.
"He did a good job, very active," Carlisle said of Noel. "It's very difficult to outrebound this team and when you got a guy getting 17, that's a big part of that. He did a very good job."
And as for when Wesley Matthews is healthy enough to return to the lineup, perhaps on Sunday, Carlisle said he'll deal with it.
"I don't think it's a problem," he said. "I think it's a good situation. I'm a little concerned about running Nerlens' minutes up to 35. We'll look at the whole thing and see what we want to do when Wes comes back."
Seth Curry, as is becoming his habit, led a balanced offense with 24 points. All five Mavericks starters scored in double figures.
And so, the Mavericks opened a do-or-die five-game homestand in strong fashion, thanks to a workaholic night from Noel and another sizzling shooting night by Curry.
The Mavericks are three games behind Denver for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Anything less than a sweep of this homestand will put them in a tough spot when it comes to running down the Nuggets and the other teams in front of them chasing the final playoff spot.
The Mavericks took control against the Grizzlies with a strong third quarter and only had to sweat when Memphis got within 94-90. Yogi Ferrell, who had a nice night with 17 points and five assists, missed a 3-point attempt, but Nowitzki stripped Gasol, a play after which Memphis coach David Fizdale was called for a technical foul. Nowitzki hit the technical, and Ferrell hit his two free throws to make it 97-90 with 46.6 to go.
Noel had a couple of game-changing plays in the first half, when neither team led by more than four points.
He first gave Dorian Finney Smith a nice feed in traffic for a dunk late in the opening quarter. Then, with under two minutes left in the second quarter, he met Gasol at the rim and cleanly blocked a dunk try by the 7-1 center.
Those were key moments in a 13-point, nine-rebound, two-block first half for Noel. It was a terrific night after Noel had solid, but unspectacular showings in his first three games with the Mavericks.
"He's in a tough spot, being put in a new team," Nowitzki said before the game. "We all know Coach Carlisle's playbook is thick. And it looks like he's been thinking too much out there and not just reacting and playing I think that'll be more natural to him as we get more practices. He'll be fine. We'll adjust on the fly."
There was no problem with that in his first start.
