MyDallasMavs: No Dirk, No Butler: Mavs Still Get the Win Over Portland

Earlier today, the Mavs received the bad news that Caron Butler will be out for the rest of the season. His surgery went well today but he is obviously going to need a couple months to recover. Before hitting the panic button, the Mavs fought hard and pulled through with a win tonight against the trailblazers.

Portland took the lead in the first but the teams were tied by the time the quarter ended. They stayed pretty much even the whole game as their were 11 lead changes and 10 times tied.

Jason Terry and Stevenson lead the team with 18 points each, as the majority of JET's points were acquired in the fourth quarter. JET hit quite a few key shots that kept the Mavs in the lead towards the very end of the game. Tyson Chandler ended the game with another double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Barea had 10 points as well as Kidd and Marion each with 8.

Without their star player Brandon Roy, the trailblazers had to rely on big man LaMarcus Aldridge who led the team with 28 points. Camby had 10 points and a remarkable 20 rebounds.

This was a pretty impressive game played without big man Dirk Nowitzki. The Mavs played some of their best defense of the season against the Trailblazers holding them to .418 precent shooting and pulling through with a 84-81 victory at home.

"Defensively we've been a top team in the league all year long," Jason Terry said. "And we can't let up now because we're missing two of our main pieces."

The trade deadline is approaching fast and rumors are spreading like wildfire as people are talking about the Mavs acquiring someone new to replace Butler. But they have to give themselves time to prove they are still a high-quality team without Butler. Patience is their best bet right now. Trading for someone to replace him isn't going to solve anything. Deals done in rough times of desperation, the majority of time, never work out for the better. So until then, the Mavs will continue to mold into a new style of playing without their two starters.

Dirk Nowitzki's return isn't carved in stone but it's hopefully sometime soon. He's aiming to come back by next week if he feels his knee is ready although he's not in a rush to come back. Until then, the Mavs have to continue to play how they did the past two games, fighting until the end, playing their hardest.