Everything seems to be going wrong for the Mavericks this season. 

Despite their immense failure against the Warriors last postseason, many pundits still had the Mavericks tagged to be a major player this year. 

Today, the Mavericks are in a three-way battle for the final two playoff spots with the Nuggets and the Warriors.

This leads to the question, what's wrong with the Mavericks?  On paper, they should be faring much better than they are.

They have the reigning MVP Dirk Nowitzki. Plus, they have six  players who have been All-Stars: Dirk, J-Kidd, Stackhouse, Josh Howard, Jamaal Magloire, and Juwan Howard.  Heck, they could put these guys in as their starting five!

And they have one of the most respected and capable coaches in Avery Johnson.

I must say I am truly disappointed in the season that the Mavericks have put together.  Despite the addition of Jason Kidd, it looks like this team will be simply gobbled up by the true NBA elite in the first round. 

Who knew the first-round loss to the Warriors would leave such a scar on a once perennial contender?