Dallas Mavericks: Dirk Nowitzki Will Bounce Back, Lead Mavs to the Top

The Dallas Mavericks have seen some different highs and lows this season, and the moments have been in direct relation to the play of Dirk Nowitzki. 

This aging team that is the Mavericks met expectations so far this year with a 20-12 record (good for fourth in the Western Conference) and has proved it can still keep up with some of the younger, more fruitful teams out there.  

But Nowitzki has struggled.

The Mavs' star player has seen a decrease in points per game and minutes this season. Nowitzki has seen his lowest points per game average since the '99-'00 season (18.6) and least amount of minutes per game since his rookie year, with 32.4 a game.  

Though this season hasn't been his best, Nowitzki has been working to return to his championship-caliber form.

He took four days off to get himself in better shape and work out some health issues in January and has since seen improved numbers in February, averaging 22.4 points and 7.4 rebounds (compared to 15.1 and 5.8 the month before).

As of Sunday, Nowitzki has had back-to-back games with at least 28 points, including a season-high 34 in a loss to Jeremy Lin and the Knicks, and finally is showing signs that he is soon returning to his All-Star form. 

The key statistic for his success (as well as the Mavericks) is getting more free throw attempts. The more Nowitzki can get to the line, the better chance the Mavericks have to win. 

The Mavericks are primarily a half-court team, and as we saw in the NBA Finals working the ball through Nowitzki is their bread and butter. If he and the other oldies can make some of the younger teams play at their pace, with lots of trips to the free throw line involved, the Mavs' make age just another pointless number.  

Staying with the same theme, Rick Carlisle knows that there may not be too much left in the tanks of some of his players like Jason Kidd, Jason Terry and Nowitzki and has limited their minutes accordingly. 

Expect to see more Mavericks' get the night off on occasion to regenerate as a secondary goal next to winning games is to try and keep everyone fresh. The season is almost halfway done, and a playoff run seems to be inevitable at this point.   

If Nowitzki can continue his recent performances while still being able to see his fair share of rest, the Mavericks could be a force to be reckoned with in the NBA playoffs.

It would be hard to count Nowitzki and the Mavericks out of any seven-game series at this point.