Looking back at the season’s first half

To say the Mavericks are satisfied with their progress after completing half of an NBA regular season wouldn’t be fair. They understand their issues better than most, and aren’t about to excuse/rationalize/brush aside their bouts with inconsistency.

To say they’re underachieving because they’re not leading the Western Conference or challenging last season’s 67-win pace would be foolish. The sledding across the board has gotten icier. The always-stout West appears even deeper and certain teams out East are noticeably improved.

The Mavs (28-13) begin the second half Friday night knowing there’s still a long road ahead, but with plenty of room for improvement. What they do against the Los Angeles Lakers at American Airlines Center is only one part of the puzzle that needs at least 82 pieces.

“With us getting off to a 12-8 start, to be sitting here today where we are, is not a bad deal,” Avery Johnson said Thursday after a scaled-back practice. “We just need to keep moving forward.

“We’re battling through some injury situations now, but the guys are really attentive to what we’re doing and they’re excited. I think now they’re going to be even a little bit more excited because there are not 82 games in front of them. It’s only 41.”

Read the rest of this story and get a look at the Lakers at mavs.com.