Josh Howard, Mavs Still Adjusting to Jason Kidd

Ever since the All- Star break, No.5 hasn't been himself. A month ago Josh went through an
emotion filled 10- day span in which he injured his back, had family pass away, and saw his best
friend Devin Harris leave town due to the trade.

It has been eight games since the break and with Kidd by his side, the Show -- and Dallas, which
is 4-4 since the All-Star break -- is still adjusting to having a game-changing guard like No. 2 on
the floor.

THE BEGINNING
With No.5 and the Mavs fighting for playoff seeding, Dallas Morning News, David Moore
speaks his thoughts behind the struggles of No.5:

"The days leading up to the All-Star break are a good place to start.

Howard took a hard fall in the second half of the team's loss to Philadelphia on Feb. 11 and
suffered a lower back contusion. The next day, his great grandmother on his father's side died.

This came slightly more than five weeks after Sadie Brown, the person Howard calls his God-
grandmother, passed away. Brown watched Howard growing up when his mother couldn't.

Then Devin Harris was traded.

Then Howard's jump shot began to go awry. "

BREAKING IT DOWN
Going into the break, No. 5 was following up his All-Star 2006-07 season with a career year,
averaging career highs in minutes (37 per game), points (20.3), rebounds (7.4), and assists (2.1),
while shooting a sparkling 47% from the field and 81% from the line.

Since Kidd's arrival, Josh has maintained his playing time averaging 37.5 minutes per game, but
has seen his offensive numbers slip with averages of 16.3 points per game on 37% shooting from
the field and 21% beyond the arc (Josh holds career averages of 46% and 35% from the
respective categories).

His numbers have also slid across the board, with lows in assists (1.5), steals (.6) and a spike in
turnovers (2.3). His rebounding average has also taken a dip to six per game after averaging
more than seven on the season. Josh spoke recently to the Dallas Morning News:

"This is the first time since I've been in the league where I've had a stretch like this"

Whether attributable to his back contusion, which still was not fully healed after the break, or
simply learning to play with a point guard who radically changes the Mavericks' approach to the
game, Josh remains determined to find a new groove. As he said recently to the Star-Telegram:

"I'm just trying to find my way around right now, just playing ball. I have to play my part like
I've always been doing. I'm getting shot attempts up. They're just not falling, I've just got to keep
shooting."
NOT FULLY RECOVERED
Throughout everything that has gone on in the life of No.5, he is still recovering from injury. He
still feels a twinge from time to time and has deemed his health at about 85 percent:

"He was out for a while and when he came back, he was not really right," Mavericks assistant
coach Paul Westphal said. "When that happens, it messes with your confidence and timing. You
need both of those things."

ADJUSTING TO KIDD
Early in the season, the Mavs were a team that thrived off isolation, a system the Show learned
fluently. With the arrival of Kidd, the Mavs have changed their play to an up- tempo, pick and
roll, a style the Show will have to learn on the run. Josh speaks on making the adjustment:

"It wasn't going to be like how it was in New Jersey," Howard said. "I'm not Vince Carter. I'm
not Richard Jefferson. I've just got to get used to Kidd. Not just used to him but the whole team.
We're still getting used to everybody.

"It's only a matter of time until I get used to it. It's not going to stop me. It's not going to hold me
back."
A MARKED IMPROVEMENT
On Monday, Josh showed signs of returning to form with a 25-point performance during a road
loss to the Utah Jazz. The Dallas Morning News caught up with coach Avery Johnson after the
game:

"I think it's over now." Johnson said. "He was in a bad stretch there. He snapped out of it against
Utah. We asked him to do a few things offensively, and guess what, he did it. He was much
more aggressive.

"If he stays aggressive like he was in that game, then we'll have that behind us."

Expect that to be the trend over the next month as the Show and Co. -- which now includes J
Kidd -- find their way.

RELATED STORIES
Dirk an All-Star, Josh snubbed (Mavs Courtside, Jan. 31, 2008)
http://mavscourtsideview.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2008-01-31T19%3A41%3A00-06
Josh Howard Game Log (NBA.com, Feb. 19, 2008)
http://www.nba.com/playerfile/josh_howard/game_by_game_stats.html

For Howard, it's not just new Kidd on the block (Star-Telegram, Mar. 4, 2008)
http://www.star-telegram.com/287/story/509526.html

Josh Howard's hurting, but Dallas Mavericks need him (DallasNews.com, Mar.6, 2008)
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/basketball/mavs/stories/030608dnspomoore.3
07a4c8.html