MAVS-KINGS EPISODE TWO: TEAM CUBAN STRIKES BACK: Now this game lived up to the hype. I think I'm pulling for the Mavs because the Kings have an alarming tendency to fall apart at crunch time --like they did last night as Webber started jump-shooting and Stojakovic threw up a three when something more predictable was needed-- and any team that falls apart at crunch time is not going to beat the Lakers.

And who was key for the Mavs last night? That's right, Nick Van Exel:

His message came during a timeout in the second quarter, after his Mavericks were down by as many as 13 points and after they allowed the Kings to connect on 63 percent of their first-half attempts. He screamed at Dirk Nowitzki and Greg Buckner in the same breath. He had a message for them, too.

"I was just telling them that this has got to mean more," Van Exel said. "We can't go down 0-2, and I wasn't going to let them."

Fascinating.