Playoffs? Prepping for physical play starts now

The times, they are a-changin’.

If the Mavericks learned anything from their loss to Boston on Monday, it’s that this is the point in an NBA season when things are different.

Maybe not drastically so. And maybe not for every game. But they tilt more from the first-half-of-the-season feeling-out process to more of a prepare-for-playoff-combat mode.

They saw it against the Celtics. It was obvious to everybody. The message from the visitors at American Airlines Center and the referees was that the physicality meter is going to be pushed to the red line when the opportunity arises.

“They’re going to let you be physical out there,” said Tim Hardaway Jr. after Tuesday’s workout. “I think taking that away from that game against Boston – the refs are going to let you play. They’re going to let you be physical on both ends of the floor. You just got to pick and choose your spots wisely when to do so.”

And don’t expect it to change when the Phoenix Suns come calling on Wednesday night.

They aren’t the most physically imposing team, but they are playing well and any team with Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal is not going to play pitty-pat with their opponent.

The Suns have won six in a row to pass the Mavericks and a lot of other teams in the Western Conference standings. And they will be looking to start a seven-game, 12-day trip on a positive note in Dallas.

It will be up to the Mavericks to ramp up their physical play heading toward the All-Star break in three weeks.

“The refs are going to let you play smart, but physical at the same time,” Hardaway said. “You just got to play, and move on to the next play if you don’t get the call.

“(It’s that time of year), not only for the players, but for the refs calling the game, the coaches, the league in general. They’re gearing up for that caliber of basketball. I think around the All-Star break, after the break, that’s when you see it.”

• The Suns have been rock solid during their six-game winning streak. Only two of the victories have been nail-biters. And they gutted out wins over Sacramento and Chicago in those two.
• They are led by Durant (29.6 points) and Booker (26.7) and both have been blistering of late. Durant has scored 84 points in the last two games (topping 40 both times). Booker has topped 30 points three times in the six-game streak, including a 52-point outburst at New Orleans last week.
• Beal missed a large portion of the first half of the season, but returned in late December and in his last 12 games (all starts), he has averaged 20.7 points and shot 39 percent from three-point range.
• The Mavericks thought they were getting healthier. But it was a bit of an illusion. They have four players on the injury report ahead of the meeting with the Suns, including their starting backcourt. All four players are questionable. Luka Dončić (low back tightness), Kyrie Irving (right thumb sprain), Dante Exum (right plantar sprain) and Seth Curry (left ankle sprain) all were hobbled on Tuesday, although Curry took part in a spirited five-on-five scrimmage among the low-minute players.
• The schedule is getting decidedly tougher for the Mavericks. They had the Celtics Monday and Suns Wednesday. After a roadie at Atlanta on Friday, they play five consecutive games against teams solidly in the playoff picture: Sacramento, Orlando, Minnesota, Milwaukee and Philadelphia. On Phoenix’s seven-game road trip, the final six games all are at Eastern Conference foes.

PHOENIX SUNS (25-18) at MAVERICKS (24-19)

• When/where: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, American Airlines Center, Dallas.
• TV: ABC (Channel 8).
• Radio: 97.1 FM The Freak; 99.1 FM Zona MX (Spanish).

X: @ESefko