Mark Cuban said the Mavericks have been closely monitoring the minutes of Jason Kidd and Dirk Nowitzki, hoping to manage them wisely.

"We do more long-term [game-planning] than game by game,'' Cuban said. "We want to win every game, and we're going to try to win every game, but not at the expense of trying to win a championship.

"We know which games count more, and like we've said, with a couple days of practice, you could just see our game was a whole lot better.''

Cuban said the goal is keep Kidd and Nowitzki fresh for the playoffs.

"When Dirk has his mind and body right, he's right,'' Cuban said. ”And when he doesn't, he doesn't. J-Kidd is the same way. That's the benefit of age. Young guys don't know how to figure that out.''