SACRAMENTO, Calif. ? Just when Sacramento thought forward Peja Stojakovic had climbed out of his offensive slump, he went back down into the deep, dark hole.

Stojakovic misfired again at an alarming rate for the Kings in a loss to the Mavericks on Monday night at Arco Arena. He went 5-for-19 from the field for 14 points and lacked his most threatening weapon: the 3-point shot.

He looked nothing like the Stojakovic who burned the Mavericks for 26 points in a series-opening win. He looked everything like the laboring Stojakovic of past playoff flops.

"You have to have a short memory," said Stojakovic, speaking like a true shooter. "I have to go out and keep shooting and keep playing my game."

That worked in the regular season. Stojakovic ranked among the most accurate of shooters in the league despite looking for the low-percentage shot in the name of creativity. He placed among the NBA's top 22 in both field-goal percentage (48.4) and 3-point-percentage (41.6). He tied for 16th in scoring at 21.2 points.