Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle sees his team as a work in progress after their semifinal loss to the Nuggets.

Things didn't start out well for Carlisle in Dallas either, as the team opened the season with a 2-7 record and players complained about his approach.

However, chemistry was built over the course of the season and while some changes are needed, a new coach is not.

"Part of our struggles early was an attempt to redefine our style of play, which can be a challenge," Carlisle said. "It took awhile to find the balance between pushing the ball and being able to put ourselves in a position to defend effectively. By being a more up-tempo team, it challenges your ability to have a possession mentality defensively. And that was probably our biggest challenge early.

"As the year went along, we kept moving in the right direction. I know it was difficult for the players at times. But I admire the way they fought through so many challenges we had, especially the losing streaks. The hope is always that, at the end of the year, you're a better team than you were at the beginning. And I know we were. But we're not where we want to be."

Carlisle isn't conservative about his goals in Dallas; he wants to be contending for a championship.

"We want to be playing in the Finals, so we've got work to do," Carlisle said. "We've got to get the guys who were here that are going to be here better. That's going to be a lot of work. We've got to be active and look for opportunities to upgrade the team overall and inject whatever we can into our core group."