Mavericks owner Mark Cuban initially tried to shrug off questions about Dennis Smith's return to the Mavericks tonight.
"He comes, he plays," Cuban said Tuesday, about two hours before the Mavericks-Clippers game at American Airlines Center. "There's nothing more to say. Just come back and go to work."
OK, sure. The fact is, however, that Smith had been away from the Mavericks for more than a week, initially with what he and the Mavericks described as back tightness, then with a "stomach bug" that stretched several days.
Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle confirmed before the game that Smith not only will play, but will start tonight.