Don Nelson probably has bigger concerns – like maybe winning just one game.

But if the Golden State coach gives himself a moment to glance at his former team, it will probably bring a smile to his face because of the way the Dallas Mavericks are playing.

One of the pioneers of bringing a starter off the bench and calling him a sixth man, Nelson is joining the rest of the NBA and watching the Mavericks rewrite the grammatical rules, if not the basic strategy, by having "sixth men."

Jason Terry and Jerry Stackhouse are sure-fire starters for most NBA teams. The Mavericks are better with them coming off the bench and allowing players like Eddie Jones, Moe Ager or Trenton Hassell to set the table for them.

For the first time this season, the Mavericks' bench was outscored on Thursday night. Another reserve-in-name-only, Manu Ginobili, gives San Antonio as much punch as anybody off the bench. But since the Mavericks got the victory, losing the bench points was no big deal.

It's not something they expect to happen very often. And it shouldn't, given that Stackhouse and Terry both are averaging double figures and prospering in the role of instant offense (and defense) off the bench.

During the first seven games of the season, the Mavericks' bench outscored the opponent's backup brigade by an average of 43.4 to 21.4. That's a nice way to give the starters a cushion to work with. Rest assured the starters know the value of having such support behind them.

"It's killer, are you kidding me," Devin Harris said of the bench. "We got Jet and Stack together. We got offense. We got defense. We got energy guys. It all adds up to success, I think.

"Everybody wants to win, and everybody knows they're going to play and have an impact on the game. We don't expect to get outscored many times."

The Spurs did it, outscoring the Mavericks' bench, 53-37. In that game, it's conceivable that the three best sixth men in the league were on display.

"It's a tribute to each of those players that they start the game without being in the lineup," Spurs' coach Gregg Popovich said.

VERNON BRYANT / DMN

Dallas Mavericks' Jason Terry (left) and Jerry Stackhouse are both averaging double figures.

"That's definitely a function of a player's character and understanding of what's best for a basketball team – and the emotional stability and selflessness to understand why something like that would work," he said. "Some players are going to get it. Some aren't. Fortunately, Manu gets it in all respects. It makes it easy on me, for sure."

Avery Johnson can relate. He said Friday that Terry could have made things difficult in regard to Devin Harris becoming the full-time starter at point guard. If Terry had not embraced the move to the bench, the game plan would not have worked.

"I think it's strong character," Johnson said. "When you hear about character, you hear about other teams. But we feel we have strong character. You look at how unselfish these guys are – and they used to be too unselfish. Now, they are strong in character, strong in integrity and they really want what's best for the team.

"He's on board and obviously, he's thriving in his role."

Terry would have it no other way. He, Stackhouse, Erick Dampier, Brandon Bass and the others off the bench take pride in being able to take what momentum the starters create and build on it. And if there's sluggishness at the start, it ends quickly when Stackhouse and Terry step on the floor.

It's a luxury that Johnson does not take for granted, although he's not quite ready to call these Mavericks the deepest team in the league. That won't happen until he can get Dirk Nowitzki's minutes down from 36 to about 32 per game and keep some other players fresher for the late-season grinder.

"Our season is going to be evaluated on how we can pull back some minutes on some of our players and how well our bench plays," Johnson said.