DALLAS—The posters harping on defense are gone from the practice court. So is the high-pitched, Cajun twang.

Otherwise, at first glance, the 2008-09 Dallas Mavericks sure look a lot like the group that got bounced in the first round of last season’s playoffs.

There’s Dirk Nowitzki, draining 3-pointer after 3-pointer.

There’s Jason Kidd, 15 years into his career and still refining his jump shot.

There’s Josh Howard, working on his game and, one incident-free day at a time, his reputation.

There are a few new faces, mostly guys fighting...

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