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Mavericks welcome Howard back in time for home opener

Nov 3, 2007 - 1:46 PM Sacramento (0-2) at Dallas (1-1) 8:30 pm EDT

DALLAS (Ticker) -- Josh Howard received a two-game suspension from the league for a shot that he delivered to the Sacramento Kings' Brad Miller during the preseason. The Dallas Mavericks hope his return will give them a similar jolt.

The Mavericks return from a season-opening two-game road trip on Saturday when they host the Sacramento Kings in their home opener.

Howard was ejected from an October 16 preseason game against the Kings after delivering a forearm to the back of Miller. He also pushed Miller, who had shoved Dallas guard Devin Harris to the ground to ignite the incident.

Shortly after the confrontation, NBA executive vice president Stu Jackson ruled that Howard escalated the incident by running across the court toward Miller, prompting the multi-game suspension.

Howard, who made the Western Conference All-Star team for the first time last season, ended up as the team's second-leading scorer with 18.9 points per game. The Mavericks could have used that production on Friday when they were handed a 101-94 loss by the Atlanta Hawks.

Unfortunately for the Kings, they will not be receiving a similar boost to their rotation. Two starters - Mike Bibby (thumb), Ron Artest (suspension) - are both out along with first-round pick Spencer Hawes (knee).

The lack of firepower showed in Sacramento's 96-80 loss Friday night against the San Antonio Spurs, a game in which it had just 23 points in the first half and trailed by 27 heading into the half.

Kevin Martin has picked up from where he left off last season for the Kings, scoring 48 points in their two losses. In his third season last year, the 6-7 guard led the team in scoring with 20.2 points.