Puerto Rico - Point guard J.J. Barea to play for Puerto Rico in World Championship

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The Mavericks will have at least one player participating in the FIBA World Championship this summer.

J.J. Barea said before heading to his home country this weekend that he will join the Puerto Rican national team in Turkey for the event from Aug. 28 to Sept. 12, he said before heading to his home country this weekend.

It remains unknown whether Dirk Nowitzki will play for Germany in the tournament and if his contract status could play a role in that decision.

Barea could not help the Puerto Rico team last summer because of shoulder surgery and he said he's looking forward to playing this summer.

"Oh, yeah, we're going to have a good group going over there," said Barea, who averaged 7.6 points and 3.3 assists in 20 minutes per game this season for the Mavericks. "We got Carlos Arroyo and (Peter John) Ramos. So we're looking forward to it."

Ramos is a 7-3 center who was drafted by the Washington Wizards in 2004. Arroyo is a point guard for the Miami Heat.

Nowitzki's situation likely will be determined by many things. He did not play for Germany last summer and said he felt fresher than ever for Mavericks' training camp.

He had played every summer, including the 2008 Olympics for the German team since arriving in Dallas.

Nowitzki has not committed one way or the other. He could opt out of his contract and that conceivably could play a role in his decision to play for Germany.

Owner Mark Cuban said Sunday he has no problem with Barea playing, but hasn't heard about Nowitzki's plans.

Spurs fans: The San Antonio-Phoenix series starts tonight and the Mavericks wouldn't be surprised to see the Spurs start that series strong.

"Yeah, they are playing well at the right time," Nowitzki said. "If they keep it going, they could go a long way."

Nowitzki added, however, that his good friend Steve Nash and the Suns won't go down easily.