The Mavericks will ultimately re-sign All-Star forward Dirk Nowitzki, according to former Dallas point guard Steve Nash, who also happens to be a good friend of Nowitzki.

"I always assume that he's going to re-sign in Dallas," Nash said when asked over the weekend whether he thought Nowitzki might consider opting out of his contract and signing with Phoenix.

"I haven't thought about it but obviously I had a great time playing with him."

Caron Butler wants to remain with the Mavericks and wrote on his blog that he doesn't think the team needs to make drastic changes to compete for a championship.

Butler may be an attractive trade piece this summer because of his expiring contract.

"If you ask me, I would like this team to stay together," Butler blogged for HoopsHype.com.

"We're not that far off. We could return next season with the exact same squad and compete for the title. We have the experience, leadership and everything else in place to make it happen."

Dallas finished the season as the second seed in the Western Conference, but they were eliminated by San Antonio in the first round of the playoffs.

"I would like to continue to play for a winning franchise like the Mavericks," Butler wrote. "I have no more years to waste on rebuilding or something like that. ... All that said, I'm aware that it's all going to depend on what Dirk Nowitzki decides."

Mavericks guard DeShawn Stevenson has exercised his player option to return to the team next season.

Stevenson's agent, Mark Bartelstein, confirmed the decision.

The option will pay the guard $4.15 million during the 2010-11 season.

He could have opted out of his contract and hit the free agent market this summer.

Dallas acquired Stevenson in a midseason trade with Washington that netted them Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood.

He saw limited action for the Mavericks.

The Mavericks expect Dirk Nowitzki to opt out of the final year of his contract, a source said Saturday, because it will allow the two sides to work on a new four-year deal.

If Nowitzki opts out by July 1, it may allow him to add a no-trade clause to any new contract.

The source added that whether he opts out or not won't have any impact on the likelihood that Nowitzki will remain with Dallas.

Working out a new deal could give the Mavericks more flexibility in the next few seasons.

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has been fined $100,000 for public comments made in violation of the NBA's anti-tampering rules, it was announced Saturday by Joel Litvin, NBA President of League and Basketball Operations.

Cuban's comments were made during an online interview that ran on May 18.

Phoenix Suns president of basketball operations Steve Kerr has been fined $10,000, also for public comments made in violation of the anti-tampering rules.

Kerr's comments were made on a radio show on May 14.

According to Marc Stein of ESPN, Dirk Nowitzki will not take the final year of his contract.

The Mavericks will try to retain Nowitzki and reach a new contract before July 1.  But with that date approaching, it is now likely that the Dallas All-Star will join this summer's high-profile free-agent class.

"We're going to do everything we possibly can to make sure Dirk is a Maverick for a long, long time," Donnie Nelson said.

The NBA is reviewing comments made by Dallas owner Mark Cuban regarding his interest in acquiring LeBron James this offseason.

Cuban expressed his desire to add James in an interview with CNN Money this week.

The interview was published Thursday and Cuban indicated that while the Mavericks can't sign James outright, a sign-and-trade may be a possibility.

Teams are not allowed to comment on potential free agents prior to July 1, when the market opens.

The league has a tampering rule that can result in a fine of up to $1 million and a loss of draft picks or other assets.

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban went public with his desire to acquire LeBron James this week.

Cuban, speaking to CNNMoney.com, said James needs to play for an organization that he trusts.

"Come July 1st, yeah, of course, anybody would be interested in LeBron James, and if he leaves via free agency, then it's going to be tough," Cuban said.

"If he does like I'm guessing, hoping he will, which is say, 'I'm not going to leave the Cavs high and dry,' if he decides to leave -- there's still a better chance he stays -- then he'll try to force a sign-and-trade, and that gives us a chance."

Cuban could face a fine from the NBA because of his comments. The league doesn't allow teams to discuss free agents prior to July 1.

The Mavericks will not have point guard Nick Calathes on their summer league roster.

Calathes, who they drafted in the second round last June, played his college basketball at Florida and is still under contract in Greece for next season.

A Mavericks fan site is trying to convince free-agent-to-be LeBron James to sign with the team.

Dallas fans have set up the site lebrontothemavs.com.

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban tweeted a link to the site on Thursday, adding "Gotta love Mavs fans !!"

The Mavericks don't have the cap room to sign James outright, but they could work a sign-and-trade with the Cavaliers.