We were going to suggest fans surprise center Samuel Dalembert’s with thousands of alarm clocks on his birthday but the Dallas Mavericks star doesn’t turn 33 years old until May. He might be out of a job by then and won’t need to wake up on time.

Dalembert dressed for Sunday’s game against the visiting New York Knicks, but did not play, in the 92-80 loss. Mavs’ coach Rick Carlisle benched the 12-year vet because he was late for the team’s Saturday morning practice. Dalembert was benched for the first quarter of Dallas’ Nov. 18 contest against the Philadelphia 76ers for oversleeping and missing a shootaround the morning of the game.

“We need everyone to be all in,” said Mavs coach Rick Carlisle, adding that the disciplinary action would be a one-game situation. “Our margins are obviously thin. So we are not going to reinforce behavior that is unacceptable, and that is just the way we are going to do business with him. And we need him, and I like him, and I think we can correct this, and I believe that we will.”

Dalembert apologized for his latest mistake. The 6-11” center is playing for his fifth team in five seasons and has “a reputation for being unreliable.”

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