SRJ
04-30-2007, 11:56 AM
I'm a fan of Dirk Nowitzki, and while he's not playing especially well, it's hard to lay all of this Golden State situation at his feet. The Maverick defense still hasn't adjusted to Golden State - it's likely that they won't.
What bothers me about Dirk is some of the things he says publicly. While I appreciate his honesty, he is excessively negative/pessimistic.
I paraphrase:
- In the 2005 playoffs, Erick Dampier was getting abused by Yao Ming in the first round and Amare Stoudemire in the second. After one of the losses to Phoenix, Dirk hammered Dampier in the press. Not exactly inspirational.
- In a recent interview, Dirk admitted that close fourth quarters of big games make him a little nervous. He also believed that most players felt that way - well, it's probably all true, but who needs to know you get nervous in those situations? All you're doing is letting people into your psche.
- Dirk said that if the Mavericks lost game four and went down 3-1, the series was pretty much over. What kind of talk is that? Where's the fight?
I'll take Dirk on my team anytime - just leave the leadership to somebody else.
What bothers me about Dirk is some of the things he says publicly. While I appreciate his honesty, he is excessively negative/pessimistic.
I paraphrase:
- In the 2005 playoffs, Erick Dampier was getting abused by Yao Ming in the first round and Amare Stoudemire in the second. After one of the losses to Phoenix, Dirk hammered Dampier in the press. Not exactly inspirational.
- In a recent interview, Dirk admitted that close fourth quarters of big games make him a little nervous. He also believed that most players felt that way - well, it's probably all true, but who needs to know you get nervous in those situations? All you're doing is letting people into your psche.
- Dirk said that if the Mavericks lost game four and went down 3-1, the series was pretty much over. What kind of talk is that? Where's the fight?
I'll take Dirk on my team anytime - just leave the leadership to somebody else.