Spurs at Mavs Game Five Previews: Mavs have history-buckers on their side

[duncan228]

Jacques Talk: The Mavs don't have enough top-notch players
Jean-Jacques Taylor/Columnist

Do the Mavs have any chance of winning their series against the Spurs?

Sure, they do. The beauty of sports is that you always have a chance to win.
Will they win? Nope.

I gave this team too much credit, which is my fault. The Mavs have the same problem they've had for years: They have one star and a bunch of pretty good players.

They don't have that second star you can count on to produce every game.

Josh Howard was supposed to be that guy, and we know how that turned out. So was Caron Butler. We see now that he's too sensitive, and he's inconsistent.

Jason Terry isn't that guy because he's too streaky. Terry didn't score until the fourth quarter of Game 4.

That's a joke.

Your second-best offensive player can't be held scoreless until the fourth quarter because it requires Dirk to do way too much against a quality defensive team.

Is Dirk flawless? Of course not.

He let the Spurs frustrate him and take him out of his game in the fourth quarter. And, in general, he was too timid because he took just 10 shots.

Did I mention, Butler took nine shots in the first quarter.

But Dirk isn't the reason this team is down 3-1 to the Spurs. He hasn't gotten any consistent help, and it's clear he isn't going to get any as this team is currently constructed.

That's not going to change between now and the end of this series, which is why San Antonio will advance.

[duncan228]

Mavericks' Jason Terry: 'I'm going to be out there, ready to roll'
Brad Townsend/Reporter

When asked about his sore ankle after today's shootaround, Mavericks guard Jason Terry ini ially declared himself "doubtful" for tonight's Game 5, then he said "but we're going to upgrade it in about an hour to questionable."

Then he fessed up and said, "The ankle's good. I'm going to be out there, ready to roll."

*********************

Mavericks' Jason Terry: We can't settle
Eddie Sefko/Reporter

Jason Terry had the best line of the morning shootaround when he asked what has been the Mavericks' biggest problem so far.

"We've settled,'' he said.

Then, he added: "If you settle tonight, you'll be settling for that couch at home and watching the rest of the playoffs on TV.''

[TampaDude]

closeout games are the toughest.

Yup...nothing tougher than closing out your opponent on their home floor. I still think the Mavs win tonight, and then the Spurs close it out at home. Spurs in 6.

Of course, Spurs in 5 would be fine with me, too.

[guzmangm]

I thought the Spurs came back from 3-1 against the Hornets a couple of years ago...

[boutons_deux]

Spurs came back from 1-3 vs Mavs in 2006, and had Game7 won, until ...

[afireinside20]

There will be no Game 6, Spurs are ending this tonight yo!!!! Time for the Mavs to go fishing!!!!

[duncan228]

Edit: Headline changed.

Why Eduardo Najera did it: Spurs 'hit Dirk in the face'

Eduardo Najera hopes his fiery play leads Mavericks' rally
By Eddie Sefko / The Dallas Morning News

If Eddie Najera had it to do over again, he’d change nothing.

His hard foul on Manu Ginobili in Game 4 earned him a flagrant foul, penalty 2, and an ejection, but no additional fine or suspension.

What it also may have done, Najera hopes, is send a message not only to the Spurs, but to his teammates, that this series can and will get even more physical for the duration. Najera said the Mavericks needed a jolt of some sort and he was willing to provide it.

“It was kind of frustrating to watch some of them hit Dirk in the face,’’ Najera said today after shootaround. “It was the same [kind of] foul. So I just came in and tried to prove a point that we’re going to fight back. And that’s what’s going to happen tonight.’’

Najera, who played only 47 seconds at the start of the fourth quarter Sunday before he collared Ginoibili on a drive to the basket, is hoping he gets a chance to have an impact in Game 5 tonight. Coach Rick Carlisle hinted on Monday that he may go more to Najera for his energy and toughness, two areas where the Spurs have been better than the Mavericks.

San Antonio gets the same sort of dirty-work production out of rookie DeJuan Blair, who had seven points and seven rebounds in 11 minutes in Game 4.

“Except he outweighs me by about a hundred pounds,’’ Najera said.

Najera added that he thought the NBA acted correctly in not suspending him for his play on Ginobili.

“It’s the first time I’ve ever done that,’’ he said. “I wasn’t worried about that [a suspension], because I’m not that type of guy.’’

Najera said he had not been told by Carlisle that he would see more action tonight, but said he wouldn’t be afraid to continue to get physical.

“If I do play, you bet,’’ he said. “I’ll play my game.’’

[#2!]

So I just came in and tried to prove a point

WTF? He kind of just admitted that what he did to Manu was not only intentional, but practically premeditated. I'm all for physical play, but if the guy is going to say this out loud then how can he possibly be given the benefit of the doubt by the league?

[rjv]

more important than the loose balls theory is the fact that in the last 2 games the mavericks suffered stretches of no scoring and being shut down. also, in all but game 1 the spurs have been the team that has executed better in the last 2 minutes.

[duncan228]

Hoopsworld.

Playoff Notebook: Upsets Loom
By: Alex Raskin

Perhaps the playoffs are a bit too protracted. With each round taking around half a month, and the Finals ending in mid-June, the postseason is as exhausting as the regular season.

TV audiences don't seem to mind, though, as TNT and ESPN's ratings were reportedly tops in the 18-49 demographic last week. Maybe the ratings were good in spite of the length of the first round?

After all, two series are tied, one features uber-celeb LeBron James, another has Dwyane Wade facing the Celtics and yet another has the second-seeded Mavericks on their heels.

The bottom line is, the NBA's playoff product seems to maintain its integrity even if the whole process can take longer than the gestation of a baby wolf.

Here are some notes on the various first-round series:

...Spurs 3, Mavericks 1 – It's as if Dallas knows when they're favored by the masses.

As the Lakers played inconsistently over the second half of the season, the Mavs ripped off 13 straight wins after bringing Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood from Washington. Suddenly, just as everyone had predicted in 2007, the Mavericks looked destined for the Finals.

That year Dallas was ousted by former coach Don Nelson and his eighth-seeded Warriors. This year it's the seventh-seeded Spurs who are dragging the Mavericks down from behind.

The most frustrating thing for Dallas fans must be exactly who is killing the Mavs. Dallas fans are familiar with Tim Duncan burning them for 20 points and 15 rebounds, but now it's names like George Hill and DeJuan Blair that are filling up the box scores.

Duncan only managed four points in Game 4 and San Antonio still won by three points.

Check Out: Dirk Nowitzki tossed up 24 and 23 field goals in Games 2 and 3 respectively – both losses. So in Game 4, Nowitzki attempted just 10 shots – another loss. Some All-Stars keep shooting when their backs are too the wall. Facing elimination in Game 5, it will be interesting to see how Nowitzki responds to the pressure.