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Nowitzki's last field goal came 1:18 into the second quarter.
Mahoney on Basketball: Nowitzki a no-show
By BRIAN MAHONEY, AP Basketball Writer
June 16, 2006
MIAMI (AP) -- Good thing so many Germans are tied up with that World Cup thing. Dirk Nowitzki wouldn't want the fans back home to be seeing him this way.
As for the American fan base he's impressed over these last few weeks -- they can't believe what they're seeing.
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Again bothered by the outstanding defense of Udonis Haslem, Nowitzki was limited to 16 points Thursday night while the Miami Heat beat the Dallas Mavericks 98-74 in Game 4 of the NBA finals.
"They've been doing it all series," Nowitzki said. "They do a good job of getting into me."
Nowitzki shot 2-of-14 -- his fewest made field goals of the season -- and had only three points in the second half. He was 11-of-13 from the foul line, but many of those attempts came after the physical Heat reminded him how defense is usually played in the Eastern Conference.
He started his night by absorbing a hammering from Shaquille O'Neal on a drive to the basket in the opening minute, and never got much better. The winner of the 3-point contest at All-Star weekend even threw up an airball from behind the arc in the third quarter.
To the German's credit, it was partially blocked by Dwyane Wade.
Even his made baskets weren't easy. Nowitzki's lone 3-pointer bounced around the rim a couple of times before finally falling in. That was also his last field goal, and it came with 10:42 remaining in the second quarter.
Simply put, he's being hassled by Haslem.
"They are wrapping him up," Mavs coach Avery Johnson said. "They are putting a blanket over him and he's going to have to get that blanket off of him."
The Heat defense only let up on Nowitzki when he got to the free throw line. That's when Miami's fans took over.
Every attempt was preceded by mocking chants of "David Hasselhoff!" "David Hasselhoff!" in reference to Nowitzki's admission -- though he seemed to be joking -- that he sings one of the actor's songs that was popular in his home country to help him relax.
A couple of times, the chants were accompanied by the overhead scoreboard showing the "Baywatch" intro scene of Hasselhoff jogging on the beach.
And Nowitzki could use somebody to save him from sinking right about now.
After he struggled to a 4-of-14 night in the Mavs' Game 1 win, the line out of his teammates was something like, "We're not worried about Dirk."
But they surely can't be comforted by watching their superstar seem so disoriented on the floor.
He bounced back with 26 points and 16 rebounds in Game 2, but he didn't need to stand out because the Mavs won so easily.
Nowitzki then scored 30 points in Game 3, but the lasting image from that game is his missed free throw that would have tied the game with 3.4 seconds left -- after he had made 26 of his first 28 in the series up until that point.
The 7-footer has been held to fewer than 20 points in three of his last seven games after he had a stretch of 42 straight with at least that many.
Nowitzki was neck-and-neck with Wade for the best player in this postseason heading into the NBA finals. He came in on a roll, highlighted by a 50-point game in Game 5 of the conference finals against Phoenix.
But as Nowitzki has said: The Suns don't play defense like the Heat.
Meanwhile, Wade's star has never seemed brighter than it has in the last two games. His 42-point night in Game 3 led a stunning comeback that prevented the Heat from falling into a three-game hole, and he followed by shaking off a sore knee to score 36 more Thursday.
Now the Mavs will be forced to return to Dallas. They'd sure like to see the real Nowitzki before then.
"We've been through this every series," Mavs guard Jason Terry said. "Guys play Dirk differently. We'll make an adjustment if they are doing something. Dirk's going to play his game. We're not concerned about that at all."
Updated on Friday, Jun 16, 2006 4:19 am EDT
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slu...v=ap&type=lgns
Nowitzki's last field goal came 1:18 into the second quarter.
That's sad.
A couple of times, the chants were accompanied by the overhead scoreboard showing the "Baywatch" intro scene of Hasselhoff jogging on the beach.
"They are wrapping him up," Mavs coach Avery Johnson said. "They are putting a blanket over him and he's going to have to get that blanket off of him."
Which is better, blanket defense, or bear-hug defense?
Someone else needs to step up to get these guys off of Dirk. He's being mugged before he even gets the ball and that has much to do with him not getting the looks he wants. But excuses can only go so far. Little couldn't hit the broad side of a barn last night.
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