Oh my, Amare By Marc Stein, ESPN.com
One game does not decide a series. Never does.
However ...
You know what this Game 1 does?
It should confirm what someone (guess who?) has been trying to tell you all season.
It should force everyone guilty of making the following tired comparison to finally -- please! -- bury it.
The Phoenix Suns are not the new Dallas Mavericks, people.
Can we all agree on that now?
This second-round showdown is not the Nash-less Mavs against the new Mavs. Never was, no matter how many folks billed it that way.
You simply cannot compare these Suns to any team the Mavericks have fielded in the Don Nelson-Mark Cuban-Avery Johnson era. Never in franchise history, actually, have the Mavericks had a player who finishes like Amare Stoudemire and occupies a defense like Amare Stoudemire, which is why Steve Nash can have an MVP-worthy impact now that he's back in the desert. Nash makes everyone around him better and the devastation Amare doles out -- a mere 40 points and 16 points in Monday's 127-102 mauling -- helps make Nash look better than ever.
"I'm really, really lucky," said Suns coach Mike D'Antoni, soon to be the NBA's Coach of the Year. "Shawn Marion plays so much bigger than his size (6-7) that he allows Amare to operate as a center, which creates space for all the shooters, which allows Nash to have the whole floor to himself. It's like a domino effect that's enabled me to coach this way."
It's a domino effect that has already sent the Mavs into a funk, believe it or not, barely two days removed from their Game 7 humiliation of Houston. Their toughest job entering Wednesday's Game 2 is trying to rebuild their confidence (quickly) after the Suns won by 25 points in the easiest road game for the Mavericks to win.
The Suns were supposed to be rusty after a week off, and Nash was undeniably playing at less than full capacity after a weekend of MVP celebrations/obligations. Nash, in fact, backed out of a scheduled pre-series dinner Sunday night with Nowitzki because he was so tired. Nowitzki, conversely, said he got his first decent sleep in about a week after a bout with bronchitis.
Even allowing for the inevitable letdown after winning a Game 7 so handily, Dallas couldn't deny that the conditions for a Game 1 steal were inviting. Then Game 1 started, with a margin that only seemed to keep growing even with Nash plagued by first-half foul trouble.
"It was embarrassing," Nowitzki said as part of the most candid postgame rant he has ever launched. "They were laughing at us out there a couple times."
Nowitzki made that observation after a string of critical comments directed at Mavs center Erick Dampier, who went scoreless in 15 foul-plagued minutes. In-house frustration with Shawn Bradley is nothing new, but Dampier is bound to hear more flak than Bradley ever did unless he finds a way to be a factor in the series.
Dampier, remember, is the guy Dallas signed -- at coach Avery Johnson's urging -- with the money Mark Cuban didn't want to spend on Nash.
"I don't want to say anything that I'll probably regret later," Nowitzki offered, trying to pull back. Problem was, by then he had already lamented how Dallas has gotten almost nothing out of its centers since the playoffs began. And how Dampier looked "a step slow" Monday.
It should be noted, of course, that Stoudemire makes a lot of guys look lead-footed. He moves too well for any of the Mavs' bigs to keep up. He can't really be double-teamed because Amare now has the luxury Nowitzki enjoyed for so long -- running the pick-and-roll with Nash. Except that Amare rolls to the bucket, whereas Nowitzki used the pick-and-pop to free himself up for jumpers.
It's a tad early, granted, to be writing anyone off. One of the Suns' five iron-man starters could get hurt and that would change everything.
It's likewise a tad early to get delusional about what the Suns are doing at the minute. Lovable as they are, they won't be favored against San Antonio in the conference finals if they can get there. They have to do a lot more than win five playoff games to be true title contenders.
However ...
Don't forget that this is Year 1 of their Suns' trying to win their way. Don't forget, furthermore, that they have the two toughest positions filled, with an MVP point guard and a future MVP who assaults the iron when he's not thanking Nash for taking his game to a new level.
Dallas (and many other teams) could never make such claims. Dallas (and many other teams) must also be wondering: What happens when Phoenix, no matter what happens from here, keeps adding to its enviable base?
One game does not decide a series. Never does.
However ...
You know what this Game 1 does?
It should confirm what someone (guess who?) has been trying to tell you all season.
It should force everyone guilty of making the following tired comparison to finally -- please! -- bury it.
The Phoenix Suns are not the new Dallas Mavericks, people.
Can we all agree on that now?
This second-round showdown is not the Nash-less Mavs against the new Mavs. Never was, no matter how many folks billed it that way.
You simply cannot compare these Suns to any team the Mavericks have fielded in the Don Nelson-Mark Cuban-Avery Johnson era. Never in franchise history, actually, have the Mavericks had a player who finishes like Amare Stoudemire and occupies a defense like Amare Stoudemire, which is why Steve Nash can have an MVP-worthy impact now that he's back in the desert. Nash makes everyone around him better and the devastation Amare doles out -- a mere 40 points and 16 points in Monday's 127-102 mauling -- helps make Nash look better than ever.
"I'm really, really lucky," said Suns coach Mike D'Antoni, soon to be the NBA's Coach of the Year. "Shawn Marion plays so much bigger than his size (6-7) that he allows Amare to operate as a center, which creates space for all the shooters, which allows Nash to have the whole floor to himself. It's like a domino effect that's enabled me to coach this way."
It's a domino effect that has already sent the Mavs into a funk, believe it or not, barely two days removed from their Game 7 humiliation of Houston. Their toughest job entering Wednesday's Game 2 is trying to rebuild their confidence (quickly) after the Suns won by 25 points in the easiest road game for the Mavericks to win.
The Suns were supposed to be rusty after a week off, and Nash was undeniably playing at less than full capacity after a weekend of MVP celebrations/obligations. Nash, in fact, backed out of a scheduled pre-series dinner Sunday night with Nowitzki because he was so tired. Nowitzki, conversely, said he got his first decent sleep in about a week after a bout with bronchitis.
Even allowing for the inevitable letdown after winning a Game 7 so handily, Dallas couldn't deny that the conditions for a Game 1 steal were inviting. Then Game 1 started, with a margin that only seemed to keep growing even with Nash plagued by first-half foul trouble.
"It was embarrassing," Nowitzki said as part of the most candid postgame rant he has ever launched. "They were laughing at us out there a couple times."
Nowitzki made that observation after a string of critical comments directed at Mavs center Erick Dampier, who went scoreless in 15 foul-plagued minutes. In-house frustration with Shawn Bradley is nothing new, but Dampier is bound to hear more flak than Bradley ever did unless he finds a way to be a factor in the series.
Dampier, remember, is the guy Dallas signed -- at coach Avery Johnson's urging -- with the money Mark Cuban didn't want to spend on Nash.
"I don't want to say anything that I'll probably regret later," Nowitzki offered, trying to pull back. Problem was, by then he had already lamented how Dallas has gotten almost nothing out of its centers since the playoffs began. And how Dampier looked "a step slow" Monday.
It should be noted, of course, that Stoudemire makes a lot of guys look lead-footed. He moves too well for any of the Mavs' bigs to keep up. He can't really be double-teamed because Amare now has the luxury Nowitzki enjoyed for so long -- running the pick-and-roll with Nash. Except that Amare rolls to the bucket, whereas Nowitzki used the pick-and-pop to free himself up for jumpers.
It's a tad early, granted, to be writing anyone off. One of the Suns' five iron-man starters could get hurt and that would change everything.
It's likewise a tad early to get delusional about what the Suns are doing at the minute. Lovable as they are, they won't be favored against San Antonio in the conference finals if they can get there. They have to do a lot more than win five playoff games to be true title contenders.
However ...
Don't forget that this is Year 1 of their Suns' trying to win their way. Don't forget, furthermore, that they have the two toughest positions filled, with an MVP point guard and a future MVP who assaults the iron when he's not thanking Nash for taking his game to a new level.
Dallas (and many other teams) could never make such claims. Dallas (and many other teams) must also be wondering: What happens when Phoenix, no matter what happens from here, keeps adding to its enviable base?
