What Happened to the Mavs?

[azirish]

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/recap;_ylt=AheX9xIbgOutUVa_39kufeC8vLYF?gid=2007042206

Golden State 97, Dallas 85

Golden State 97, Dallas 85
Preview - Box Score - Recap - Series Breakdown -

You must be registered for see images

Highlights
April 23, 2007

You must be registered for see images

AP - Apr 23, 12:44 am EDT
More Photos
DALLAS (AP) -- Don Nelson figures the Dallas Mavericks will eventually figure out how to stop his Golden State Warriors. Until they do, he's going to savor every moment.
Baron Davis scored 19 of his 33 points in the third quarter, carrying Nellie's small-ball lineup to a 97-85 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday night in Game 1 of their Western Conference series.
"It was really a super win for our team," Nelson said. "It was something that was unexpected, and that makes it that much better."
Well, it wasn't a total stunner, at least not as much as a No. 8 seed beating a No. 1 seed normally is. After all, this was Golden State's sixth straight win over Dallas and the fourth in a row since Nelson ended a decade-long tenure with the Mavs to rejoin the Warriors.
Nellie did his best coaching in recent weeks, squeezing out a 9-1 finish to make the playoffs for the first time in 13 years. His task now is to stretch the streak as long as possible, although he's the first to say it probably won't end with a ticker-tape parade through the Bay Area.
[SIZE=-2]ADVERTISEMENT[/SIZE]

"We don't expect to be world champs at the end of the playoffs," Nelson said. "But every time we play in a high-intensity game like these are going to be, we gain experience. I'm really happy about that."
Davis nearly had a triple-double with 14 rebounds and eight assists. His leadership throughout showed why the Warriors went 16-5 down the stretch after he returned from an injury.

"We knew if we could keep it close we could have a chance," he said. "This win gives us a lot of confidence, but this team has been to the championship and one loss is not going to affect them."
Stephen Jackson added 23 points and Jason Richardson scored 13, helping Golden State pick up its first playoff win since April 25, 1992, and its first playoff road win since May 8, 1991.

The Mavericks made the NBA finals last year and are expecting to get back again, especially after winning 67 games in the regular season. But all that earned them for the playoffs was home-court advantage, and they've now squandered it. Game 2 is in Dallas on Wednesday night.

"Obviously the pressure is on us all the way," said Mavs star Dirk Nowitzki, who was 4-of-16 for 14 points with 12 rebounds. "Nobody expects them to win. Shooting 35 percent on our home court won't get it done. We've got to get better shots and go from there."

Nelson coached the Warriors the last time they were in the playoffs, but he's more beloved in Dallas for orchestrating the Mavericks' rise from the bottom of the league to the top. He brought in Nowitzki and left behind coach Avery Johnson as his successor.

You must be registered for see images

AP - Apr 23, 12:40 am EDT
More PhotosPerhaps trying to be too much like Nellie, Johnson started a small-ball lineup, even though he'd insisted for days that his centers would be key figures this series.

"I laughed when they said they would play a big center," Nelson said.
The 7-foot Nowitzki was supposed to make it work, but he failed to take advantage of his size against a Golden State starting lineup featuring no one taller than 6-foot-9. He settled for outside shots early and was often frustrated by double- and triple-teams, with Nelson knowing better than anyone how much small, quick guys tend to bother the big German.

Nowitzki wasn't the only one who struggled. Josh Howard was 8-of-21 for 21 points with 13 rebounds. Dallas got only four points off the bench, all from center DeSagana Diop. Jerry Stackhouse was 0-for-6 with five turnovers.
"It was one of those games you just want to forget," Stackhouse said. "We thought we'd handle things better than we did."
Dallas' biggest flaw was being unable to contain Davis.

Devean George and Greg Buckner, acquired last summer specifically to provide strong perimeter defense in the playoffs, did a decent job early. Then nobody could stop Davis in the third, when he went 6-of-8, hitting all three of his 3-point tries. He scored four more points in the quarter than his team did in the second.

"Once I got in a rhythm I just stayed locked in," Davis said. "I can't even remember the last time I had a quarter like that."
The Warriors struggled early, which was to be expected for a bunch of playoff novices. Yet the Mavericks, who'd only lost five home games all season (one to Golden State), struggled from the start, too. They missed their last eight shots in the first quarter and their last 10 in the second quarter.

Dallas' best run came in the third quarter, going from down four to up four -- with Nowitzki on the bench.
Golden State led by four going into the fourth quarter and never gave up the lead. Dallas got within 78-76, but an 11-3 run helped the Warriors pull away.

The Mavericks' difficulties were symbolized by Golden State's Jason Richardson taking down Devin Harris hard from behind without drawing a foul. With Harris on the ground, Matt Barnes made a 3-pointer in front of the Dallas bench for a 92-81 lead with about 2 minutes left.

Barnes added 10 and Al Harrington had seven points and 10 rebounds.
Harris scored 19 points, Jason Terry had 17 and George scored 10. Notes Davis had 11 rebounds by halftime. ... A new playoff wrinkle: Thunderstix with blue-glowing tips, making for a neat effect when the house lights went down before tipoff. ... Befitting the cat-and-mouse game between coaching staffs, both waited as long as possible to submit their lineups.

 

[arthurracoon]

thank god we dont have to play the warriors

 

[Chaplin]

Check the thread about the other Playoff Series'. Maybe the answer will be there.

 

[cly2tw]

Go Warriors!

 

[Gaddabout]

Competing factoids:

- The Warriors have now won six straight against the Mavs.

- The Mavs have lost the first game in WC playoff series in six of the last 7, but they've won the last 3.

 

[JWF]

Im also glad we arent playing GS right now. There's no pressure on them, and you could see it in their game. Not to mention GS is obviously better than their record indicates.

I still see Dallas winning the series though. I dont think GS can play the kind of defense they did last night for an entire series.

 

[CardNots]

Baron is healthy, thats what happened. Don't get too excited over this as sometimes it takes a slap in the face to get your attention. I'll be watching the next game closely.

 

[hafey]

I've seen the Warriors alot this year. Alot. They are a nightmare match-up for the Mavs. Nelson has already started out coaching Johnson. He forced the Mavs to go small. When the Mavs take out Dampier/Diop they go from a good rebounding team to a below average rebounding team because Dirk is soft and not a great rebounder. This allowed the Warriors to crash the offensive glass and help them defensive rebound. Additionally, the Mavs have no shot blocking without Dampier/Diop which allowed the Warriors to use their size advantage on the wing with impunity.
The Mavs are in big trouble.

 

[asudevil83]

I've seen the Warriors alot this year. Alot. They are a nightmare match-up for the Mavs. Nelson has already started out coaching Johnson. He forced the Mavs to go small. When the Mavs take out Dampier/Diop they go from a good rebounding team to a below average rebounding team because Dirk is soft and not a great rebounder. This allowed the Warriors to crash the offensive glass and help them defensive rebound. Additionally, the Mavs have no shot blocking without Dampier/Diop which allowed the Warriors to use their size advantage on the wing with impunity.
The Mavs are in big trouble.

also...forcing the Mavs to go small eliminates on the the Warriors BIGGEST weaknesses, REBDOUNDING.

when the other team is just as bad at rebounding, the Warriors then become a DANGEROUS team.

 

[mathbzh]

Baron Davis is really a great player. If he could miss less games he would be a legitimate MVP candidate.

 

[ndjmc]

Out-coached, out-played, out-smarted. They didn't hustle as much as GS and they didn't want it as much. The Warriors look like Giant killers and this Mavs team is SOFT SOFT SOFT!!!! They are the Blazers of the early 90's all over again. Sick game, run you over in the regular season and then they lay down when it counts. pitiful.

 

[az1965]

From Kerr's blog...

* Player of the Day: Baron Davis. The Warriors point guard was unstoppable in leading his band of athletic and ultra-quick teammates and making life miserable for Dallas.
* The Mavs actually changed their lineup to match up with Davis, starting Devean George in place of Erick Dampier. When was the last time the league's No. 1 seed altered its starting lineup to match up with an 8 seed? That's the respect that Dallas coach Avery Johnson has for Davis, who is incredibly strong and is Golden State's best post-up player.
* George did what he could on Davis, but it wasn't anywhere near enough. It will be interesting to see if Johnson goes back to his usual starting lineup for Game 2.
* If Johnson does return to his regular lineup, the problem is that either Jason Terry or Devin Harris will have to cover Davis. Both are too small to handle the Warriors' powerful guard. Also, the Mavericks face a mismatch on the perimeter with Dampier trying to cover Al Harrington, Golden State's "center."
* Therein lies the problem for Dallas: The Mavericks are looking at mismatches in two spots, and if Dampier or DeSagana Diop comes off the floor to fix one matchup, there's no interior defensive presence. And at the offensive end, Dallas doesn't have an inside player who can make the Warriors pay for going small.
* The usual strategy against a small lineup is to pound the ball inside, but Dampier and Diop aren't offensive players. Dirk Nowitzki would rather play on the perimeter, too. This is a nightmarish situation for Johnson, but he's smart and competitive and has a versatile roster. He and his team have a lot to think about as they try to solve the Warrior riddle.

 

[azirish]

The commentators said this was the best game Baron has ever played, so it is unlikely he will do as well in the next few games. However, some of the Warrior's other guys shot very poorly (Ellis was just awful shooting) and may be more dangerous than they looked on Sun.

It is going to an interesting series. The Mavs cannot expect to shut down the Warriors offense and do not have the firepower to get into a bunch of shootouts. This does not mean the Warriors will win it, but their chances are much greater than their records would suggest.

 

[hafey]

An underrated aspect of the game last night was the sheer amount of different defenders Nelson threw at Dirk which has to get in his head. You want to make certain moves or get in certain positions againist certain guys, but Dirk could never get comfortable because every couple of possessions a different guy was on him. They ran Baron, Pietrus, Jackson, Harrigton, and Barnes at him.

Masterful coaching job last night by Nelson.

 

[CardNots]

The commentators said this was the best game Baron has ever played, so it is unlikely he will do as well in the next few games. However, some of the Warrior's other guys shot very poorly (Ellis was just awful shooting) and may be more dangerous than they looked on Sun.

It is going to an interesting series. The Mavs cannot expect to shut down the Warriors offense and do not have the firepower to get into a bunch of shootouts. This does not mean the Warriors will win it, but their chances are much greater than their records would suggest.

I don't buy into the stuff about this being Baron best game. When healthy this guy has kicked our ass. In fact he had a not so good first half. This guy can and will play better.

 

[azirish]

I don't buy into the stuff about this being Baron best game. When healthy this guy has kicked our ass. In fact he had a not so good first half. This guy can and will play better.

actually my point was about the rest of the Warriors. This was the first playoff game for Ellis and he played like it. As the series goes on, I expect more from the rest of the Warrior shooters.

The classic problem for teams playing against small ball is that they have to try to overpower the smallball team at the other end. But the risk is that it leaves opponent's shooters open and relies on guys scoring who don't handle the ball very much.

Matching a small ball team with ones own small ball lineup has the equal problem of giving up the size advantage for a lineup the team is not used to playing. So unless the smaller lineup does a superior job defending against the shooters, it can give up more than it accomplishes.

It's enough to make you wonder why the Mavs tanked their game with the Warriors to help let the Warriors into the playoffs.

 

[FArting]

Go Warriors

 

[CaptainInsano]

Hooray for the warriors!



Keep it going Nellie!!

 

[TucsonDevil]

Saw this in the cbssportline forum... pretty clever...

Many have said that Dirk Nowitzki is the biggest choker in history after yet another playoff loss to an inferiorly staffed roster. But is he really the choker of the century? Is he even the biggest choker of people named Dirk? I investigate…

• <div>-Dirk Benedict- Star of the original Battlestar Galactica and Lt. Templeton “The Faceman” Peck on The A-Team. Now, I know what you’re saying, he sounds like a bad ass, no way he’s a choker. But, in season two of The A-Team there is an episode that tells his backstory: he fell in love in college only to have the woman leave him and become a nun. It was this event that led Face to dropping out of school and joining the Army, where he would eventually meet the rest of the team. Choking with a girlfriend, choking in school, being put on a team with Mr. T. That’s pretty bad.</div>

• <div>Dirk Johnson- Punter for the <st1:city w:st="on"><st1lace w:st="on">Philadelphia</st1lace></st1:city> Eagles. He seems like a darn good punter. But, this guy once choked on some asparagus while dining out at a posh New York Eatery. I saw it. The very definition of a choker.</div>

• <div>Dirk The Daring- Main character in the 80’s arcade game Dragon’s Lair. Now, sometimes this guy would deliver the goods, slay the dragon, save the princess. But it really depended on who was playing the arcade game. If it was me playing, he wouldn’t get past level one, and I’d have to cough up more quarters. Not getting past level one? Major choker.</div>

• <div class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Dirk Diggler- Mark Whalberg’s character from Boogie Nights. Well, I don’t have too much to say about this guy. He had a giant A-Rod. But it’s not the size of you’re A-Rod, it’s what you do with it. He got fired from his job, started doing cocaine, and then ended up pleasuring guys in trucks. Yikes.</div>

Well, this competition ends right there. I’ve seen enough. As bad as Dirk Nowitzki is, he’s no Dirk Diggler. He hasn’t lost enough close playoff series to have to start working the truck stops for money. So Dirk, get it together. You’ve got a long list ahead of you, but you’re coming up fast. Use your hands to win an NBA title, before you have to use them to please drifters.

 

[Mulli]

That is Face's story? Ugh. I am so disillusioned now.

 

[elindholm]

Dirk Diggler may have been a choker, but how about the women who had to work with him?

 

[Southpaw]

Once again Avery got outcoached. He played his small team to Nelson's small team, rather than playing his own game.

 

[Russ Smith]

I don't buy into the stuff about this being Baron best game. When healthy this guy has kicked our ass. In fact he had a not so good first half. This guy can and will play better.

That was the best game I've seen him play as a Warrior though.

When Baron's jumper is falling there's no better PG in the NBA, but it's not falling consistently, he's not a good shooter. That's why he can't touch a guy like Nash despite his freakish athleticism.

he was running a lot better too, he's bene playing on one leg of late but didn't look that bad last night.

 

[TheFallen49]

It's pretty simple, don't adjust to Nellie... make Nellie adjust to you. If Avery played Damp a little more the battle on the boards would be so overwhelmingly in the Mavs favor that it would be impossible for the Warriors to win with all the second chances the Mavericks would get. I believe Damp finished as the top offensive rebounder in the league actually.... some food for thought in Avery's direction...

Plus Dirk should be taking it closer to the basket, I mean in Nellie's rotation who's his biggest player? Some 6'8 guy? Get in the paint and shoot OVER him you seven foot German!!

 

[green machine]

It's pretty simple, don't adjust to Nellie... make Nellie adjust to you. If Avery played Damp a little more the battle on the boards would be so overwhelmingly in the Mavs favor that it would be impossible for the Warriors to win with all the second chances the Mavericks would get. I believe Damp finished as the top offensive rebounder in the league actually.... some food for thought in Avery's direction...

Plus Dirk should be taking it closer to the basket, I mean in Nellie's rotation who's his biggest player? Some 6'8 guy? Get in the paint and shoot OVER him you seven foot German!!

Agreed with Avery and his lineup change, what the hell was he thinking? Only explanation is Nellie is in his head, kind of sad really.

As for Dirk, his biggest problem is his willingness to wuss out and settle for jumpers. That I think is the single biggest flaw in his offensive game.