Dallas Mavericks expect double-Dirk defense
08:19 PM CDT on Thursday, April 17, 2008
By EDDIE SEFKO / The Dallas Morning News
The numbers suggest the NBA has figured out Dirk Nowitzki.
The faces and uniforms change yearly. But the last two playoffs have looked identical to the Dallas Mavericks' star. He keeps seeing double. Or triple.
And those multiple defenders running his way have had a big hand in his reduced productivity in the 2006 NBA Finals and the first-round flameout last season. Those two series are why Nowitzki is squarely under the microscope as the Mavericks prepare to open the first round Saturday at New Orleans.
"Any team, whether it's the Lakers or New Orleans or San Antonio or Phoenix, when they walk through the door, they're not just going to allow Dirk to beat them," Mavericks coach Avery Johnson said.
If Wednesday's regular-season finale was any indication, the Hornets have no intention of letting Nowitzki find a groove. They quickly sent David West, Tyson Chandler and other players at Nowitzki anytime he touched the ball.
The result was 4-of-16 shooting by Nowitzki and a Mavericks win, which they would take in a heartbeat starting Saturday.
"Yeah, I knew from the meetings we played them this year, that they were coming," Nowitzki said. "Even when I catch the ball at 15, 16 feet, they don't want me isolating and looking at them and dancing. They don't even want that. Usually teams come at the low post when I get the ball deep down there. But they're coming early trying to get the ball out of my hands."
This is a trend that started when Nowitzki shot 39 percent in the '06 Finals and continued with 38.3 percent shooting last season against the Warriors.
The defensive tactic has worked before. The Mavericks are determined not to let it work again.
"It's something we know a lot of teams love to try on us," Johnson said. "It's nothing new. And how we execute against it is going to be a big key in this series, how we make them pay for their double-teams."
The onus, then, falls on Josh Howard, among others. The swingman has been dominant at times this season, and at other times, has drifted into the background.
"Teams know coming into the playoffs, they're going to focus on Dirk," Howard said. "That gives other players the opportunity to step up. Since I've been here, that's been the way of it."
Said Johnson: "We don't think we can be that good in the playoffs if [Howard] doesn't play at a high level."
Howard appears to have gotten over a sore right knee that bothered him late in the season. Now, it's simply a matter of Howard and others bailing Nowitzki out when the defense tries to suffocate him.
Not that Nowitzki will let that happen without a fight. He said Wednesday's game was a good preview of what not to do against the Hornets.
"Early on, I kept passing the ball out," Nowitzki said. "And then when I had some shots, I never had a good rhythm. So I've got to find a way to sometimes still be in attack mode. If I have a look, I still have to sometimes drive through the double-team."
So aggressiveness will not be a problem in the best-of-7 series. But Nowitzki knows he won't be able to win all four games with Herculean efforts. He'll need help.
The question is whether the Hornets can scramble defensively as well as the Miami Heat or the Golden State Warriors, who stifled Nowitzki in the last two playoff series, in which the Mavericks have a 4-8 record.
"The rest of the guys, if that's the case, we got to stand up and help him out," Jason Kidd said. "We can use him as the playmaker – get him the triple-double. The nice thing is he understands the pass. If that's what they're going to do, somebody's going to be open.
"He doesn't have to feel like he has to shoot it with two guys on him."
Johnson points to the Los Angeles Lakers as a prime example.
"You need other guys to step up in the playoffs," he said. "You look at what LA is doing now. They're playing some really good ball, and it's not because [Kobe] Bryant is scoring 60, 80 or 100 points a game."
It's the other guys who make the difference. The NBA seems to have figured this out.
Maybe Nowitzki and the Mavericks will do the same this time.