I really loved that San Antonio win. But I'm afraid it told me more about San Antonio than it did about the Mavs. I am convinced that San Antonio is on their last legs. I have not the slightest doubt that the Mavs can, and probably will, beat the Spurs in a series. At this point I'm not sure the Spurs can make it that far.
My concerns with the Mavs have to do with Phoenix and to a greater extent Detroit. Frankly, I'm not sure that Johnson can hold his own against D'Antoni. Probably he can, but I have a nagging doubt. About the Pistons, I keep remembering those last five minutes when we played them a couple weeks back. What a game that was! Best of the season, I'm sure. But Detroit looked pretty methodical in pulling away down the stretch.
That's what worries me. The Spurs don't worry me.
And what worries me even less than that is how many shots Dirk takes inside versus outside. To be blunt, every three-point shot Dirk ever takes is a good value. He's not passing up better value by taking that shot. He's not taking the easy way out. When Dirk shoots threes, it's a terrific team for the team.
And I also don't know that there is a such thing as a Dirk Nowitzki "fadeaway." As tall as he is, he doesn't need to fade away. What that is is a turnaround jumper. And it's deadly. It's deadlier than Rasheed's. It's certainly deadlier than Dirk's drive to the basket, if we want to be honest about it. You talk about the rare times that Dirk's shot is "off." Well, it's rarer still for him to find the kind of groove that has him scoring inside at will or getting calls if he doesn't.
Simply put, Dirk's highest percentage stuff is the turnaround jumper and the three. Why should anyone worry that he goes to much to his bread and butter? They can't defend those shots, but they can certainly defend him closer to the basket.
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