The Sky is Rising

[Five-ofan]

I know that many felt that the sky had fallen after the 2 game debacle against the Pacers and Pistons. It is rising again. The Laker war machine is crumbling(remember I said that they wouldn't win the title along time ago because Malone has an Elgin Baylor like curse. They are still a force but I am not in as small a minority as I was). If the Lakers lose tonight and they are at this moment, and the mavs beat them tomorrow the mavs will be within a half game of them and either tied with or a game behind the spurs(in the loss column) depending on how they do tonight. I am attempting not to knee-jerk in the direction of too much optimism but as I look at this team I am begining to see the greatness that I thought was possible when all the trades were done. Dirk is begining to play like the Dirk that we have come to know and love. Nash is playing great when healthy. Best is starting to play well enough. Finley is becoming the Finley of a couple of years ago(well not completely but for one night he was his old Dunking self). Jamison is becoming the automatic option in the paint that the mavs have lacked. The defense is begining to look good, with the mavs getting what commentators refer to as "Key Stops". Howard appears to be on his way back to where he was earlier. Finally Walker. I left him till last because I feel that his turnaround has been the most key to the mavs turnaround. I have always believed that dirk would be fine when he got healthy and that Walker was the key. Because Nelson puts the ball in his hands so much he is a huge part of our offense. He is doing a great job of making sure that the best scorers get the ball(though he has to take an occasional shot himself). This may sound like backpedaling because well it is, but I think that we need to keep walker unless we get an offer of a DOMINANT center(THis means Shaq or Duncan or even Ming) none of these are forthcoming so keep him and see what we have. The last thing about walker is the amount of blame that a player receives for losses needs to equal the amount of credit they receive for wins. Sorry this was long but I hadnt posted for a while and I am really happy about the mavs situation right now.
P.s. I know some of you may think I am nuts but I dont think 60 wins is out of the question for the mavs. I believe that they were 35-6 at one point last year and I think that they can do it again. Which I believe would give them the number one seed.

[MightyToine]

Great Post, Five-o.

Hopefully, this streak snowballs into a 15-game winning streak from the 5-gamer this team has right now.


(but the Sack-of-tomato Queens game will be a toughie even though it's at home)


GO MAVS!!

[twelli]

the lakers lost in memphis. they will play the second game of a back to back on the road. they play without three of their fabulous four (when does shaq return?). Easy home win? Don't think so. If the mavs want to go on a 15-win streak, they have to take this game seriously. I am afraid they get a 15-point lead in the third and then have to worry until the final buzzer. I think the mavs are good for 55 wins this season.

[MightyToine]

That could happen OR either Jamison/Walker get rolling on Offense big-time and we blow this team out by the half.

[V]

I don't know if this has been posted so I'll throw it in here... It's worth a read...


Nets: Mavs flaunt size, speed



Wednesday, January 21, 2004


BY BRAD PARKS
Star-Ledger Staff

DALLAS -- There are any number of reasons the Byron Scott-coached Nets have never beaten the Dallas Mavericks, and if you looked on the floor of American Airlines Center at any point of Dallas' 106-93 victory against the Nets last night, you could see at least one of them being rather graphically demonstrated.

The Mavericks were, in no particular order: bigger at the big-man positions, quicker at the quick-man positions and deeper off the bench.

They were better shooters, better scorers, better at the running game, better finishing in transition, better rebounders, better at building a lead, better at keeping a lead and better at finishing the game.

And so the Nets lost to Dallas for the seventh straight time, their longest current losing streak against any NBA team, allowing the Mavericks to remain the only team Scott has never beaten in his four years as a head coach.

"Some teams just have your number," Nets forward Richard Jefferson said. "Sometimes it's just the way matchups go."

It puts the Nets' three-game road trip off to a lousy start and sticks them in the kind of losing streak they haven't seen since the dark days of early December. After having won 13 of 16, the Nets have lost four of five and three straight.

The schedule doesn't get any easier from here, either: The defending NBA champion Spurs await the Nets tonight in San Antonio.

It wasn't that the Nets were uniformly dreadful last night. Local boy Kenyon Martin treated his ample cheering section to 29 points on 12-of-22 shooting. Richard Jefferson scored 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting. The Nets shot 48.8 percent as a team.

But that was all on the offensive end. When it came to defense and rebounding, the Nets got overwhelmed.

The Mavericks back-tapped their way to a 52-38 rebounding advantage, including a crushing 15-7 edge on the offensive glass.

"They're a great rebounding team, and Kenyon Martin has to be out on the perimeter guarding Dirk Nowitzki," Jefferson said. "So our best rebounder is away from the rim most of the time."

As for the defense? The Nets forced only four turnovers, which tied a Mavericks franchise low for fewest turnovers in a game. The 11 turnovers between the teams set an NBA record for fewest combined turnovers in a game, breaking the low of 12 set by Cleveland and Boston in 1993.

But while it made for attractive basketball, it was just one more disadvantage for the Nets, who thrive off forcing turnovers.

So perhaps it wasn't surprising that all five Mavericks starters scored in double figures. Even Antoine Walker -- who used to turn into Little Bo Peep around Martin during his Boston days -- scored 22 points now that he's wearing a Mavericks uniform.

Correction: He scored three points in the first half. Then apparently someone reminded him at halftime he was playing for the Mavericks now, and he responded with 19 points in the second half.

It stands to reason the Scott-coached Nets will find a way to beat the Mavericks one of these days.

"All streaks have to come to an end sooner or later," Scott said in typically optimistic fashion.

Also expected one of these days: cold fusion, flying cars and manned flights to Mars ... though the Vegas sports books have installed cold fusion as a 4-to-1 favorite over the Nets beating the Mavericks.

This game was a perfect example as to why. When the Nets built a lead in the first quarter, Dallas snapped off an 11-2 run to take it back. When the Nets scrambled feverishly to get back in the game in the third quarter, the best they could do was trade baskets: Dallas entered the third quarter with a 13-point lead and left it with an 11-point lead.

And every time the Nets cut the Mavericks' lead under double figures in the fourth quarter, the Mavericks answered with a couple of quick baskets in a row to pump their lead right back to safety.

"They have so many weapons," Nets guard Jason Kidd said. "They've seen every switch, every pick-and-roll defense. Sometimes you just can't stop it."

[EricaLubarsky]

"They've seen every switch, every pick-and-roll defense. Sometimes you just can't stop it."

[Five-ofan]

Didn't want to start a new thread and this falls under the idea of the sky is rising. The Mavs are now 4th in the west and not that anyone has noticed but they actually have a better road record than the Lakers. Again everything is looking good.

Ps. If Dirk keeps passing this well might Nellie give him some time at point forward?

[dude1394]

Call it the point center!!!!

[Five-ofan]

True about Point center(Alonzo Mourning was one so was Ewing to some extent) I will post something about Dirk being a center and the pros and cons in another post later today.

[ReDIRKulous]

Someone said that Walker might be traded for Big Z... I wonder if that has anything to do with Dirk's passing of late?

It seems like JAmison and Fin have been passing better lately too... is all of this by osmosis from Walker being around?

[dude1394]

I think the whole team can finish better and are just better scorers. Walker definitely brings that. Jamison I don't know about. He's asked to come in and fill it up. It's taken a while but he's surely getting it done.

My buddy and I were commenting how effortlessly he runs. Just watch him loping down the court sometimes, really a beautiful stride.

[MightyToine]

Originally posted by: ReDIRKulous
Someone said that Walker might be traded for Big Z... I wonder if that has anything to do with Dirk's passing of late?

Where did you read this?

If Walker is traded for Z(someone the Mavs aren't really excited about), then Cuban/Donnie is really retarded. Walker is helping the Mavs more than he is hurting them, we are on a winning streak, and It would shock me to the core if that happened, ReDirk. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-frown.gif[/img]



and Dirk's passing has more to do with the fact of Walker's presence on the team. Dirk watches Walker passing the ball well and he's thinking 'hey! I can do that, too!' [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

[dude1394]

Me. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

[MightyToine]

Do you have a link to this "credible" information, dude? [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]