Mavs at Knicks: 14-8

[ddh33]

Dallas 99, New York 89. After not getting to see the last game against Utah because of me mis-communicating with my DVR, I got to see the Mavs have a very good first half against a really, really bad Knicks team. Dallas defended better than I have seen in a long time, or the Knicks were much worse offensively than I have seen in a while. The Mavs actually pushed the lead to 20 in the third quarter before the Knicks made a strong push to get the game back down to around 7. The Knicks were never able to get stops though, and the Mavs kept scoring until they put the game away.

The Mavs shot very well tonight, and it's kind of strange to see the Knicks only lose by 10 when they shot so much worse than the Mavs. Dallas moved the ball better too. I would have liked to have seen a better job on the boards and the free throw line.

Dirk was fantastic tonight. Maybe he's starting to come around all over again. He scored an efficient 36, and I really liked seeing him play so aggressive. I just don't see any reason in the world why Dirk is not the first option all of the time. I know teams have been doubling him harder and more often than ever before, but I think the Mavs still have to find ways to get him involved and keep him dominant. I don't always see enough of that, and I refuse to accept how a player of his talent can be taken away some nights by what the defense does. Dirk, Avery, and the rest of this team just can't allow that. Thankfully, the Knicks really even tried to take him away.

Josh Howard had another very nice game with 22-6-4. I still worry that he's settling too much for his jumper, but I also admire the way he's improved that aspect of his game. Now that he is also adding in some improvement in ball movement, it makes him and the team better.

I thought the Dallas centers were very good tonight. They combined for 11-10-5, and they completely outplayed Eddy Curry, who seems to be even more out of shape. Those guys had a big impact on this game though.

Devin Harris was very quiet. I mean, he was very quiet. He shot 3 times and made none of them. He did have 4 assists and 2 steals, but he essentially deferred to his teammates all night long. Despite the win, I don't think this is what is best for this team.

Jason Terry was quiet too, but he did hit some big shots when the Knicks were trying to come back. Otherwise, it wasn't a memorable night for him either.

Stack had 13 and 4 tonight, and he's looking better and better. That's really needed for this team. Everyone knows how he was struggling earlier in the season. I know he's been a little bit of a slow starter, but when he plays like an old man, this team just isn't the same.

Brandon Bass didn't get quite as many minutes tonight, but he was fairly productive. He even battled inside against bigger men pretty well. As effective as Dirk and the centers were, the team didn't use him as much.

Devean George almost looked like himself tonight. He brought a burst of energy for the few minutes that he was on the court. He had a couple of blocks from the weakside, had a steal, and grabbed a couple of boards. I'll be glad when he and Eddie Jones get healthy because I'm very interested to see what the team looks like at that point.

[Usually Lurkin]

there were several plays that convinced me that I still love the Dallas Mavs, and that they might just be allright. On the defensive end, Dirk got up to challenge a couple shots in the paint. Not just swipe at the ball as it came up. Not just put his hand up in the air as he starts to run down to the other end. He manned up and made a couple people in a row miss what would've been dunks or layups. On offense, I saw a couple great passes to the centers. One was to Damp from Dirk, I believe. The other was a very low pass from either Howard or Terry to Diop (I know, did I even look at who's playing? That's why I don't write summaries) that was very low, handled well, and resulted in a one-handed dunk. The mavs are still working on getting easy shots for the centers, and they are getting better. Those couple were just beautiful. Real basketball rather than clearouts. Finally, I saw Howard get into the lane and bloody a lip on the way to a layup. If Dirk would learn to use his elbows like that, he'd get some more respect from the other teams.

[fluid.forty.one]

I missed the game tonight so thanks for the recap as usual.

[Locked_Up_Tonight]

The other was a very low pass from either Howard or Terry to Diop (I know, did I even look at who's playing? That's why I don't write summaries) that was very low, handled well, and resulted in a one-handed dunk.

It was Stack to Diop.

[Dirkadirkastan]

Originally Posted by ddh33

Josh Howard had another very nice game with 22-6-4. I still worry that he's settling too much for his jumper, but I also admire the way he's improved that aspect of his game. Now that he is also adding in some improvement in ball movement, it makes him and the team better.

We always accuse him for settling, but it seems to me that defenses never adjust to his jumper and instead just play back to keep him out of the lane. So even though he shoots a lot of jumpers, they're all open looks. He doesn't seem anxious to shoot the jumper; he's just taking what's given to him. And the shots are falling too.

[dude1394]

Josh just needs to understand the game time, that when it gets tight (say when a 20 point lead has been whittled down to 7) that it's not time for a jumper. Dirk has learned this but he can fall in love with it as well.

But you are correct he does seem to get an awful lot of open jumpers all over the court. Just the benefit of being a wingman I imagine, in this nba no one can stop you from driving off the perimeter, but get in the paint and be tall and you can get hammered.

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Originally Posted by dude1394

Josh just needs to understand the game time, that when it gets tight (say when a 20 point lead has been whittled down to 7) that it's not time for a jumper. Dirk has learned this but he can fall in love with it as well.

But you are correct he does seem to get an awful lot of open jumpers all over the court. Just the benefit of being a wingman I imagine, in this nba no one can stop you from driving off the perimeter, but get in the paint and be tall and you can get hammered.

I thought Josh read the game fairly well at the end though when he hit that three. That three mailed in the game. I guess my point is that I have previously seen Dirk take similar shots in similar situations. The Knicks are so bad though that as long as we dribbled tonight it looked like a victory regardless of anything else hahaha.

[jacktruth]

Originally Posted by Locked_Up_Tonight

It was Stack to Diop.

Now there's a phrase never spoken last year.

[nowhereman]

missed the game due to work - will watch the dvr tomorrow, but one quick observation:

5 players with 4 assists (Dirk is first in APG at his position in the league)

[Dor-Style]

just 3 points for Devin Harris... unusual .

[alexamenos]

Most importantly, Led Zeppelin was getting alot of run on the tv last night (I suppose in honor of their reunion in London), so I was quite distracted during the game.....suffice it to say that if rock and roll was basketball, Plant and Page would make Jordan and Pippen look like a couple of no-talent spares.....

random observations:

1. @ Chicago, v. Utah, and @ New York, the Mavs have played some really good D through 2 1/2 quarters, built up 10 pt plus leads, and then gotten torched for the remainder of the game...I bet the first half v. 2nd half splits on those games would be really dramatic.

for now, I'm attributing this to a team that is at best very mildly interested in the goings - on of the regular season.

2. Bearing in mind the opponent and number 1 above, the mavs interior D finally looked decent for awhile.

3. Heard that AJ has been calling all the plays while Devin's runnin' the point for the past 5 or 6 games....somewhat disappointed to hear this.

4. Dirk resembled the guy that won an MVP last year, and that's very happy news.

[MavsX]

i was wondering where the mavs -jazz- write up was...damn you dvr!

[FINtastic]

Josh is shooting 50% from the field. Kind of hard to argue with the guy's shot selection when he is doing that. And like others are saying, if the defense gives it you...

[Mavs Rule]

Dirk did look much better last night, but I won't get to carried away with it because NY's defense is pretty lame. They gave him all kinds of room to shoot last night. I guess Isaiah didn't learn as much as most of the other coaches regarding the warrior's tactics. Hardly any double teams on him. I guess Isaiah has been distracted.

[Jack.Kerr]

Originally Posted by Mavs Rule

Dirk did look much better last night, but I won't get to carried away with it because NY's defense is pretty lame. They gave him all kinds of room to shoot last night. I guess Isaiah didn't learn as much as most of the other coaches regarding the warrior's tactics. Hardly any double teams on him. I guess Isaiah has been distracted.

NY places defense like the Suns.

Their offense isn't as good though.

[fluid.forty.one]

Do The Right'er Thing
Dirk Scores 36 In Win At New York
By Mike Fisher -- DB.com

Now this is my favorite version of Dirk! He says all the right things. … and then DOES all the right’er things.



We are all too familiar with Deferential Dirk, that creature who politely moved though his NBA infancy passing up shots so buddies Nash and Finley could instead be the triggermen. This year’s edition of Nowitzki – Dirk 4.0 – has been similarly unselfish, but due (theoretically) to developing other Mavs weapons rather than because of reticence or lack of confidence.

Monday in New York, though, capped a three-day period during which Dirk celebrated the notion that Josh Howard is suddenly this team’s Batman. “With him playing the way he is, there's no need for us to be out there competing for shots,’’ Nowitzki had said. “That would be the wrong thing. He's playing great, and whenever the team needs me, I'll try to be there.’’ But then the MVP victimized the Knicks in a 99-89 win by demonstrating that he, Nowitzki, can still be The UberMan.

Say the right thing.

Then do the right’er thing.

Nowitzki finished with a season-high 36 points. He did so by scoring 15 of Dallas’ first 28 first-quarter points. He did so by “out-quicking’’ New York’s bulky front line featuring Zach Randolph. He also contributed some truly gorgeous passes – making it easy to forget that this magic was being performed by a 7-footer. He hustled on defense and on the boards, contributing seven rebounds, four assists and two steals. (The boxscore.)

“He came out with the type of game we wanted him to have tonight," coach Avery Johnson said. "We wanted him to come out and really establish himself."

One game after J-Ho dazzled with a career-high 47 points against Utah, Nowitzki made it clear that he’s willing to concede only SOME of his position atop the Dallas totem pole.

Madison Square Garden is a troubled place right now. (see BLOGFISH). But the only problems the Mavs had there came late, when Avery was ready to rest Nowitzki and others – with 15 minutes left in the game, Dallas was up 23 – but some members of the supporting cast failed to focus on the coach’s suddenly ballyhooed “short-term goals.’’

"The last three minutes of the third quarter were absolutely pathetic," Johnson said. "Guys who were in there let the whole team down. We can't afford to do that."

So instead, Nowitzki had to play 39 minutes. Howard had to play 42 (on his way to 22 points). Ol’ Jerry Stackhouse had to play 31. And Johnson’s plan to use the final quarter as a test run for the rehabbed Devean George flopped.

"We had some individuals that let him (George) down," fumed Johnson. "They didn't carry their weight out there on the floor while they were in there, and they know who they are."

I think I know who some of them are, too. I think Stack, Jet, Diop and Bass might have been among the Mavs who, um, downshifted prematurely. And yeah, J-Ho, too.

Still, the Mavs (14-8) were clearly more intense on defense, holding the lowly Knicks to 29-percent shooting in the first half. The emphasis on a quick start was fulfilled, too, as the Mavs got off to a 7-1 lead and were ahead 15 points in the second quarter. Securing wins against inferior teams, on the road, from the East? Check, check, check. And making sure Dirk stayed involved? He took 10 of the team’s first 19 shots and ended 14-of-23.

"We just need to be mentally tougher, everyone from one to five," said Nowitzki, once again saying the right thing. … and hopefully on track to keep doing the right’er thing.

938am dec 11 2007