Mavs vs. Clipps

[kg_veteran]

A couple of thoughts about last night:

Dirk looked like he could care less about the game until we were floundering in the 4th, at which point he started playing hard. That's not acceptable. I don't think Dirk's had a really good game since he was named to the All-Star team. He's got to start playing hard from beginning to end if we're going to survive the stretch run and win the Midwest.

Steve Nash gets too involved in staring wars with the officials. Sure, there were several times where it appeared he just simply didn't get the call. Still, he has to play through it and make something happen. I don't fault Steve for a couple of bad shooting games, because he's been an amazing shooter for us this season. I just hope he doesn't get a Bradley-esque reputation for whining to the refs, because we're already considered one of the softer teams in the league.

Eschmeyer looked good when he was in there. Sure, he commits a lot of fouls, but he was the only guy I saw that didn't let Olowokandi (not exactly an All-Star post player) plow his way directly to the basket. Let's start this guy at center, and soon...

Bayliss, you are exactly right about the poor defensive gameplan. Why are we doubling everyone? The Clippers had the Mavericks scrambling all night long, primarily because we would double Ervin Johnson if he caught the ball in the post. Play 'em straight up and make 'em earn it. Much easier to guard the three-point line when you know where your man is.