SintonFan
05-03-2007, 09:40 PM
From the DMN.com:
Fair or not: Dirk's legacy on line
06:00 PM CDT on Thursday, May 3, 2007
OAKLAND, Calif. – One spectacular three-minute burst doesn't change anything. Not yet anyway.
Dirk Nowitzki gets an opportunity Thursday to prove his sensational finish – two three-pointers, six free throws and a key blocked shot – wasn't an aberration but a catalytic moment that will result in the Mavericks becoming the ninth team in NBA history to rally from a 3-1 series deficit.
Should the Mavericks become the first No. 1 seed in NBA history to lose a best-of-7 series to a No. 8 seed, Nowitzki will never – ever – live down the shame of that ignominious moment.
No one will remember the 67-win season. Or the three winning streaks of at least 10 games. Or the 24.6 points, 8.9 rebounds and 3.4 assists he averaged this season.
They will only remember Nowitzki as a soft player who couldn't elevate his game or his team when it mattered most.
Avery Johnson certainly doesn't agree with that assessment. Neither does Mark Cuban. That, however, is the reality of the situation.
"I don't think I have to prove anything to myself," Nowitzki said after Game 5. "We won 67 games by moving the ball and playing together and that's the way we're going to win it or not."
Mavericks/NBA
Mavs blog | Inside the Mavs
Playoff series: Mavs | Others
Present tense
Video: A look back, look ahead
Taylor | Moore | Photos
Croshere gave Mavs a birthday present
NBA won't punish Jackson
Game 6 preview
NBA scoreboard
More Mavericks
Let's be honest, Nowitzki remains the least respected and appreciated star in the NBA. Failure to lead the Mavericks to a victory in this series will only reinforce the notion that Nowitzki is a supremely talented player who lacks that special intangible that allows great players to carry their teams to a championship.
Michael Jordan had it. Magic Johnson had it. Larry Bird, the player Nowitzki is most often compared to, certainly had it.
The willed their teams to victory. They refused to lose.
That's what separated them from other stars like Charles Barkley and Karl Malone, who never quite managed to take their teams to titles.
"Do you want to go to the next level where we haven't been? If you want to go there, there is a lot of criticism that goes with that territory," Johnson said. "We could have stayed where we were which wasn't bad because we were winning 50 or 60 games a year.
"But if you get to that level where you enter the [NBA] Finals, it takes you to a whole new stratosphere where you get exposed to more criticism whether you're a player or coach. That's what everybody said they wanted, so that's what we went after. We know the rewards are great, but so is the criticism."
Just ask Nowitzki, though it's not like he's never shown the ability to dominate in the playoffs.
There was his 50-point performance last year against Phoenix a couple of days after a hideous 11-point game in the Western Conference finals. And you can't forget his 37-point, 15-rebound performance in Game 7 against San Antonio in the second round of the playoffs.
But Mavericks collapse in the NBA Finals last year, when they blew a 2-0 lead and choked away a title against Miami has shaped how he's viewed nationally and locally as it should.
All you had to do is listen to sports talk radio in Dallas-Fort Worth and nationally the last couple of days to hear Nowitzki ripped for his lackluster performance and defeatist attitude in the first four games of the series.
Nowitzki doesn't seem to realize the Mavericks can't win, if he doesn't dominate. He can't be a role player because when he plays like a star the Mavericks are virtually unbeatable.
Dirk Nowitzki was at his best in the closing moments of Game 5. Can he get the Mavs into the next round?
VERNON BRYANT / DMN
Dirk Nowitzki was at his best late in Game 5. Can he get the Mavs into the next round?
Dallas is 19-1 this season, when Nowitzki scores at least 30 points, a figure he hit in Game 5 for the first time in the playoffs.
Johnson implored Nowitzki to be more aggressive in Game 5 because it gets him to the free throw line, slowing down the Warriors' fastbreak. In the second quarter, Nowitzki drove to the basket five consecutive times, scoring three baskets and drawing a foul as the Mavericks raced to a 21-point second-quarter lead.
The aggressive approach resulted in Nowitzki shooting 15 free throws, the second time in the series he's shot at least 10 free throws. Dallas has won each of those games.
It's no coincidence.
Dallas is 23-4 this season, when Nowitzki shoots at least 10 free throws.
See, those are the reasons the nine-year veteran must assert himself and be the best player on the court. Nowitzki must impose his will in Game 6 just like Baron Davis has done in every Golden State win.
There is no other way.
It's his responsibility. Like it or not. His legacy depends on it.
.
.
I'd say this game or series won't make or break Dirk. I think he's better than this. Also, for all those folks who say the pressure is on the Warriors.
:p :nerd:
Fair or not: Dirk's legacy on line
06:00 PM CDT on Thursday, May 3, 2007
OAKLAND, Calif. – One spectacular three-minute burst doesn't change anything. Not yet anyway.
Dirk Nowitzki gets an opportunity Thursday to prove his sensational finish – two three-pointers, six free throws and a key blocked shot – wasn't an aberration but a catalytic moment that will result in the Mavericks becoming the ninth team in NBA history to rally from a 3-1 series deficit.
Should the Mavericks become the first No. 1 seed in NBA history to lose a best-of-7 series to a No. 8 seed, Nowitzki will never – ever – live down the shame of that ignominious moment.
No one will remember the 67-win season. Or the three winning streaks of at least 10 games. Or the 24.6 points, 8.9 rebounds and 3.4 assists he averaged this season.
They will only remember Nowitzki as a soft player who couldn't elevate his game or his team when it mattered most.
Avery Johnson certainly doesn't agree with that assessment. Neither does Mark Cuban. That, however, is the reality of the situation.
"I don't think I have to prove anything to myself," Nowitzki said after Game 5. "We won 67 games by moving the ball and playing together and that's the way we're going to win it or not."
Mavericks/NBA
Mavs blog | Inside the Mavs
Playoff series: Mavs | Others
Present tense
Video: A look back, look ahead
Taylor | Moore | Photos
Croshere gave Mavs a birthday present
NBA won't punish Jackson
Game 6 preview
NBA scoreboard
More Mavericks
Let's be honest, Nowitzki remains the least respected and appreciated star in the NBA. Failure to lead the Mavericks to a victory in this series will only reinforce the notion that Nowitzki is a supremely talented player who lacks that special intangible that allows great players to carry their teams to a championship.
Michael Jordan had it. Magic Johnson had it. Larry Bird, the player Nowitzki is most often compared to, certainly had it.
The willed their teams to victory. They refused to lose.
That's what separated them from other stars like Charles Barkley and Karl Malone, who never quite managed to take their teams to titles.
"Do you want to go to the next level where we haven't been? If you want to go there, there is a lot of criticism that goes with that territory," Johnson said. "We could have stayed where we were which wasn't bad because we were winning 50 or 60 games a year.
"But if you get to that level where you enter the [NBA] Finals, it takes you to a whole new stratosphere where you get exposed to more criticism whether you're a player or coach. That's what everybody said they wanted, so that's what we went after. We know the rewards are great, but so is the criticism."
Just ask Nowitzki, though it's not like he's never shown the ability to dominate in the playoffs.
There was his 50-point performance last year against Phoenix a couple of days after a hideous 11-point game in the Western Conference finals. And you can't forget his 37-point, 15-rebound performance in Game 7 against San Antonio in the second round of the playoffs.
But Mavericks collapse in the NBA Finals last year, when they blew a 2-0 lead and choked away a title against Miami has shaped how he's viewed nationally and locally as it should.
All you had to do is listen to sports talk radio in Dallas-Fort Worth and nationally the last couple of days to hear Nowitzki ripped for his lackluster performance and defeatist attitude in the first four games of the series.
Nowitzki doesn't seem to realize the Mavericks can't win, if he doesn't dominate. He can't be a role player because when he plays like a star the Mavericks are virtually unbeatable.
Dirk Nowitzki was at his best in the closing moments of Game 5. Can he get the Mavs into the next round?
VERNON BRYANT / DMN
Dirk Nowitzki was at his best late in Game 5. Can he get the Mavs into the next round?
Dallas is 19-1 this season, when Nowitzki scores at least 30 points, a figure he hit in Game 5 for the first time in the playoffs.
Johnson implored Nowitzki to be more aggressive in Game 5 because it gets him to the free throw line, slowing down the Warriors' fastbreak. In the second quarter, Nowitzki drove to the basket five consecutive times, scoring three baskets and drawing a foul as the Mavericks raced to a 21-point second-quarter lead.
The aggressive approach resulted in Nowitzki shooting 15 free throws, the second time in the series he's shot at least 10 free throws. Dallas has won each of those games.
It's no coincidence.
Dallas is 23-4 this season, when Nowitzki shoots at least 10 free throws.
See, those are the reasons the nine-year veteran must assert himself and be the best player on the court. Nowitzki must impose his will in Game 6 just like Baron Davis has done in every Golden State win.
There is no other way.
It's his responsibility. Like it or not. His legacy depends on it.
.
.
I'd say this game or series won't make or break Dirk. I think he's better than this. Also, for all those folks who say the pressure is on the Warriors.
:p :nerd: