Dirk Nowitzki took over in the final few minutes of Thursday’s thrilling Game 2 to bring the Mavericks level with the Heat at 1-1 in the NBA Finals. Al Dannity says the big German’s performance has radically altered the direction of this series.
This game was over Actually scratch that. This series was over. Dallas lost the NBA Finals when they fell 15 points behind the Heat in the fourth quarter. That was it, the series done. Miami had picked apart the Mavs at a crucial point in the game. A 2-0 lead was a formality, victory in the series a certainty. Then Dirk Nowitzki stepped up and said hell no!
The big man took the game on his shoulders, scoring the last 9 points for the Mavericks including the game winner with less than 4 seconds to play. I have said throughout these playoffs that Nowitzki has been in beast mode and we saw that again when he drove the lane last night. He didn’t hang back and try to rely on the mid-range jumper. Dirk called for the ball, turned and tore through the defense to hit the lay-up. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RG6uyviRZsU&feature=player_profilepage[/youtube]
Big questions for Heat defense Miami’s failure to put away the Mavericks was largely down to some big failings on defense late. Rick Carlisle’s charges showed more diversity throughout the game compared to Game 1 but they really upped the tempo with their backs against the wall. Nowitzki may have done the bulk of the heavy lifting but Jason Terry and Jason Kidd both stepped up big to make a difference late in the game. Miami’s success in the first match-up was largely down to their ability to stifle the Mavericks attack. If the Heat are to stay in the series they must return to this level when the series moves to Dallas on Sunday.
Patience pays off for Dallas Dallas played clean on defense for most of the first half, denying the Heat trips to the charity stripe. Then with the pressure on as they faced a big deficit, they kept their heads. When Dwayne Wade hit that three-pointer it would have been easy for their heads to drop but the Mavericks kept it together. They played hard but not recklessly on defense, making sure the momentum they were building up the other end mattered. As the gap grew smaller they stayed calm, not letting the excitement overwhelm them. This was a cold-blooded response to a most deadly threat. On Thursday night we got a glimpse into the Mavericks’ souls and saw their resiliency. Now it’s time for the Heat to show what they’ve got.
