Two themes were at play in the AAC on Wednesday night when the Mavericks hosted the Chicago Bulls: desperation and aggression. Chicago, who came in losers of eight straight games, was desperate to pick up a win against Dallas. The Mavericks, on the other hand, with Jason Terry having returned to the lineup for the first time since fracturing his orbital bone two weeks ago, were all about aggression. After having their season-high 13 game winning streak snuffed by a brutal beatdown at the hands of the New York Knicks, the Mavs were fired up and ready to get back on the winning track themselves.
From the opening tip, the Mavs played like they were the ones in desperate need of a win. Rather than standing around hoping their jump shots would rain through, as they spent much of Saturday night's blowout loss doing, these Mavericks were running, jumping, passing, penetrating and taking the ball to the basket early on. Caron Butler, who led the team in scoring with 27 points, set the tone by earning his way to the charity stripe time after time. Butler alone had nearly half (16) of the Mavs' 33 free throw attempts throughout the game.
The Mavs' were aggressive on defense as well, both individually and as a team, particularly in the first half. Erick Dampier was blocking shots with his left hand, rather than his right, due to recovering from a middle finger dislocation. And Jason Terry, who subbed in the game late in the first quarter, even got in on the act with a block of his own. It was great to see the fire and passion that Jet brings to this team evident on the court once again. His excitement, enjoyment, and sense of urgency seemed to filter to his teammates as the Mavericks played one of their best halves of basketball all year.
Their offensive prowess was highlighted by several beautiful plays early on, including a behind the back pass in transition from Jason Kidd to Erick Dampier, who was fouled in the process and completed the three point play. Jason Terry started the game by hitting all four of his first shots. With about a minute left before the half, Brendan Haywood missed an easy shot beneath the basket and Roddy Beaubois and his spring-loaded legs jumped up and tipped in the ball for an easy basket. The Mavericks shot 66% in the first 24 minutes and their bench outscored the Bulls, 30-17.
However, in the second half, the Mavs began to slack up, particularly on the defensive end, and the Bulls began playing like their (playoff) lives depended on it, which they very well might in the long run. Acie Law, who led the Bulls with 22 points, seemed to have his way with Dallas, connecting on 7-of-8 shots and going a perfect 7-of-7 from the line. Law even had a remarkable three point play that began with a wicked spin move near the middle of the fourth quarter. The Mavs lead had been cut to 98-90 halfway through the final frame when Chicago rookie James Johnson missed a layup which cut have shrunk the lead to six. His miss was quickly followed by a shot from JJ Barea to put the Mavs lead back to double digits at 100-90. Barea then proceeded to rattle off eight more points, for a total of 10 straight, for Dallas, highlighted by an open three pointer on a cross-court pass from Dirk out of the double team. In the midst of his double-digit solo scoring run, Barea managed to draw a charge on the Bulls with 3:49 remaining. 90 seconds later, Dirk proved he was no pushover as he lunged at the Bulls' Kirk Heinrich, who shoved Nowitzki in the back after the play had ended, resulting in a technical foul on Heinrich. With just over a minute left and the Mavs' victory relatively secure, Barea again drew an offensive foul on Chicago.
"JJ was the one that really saved us the game," Dirk said. That's some pretty high praise coming from the team leader, former MVP, and future Hall of Famer.
JJ Barea finished the game with 15 points, 10 of them coming during a critical push by the Mavs, and a team-high tying five assists. Dirk also had five assists to go along with his 26 points and team-high three steals. Shawn Marion, with 12, and Beaubois, with 11, were the other Mavericks with double digit scoring totals. Jason Kidd had an extremely rare off night, finishing with zero points (that counted), two rebounds, four assists, and three turnovers. I say points that counted because in the final seconds of the third quarter, he heaved a long ball from well behind the arc that would have kept his string of 31 consecutive games with at least one three point shot made alive had it come off his fingertips just a fraction of a second earlier. Due to some soreness and stiffness in his knees, which Mavs coaching staff has assured is not anything unusual or cause to worry, Kidd's minutes were limited. He played the entire first and third quarters, but did not play during either the second or the fourth periods. Kidd was on the bench, icing his knees down, early on in the fourth quarter, but should be available for Saturday night's matchup with the Boston Celtics.
Could Saturday night possibly be a preview of things to come, perhaps an NBA Finals matchup? I don't want to get ahead of myself here, but the Mavericks I've seen since the trade, excusing the debacle against the Knicks last weekend --which I technically didn't see -- have proven to me, if not the league, that they can run with the big boys. I can't wait for the playoffs to start.
Is it April yet??
From the opening tip, the Mavs played like they were the ones in desperate need of a win. Rather than standing around hoping their jump shots would rain through, as they spent much of Saturday night's blowout loss doing, these Mavericks were running, jumping, passing, penetrating and taking the ball to the basket early on. Caron Butler, who led the team in scoring with 27 points, set the tone by earning his way to the charity stripe time after time. Butler alone had nearly half (16) of the Mavs' 33 free throw attempts throughout the game.
The Mavs' were aggressive on defense as well, both individually and as a team, particularly in the first half. Erick Dampier was blocking shots with his left hand, rather than his right, due to recovering from a middle finger dislocation. And Jason Terry, who subbed in the game late in the first quarter, even got in on the act with a block of his own. It was great to see the fire and passion that Jet brings to this team evident on the court once again. His excitement, enjoyment, and sense of urgency seemed to filter to his teammates as the Mavericks played one of their best halves of basketball all year.
Their offensive prowess was highlighted by several beautiful plays early on, including a behind the back pass in transition from Jason Kidd to Erick Dampier, who was fouled in the process and completed the three point play. Jason Terry started the game by hitting all four of his first shots. With about a minute left before the half, Brendan Haywood missed an easy shot beneath the basket and Roddy Beaubois and his spring-loaded legs jumped up and tipped in the ball for an easy basket. The Mavericks shot 66% in the first 24 minutes and their bench outscored the Bulls, 30-17.
However, in the second half, the Mavs began to slack up, particularly on the defensive end, and the Bulls began playing like their (playoff) lives depended on it, which they very well might in the long run. Acie Law, who led the Bulls with 22 points, seemed to have his way with Dallas, connecting on 7-of-8 shots and going a perfect 7-of-7 from the line. Law even had a remarkable three point play that began with a wicked spin move near the middle of the fourth quarter. The Mavs lead had been cut to 98-90 halfway through the final frame when Chicago rookie James Johnson missed a layup which cut have shrunk the lead to six. His miss was quickly followed by a shot from JJ Barea to put the Mavs lead back to double digits at 100-90. Barea then proceeded to rattle off eight more points, for a total of 10 straight, for Dallas, highlighted by an open three pointer on a cross-court pass from Dirk out of the double team. In the midst of his double-digit solo scoring run, Barea managed to draw a charge on the Bulls with 3:49 remaining. 90 seconds later, Dirk proved he was no pushover as he lunged at the Bulls' Kirk Heinrich, who shoved Nowitzki in the back after the play had ended, resulting in a technical foul on Heinrich. With just over a minute left and the Mavs' victory relatively secure, Barea again drew an offensive foul on Chicago.
"JJ was the one that really saved us the game," Dirk said. That's some pretty high praise coming from the team leader, former MVP, and future Hall of Famer.
JJ Barea finished the game with 15 points, 10 of them coming during a critical push by the Mavs, and a team-high tying five assists. Dirk also had five assists to go along with his 26 points and team-high three steals. Shawn Marion, with 12, and Beaubois, with 11, were the other Mavericks with double digit scoring totals. Jason Kidd had an extremely rare off night, finishing with zero points (that counted), two rebounds, four assists, and three turnovers. I say points that counted because in the final seconds of the third quarter, he heaved a long ball from well behind the arc that would have kept his string of 31 consecutive games with at least one three point shot made alive had it come off his fingertips just a fraction of a second earlier. Due to some soreness and stiffness in his knees, which Mavs coaching staff has assured is not anything unusual or cause to worry, Kidd's minutes were limited. He played the entire first and third quarters, but did not play during either the second or the fourth periods. Kidd was on the bench, icing his knees down, early on in the fourth quarter, but should be available for Saturday night's matchup with the Boston Celtics.
Could Saturday night possibly be a preview of things to come, perhaps an NBA Finals matchup? I don't want to get ahead of myself here, but the Mavericks I've seen since the trade, excusing the debacle against the Knicks last weekend --which I technically didn't see -- have proven to me, if not the league, that they can run with the big boys. I can't wait for the playoffs to start.
Is it April yet??
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