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| Tyson Chandler and the Mavs just clinched a 3-1 series lead (image by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) |
DAL over OKC, 112-105 (DAL up 3-1)
I left the house with about 5 minutes left in the game. The Oklahoma City Thunder were playing well, Serge Ibaka was resurgent, and their hometown crowd was as rowdy as can be.
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| Serge Ibaka and the Thunder probably thought they had it won (image by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) |
In the bag, I thought.
Big mistake.
But the biggest mistake?
Oklahoma probably thought the same.
But the Dallas Mavericks just keep adding to their amazing postseason story. Just three games after an improbable sweep of the defending champions, Dallas climbs out of the proverbial grave to pull the rug from under the energetic Thunder, who all but seemed poised to equalize the series.
Instead Scott Brooks is staring at a 1-3 deficit that only 2 teams without the benefit of home-court advantage have ever reversed. But if he’s looking for inspiration, looking for that thing that could give him and his some hope of getting back from a big hole, then, ironically, all they have to do is watch what Dallas did in Game 4.
But the problem is Brooks doesn’t have Dirk Nowitzki.
Sure, he had Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, but those two, as talented as they have proven themselves to be, are still several years away from that “mysterious” quality that elevates a player from being great, to being legendary.
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| Does anybody still doubt Dirk Nowitzki's greatness? (image by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) |
If anyone doubts whether Dirk should be included in the talks for the Hall-of-Fame years from now, then his performance here should be enough of a counterpoint. The jump-shooting German had his second 40-point-ish performance of the series, and he’s bound to play just as well when the teams head back to Texas for what could be the conference-clinching fifth game.
And all it took the Mavs was 10 minutes. For the first 2,280 seconds of Game 4 they were dominated by an explosive and spirited Thunder quintet. OKC looked headed for the win that would make the West Finals a best-of-3 affair, but then Dallas just roared back from nowhere.
If you look at the stat-sheet though, OKC’s waterloo is revealed yet again. Their two All-Stars, the future of the Western Conference if not the league, shot a combined 16-of-44 from the field. That’s nearly half the team’s total shots going to only two people, and those two people muffed most of them.
That just cannot cut it in this league. Especially not in the Playoffs. Especially not against the Dallas Mavericks.
Now Kevin Durant is probably walking somewhere, toting that ubiquitous backpack of his, wondering, In the bag? Can I still pull anything out from inside MY bag?
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| Does Kevin Durant have anything left to say or do? (image by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) |
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| Once again, Jason Kidd made some big plays down the stretch (image by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) |
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| Jason Terry came up big off the bench yet again (image by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) |
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| Thabo Sefolosha and the rest of OKC are left to ponder what happened (image by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) |
Game Recap Video HERE
2 Comment
Great blog bro. Fun to read your stuff. I like your blog title, your concept, your background, everything.
BalasHello Mr. Obiniala! Thanks for the kind words! Spread the word! Here's a toast to all basketball fans (Hoop Nuts)! :)
Balas