Before the 2010-11 playoffs started, not too many people thought Dallas would be the team to represent the Western Conference, and then dethrone the King (I think it's time that we call Lebron something else now, 0-2 in the Finals isn't King-worthy) for their first championship in their 31-year existence. In fact, most NBA writers and correspondents had the Portland Trail Blazers knocking out the Dallas Mavericks in the first round. (I admit, I thought Portland was going to send Dallas fishing too.) And why wouldn't they write off the Mavericks, because ever since they blew a 13-point lead in the 4th quarter of game three against the Miami Heat in the 2006 Finals, they were a franchise that was known for choking in the playoffs. In 2007, they had the best record in the NBA winning 67 games, and yet they still lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Golden State Warriors, who were the eighth-seed in the playoffs. (This was the first time that a one-seed lost in the first round of the playoffs since the first round changed to a seven game format in 2003.) During the next three seasons, Dallas was eliminated in the first round two times, and were eliminated in five games in the Conference Semi's in 2009, against the Denver Nuggets. It was understandable why a lot of people did not think the Mavericks were going to be a threat in the Western Conference, because before this post-season started they were known as choke artists in the playoffs, and especially Dirk Nowitzki.
Everyone thought we were going to get the same old Mavericks after they blew a 23 point second half lead against Portland in game four. This is were the Mavericks learned from their past playoff performances, and more importantly Dirk Nowitzki. Nowitzki finally learned this post-season that he has to be more of a leader on the court, do you ever remember Nowitzki yelling at his teammates in the playoffs before this year. Nowitzki put the Mavericks on his back against Portland in game five, and led the way scoring a game high 25 points, in route of a 93-82 victory. Then, in game six on the road, Nowitzki made sure they would not have to go back to Dallas for a game seven, dropping in a game high 33 points and also grabbing 11 boards to knock off the Blazers 103-96. Nowitzki led the way for the Mavericks averaging 27.3 points per game and grabbing 7.8 rebounds. In years past, I do not know if Dallas would have been resilient enough to bounce back after blowing a 23 point lead in game four. Look at what happened to this team after blowing a 13 point lead in the fourth quarter in game three of the NBA Finals in 2006, they lost the next three games following that game, and who got all of the blame-Dirk Nowitzki. Nowitzki had 12 seasons of failing and coming up short before this post-season and I think all of those past loses for Nowitzki and the Mavericks played a key role in the playoffs, because they did not want to go through what they have been going through their entire NBA careers. (No Maverick player had ever won a championship before this season.)
The next round is were Dirk Nowitzki started to cement his legacy. The two-time defending World Champion Los Angeles Lakers were in the Dallas Mavericks way. In years past, the Mavericks would have been defeated before the series even got started, but this year was different for Dallas. Everyone thought the Lakers were going to run away with game one, maintaining a 16 point lead in the third quarter. However, the Mavericks thought otherwise and battled back and took their first lead in the second half, when Nowitzki made both free throws with 19 seconds left to take a 95-94 lead. Maybe, this was destiny for Dallas because the best closer in the game, Kobe Bryant, turned the ball over when the Lakers were nursing a one point lead, then missed a three to win the game as time expired. Nowitzki carried the load in game one scoring 28 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. If Dallas loses this game, who knows, maybe the 2011 playoffs would have had a different outcome because this single victory gave the Mavericks the confidence they were lacking in years past. They rode this momentum into game two, and just like that they were up 2-0 on the two time defending NBA Champions, and doing this in the Lakers backyard. Once again, in game three we saw true greatness from Dirk Nowitzki. The Lakers were up by eight points with 7:35 left in the fourth quarter, and this is were Nowitzki put his team on his back and ensured Dallas they were not going to let the defending champs get back into the series. In the final 7:35, Nowitzki scored nine of his game high 32 points, including a two-point field goal with 1:23 left to give the Mavericks a 93-91 lead, and Dallas never looked back after that bucket. Game four, the Lakers never even showed up and Dallas won easily to send the two time defending champs home. A lot of people thought this series would be a sweep, they just got the two teams mixed up. In the Conference Semi's, Nowitzki averaged 25.5 points a game and 9.3 rebounds, but more importantly shot 57% from the floor, and a ridiculous 73% from 3-point range. If that is not efficient, I don't know what is.
Then, Nowitzki did not think that was that efficient, and dropped in 48 points on the Oklahoma City Thunder in game one of the Western Conference Finals. The craziest part about his 48 points was he did it on only 15 shots. Nowitzki went 12-15 from the field, and a ridiculous 24-24 from the free throw line. (The 24-24 from the free throw line is an NBA post-season record in a game with the most makes without a miss.) This was one of the most efficient games in playoff history, if not the most efficient playoff game ever. Despite Nowitzki's 29 points in game two, the Thunder became the first team in the playoffs to knock off Dallas at home. This was the first time the Mavericks had not been up 2-0 in the 2011 playoffs, but this was not a problem for the new resilient Mavericks team. Dallas never looked back, and won the next three games against the Thunder. Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant hit a 3 point shot in game four with 5:03 remaining in the fourth quarter to give the Thunder a 99-84 point lead, and yet again everyone was thinking this series was about to be tied 2-2, except for the Mavericks. Nowitzki scored 12 points after the 5:03 mark in the fourth quarter to rally his team to tie up the score 101-101 and send the game to overtime. (Did I mention Nowitzki made the Mavericks last four field-goals and hit two free-throws to tie up the game with six seconds remaining.) Dallas rode that momentum into overtime and Dallas beat the Thunder in Oklahoma City for the second straight game. Also, Nowitzki had his second 40 point game in the series scoring exactly 40 points, nothing like game one though, because he missed eight shots on 20 attempts and missed one free-throw in 15 attempts. Man, this guy is great! And, people stop comparing him to Larry Bird! Bird is one of a type just like Nowitzki is one of a type. There will never be another Larry Bird and there will never be another Dirk Nowitzki (I'll save this discussion for another time). Furthermore, in game five, Dallas had to overcome a fourth quarter deficit, yet again, and guess who led the way-Dirk Nowitzki. With 5:48 left in the game Oklahoma City were up 90-83, and Nowitzki made sure that the Thunder were not going to gain any momentum in the series. Nowitzki scored seven points in the final six minutes, including a go ahead 3-point bucket with 1:14 left in the game to give Dallas a 95-94 lead. Nowitzki was ridiculous in this series averaging 32.2 points per game, 5.8 rebounds, and shot 55% from the field, and a ridiculous 97% from the free-throw line making 59 out of 61 free-throws. Now, the Dallas Mavericks found themselves in familiar territory, a re-match with the Miami Heat for all the marbles, except this time around there was no Shaq, but there was some other guy named Lebron James. (You might have heard of him, you know the guy that hates poor people.)
Before we get into the NBA Finals, I just want you to remember one thing D'wyane Wade said about Dirk Nowitzki after the 2006 NBA Finals-"Dallas lost because Dirk (Nowitzki) wasn't the leader he's supposed to be in the closing moments." And this whole series people always were saying what Lebron James said and making a story out of it, when it really should have been what his partner in crime was saying. If you pay close attention to the whole coughing scenario that Wade and James did, look at who starts the whole thing, not Lebron James, it was D'wyane Wade. James gets all the flack for everything he says off the court, and yet last time I checked D'wyane Wade was also celebrating the Heat pre-season celebration on stage, but yet we always mention James as being the guy in charge. What Wade said after the 2006 Finals is what fueled Dirk Nowitzki's historic playoff performance, and the whole coughing situation with Wade is what fired up Nowitzki's teammates to make sure they were not going to lose to this childish and immature team, that calls themselves the Miami Heat. (You know the team that celebrated winning it all before they ever stepped on the court together.) Furthermore, lets take a closer glimpse at what happened in the re-match of the 2006 NBA Finals.
Both teams had a tough road to get to the NBA Finals, the Mavericks had to go through a tough, gritty squad in Portland, then the two-time defending champs and some guy named Kobe Bryant, then a tough young team with two superstars in the Thunder. The Heat on the other hand, had an easy first round series against a talented young Sixers team, then had to go through the reigning Eastern Conference champs, then against the team who had the best record in the NBA, the best defense in the NBA, oh and did I mention the MVP of the regular season.
After game one, it played out like most NBA fans thought it would, the Miami Heat were too athletic for the oldest team in the 2011 playoffs and pulled away in the fourth quarter, winning 92-84. Game two went just like game one, at least for the first 41:30 of the game. Miami was up 88-73 after a Wade 3-point shot from the baseline, and Miami did what they do best : Celebrate before they have earned anything, with Lebron James playfully punching Wade in his chest and Wade holding up his hand for a good 10 seconds in front of the Dallas bench. This single play helped fuel the Mavericks to beat Miami, because they not only wanted it for themselves, but more importantly, they did not want to let the rest of the NBA down to let a team like Miami celebrate all off-season long, because it was almost a slap in the face the way Miami had celebrated like they won the whole thing before they earned it. This scene of immaturity and cockiness is what help fuel the Maverick players, and in the final 6:30 of game two, the whole series changed. Jason Terry was the guy who got Dallas going in the final six minutes of the game, but yet again, Dirk Nowitzki was the guy who closed out game two. Nowitzki had not scored a single point in the fourth quarter until the 2:44 mark when he hit a 18 foot jumper to cut the Miami deficit to 90-88. Then, Nowitzki hit a lay-up with 57 seconds left to tie it up at 90-90. Then, you know that guy that said Nowitzki was not the leader he was suppose to be after the 2006 Finals (Wade) missed a three and Dallas grabbed the rebound. Nowitzki got the ball on top of the key and buried a 25 foot three-pointer to give Dallas their first lead in the second half at 93-90, with 26 seconds remaining. After Chalmers tied the game with a three of his own, it was time for the best closer in the 2011 playoffs to hit his biggest shot of his career. Nowitzki drove to the lane and put up the left-handed lay-up off the glass and gave the Mavericks the lead for good with three seconds left, as Dallas tied up the series 1-1. Nowitzki scored the last nine points of the game for the Mavericks, and ended up scoring 24 points in game two and grabbing 11 rebounds. Also, Dallas did something that Philadelphia, Boston, and Chicago could not do in the playoffs, win in Miami.
As the series moved to Dallas, most people still felt that the Miami Heat were going to win the series. In game three, Dirk Nowitzki was the only guy who showed up for Dallas scoring 34 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, but Nowitzki needed 36 points as he missed a 20-footer from straight away as time expired to tie the game. The Mavericks knew they had to win games four and five, and Dirk Nowitzki knew he was going to have to be the guy who led the way. As the fourth quarter started in game four the Heat were up 67-65 and Miami scored the first five points of the fourth and were up 72-65. After Jason Terry hit back to back shots to cut the lead down to three points, it was time for Nowitzki to do what he has done the entire post-season. Nowitzki scored 10 points in the final nine minutes to lead the way for the Mavericks and Dallas tied up the series 2-2. Nowitzki scored 10 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter, and no player in the playoffs averaged more points in the fourth quarter than Nowitzki. Oh, and did I mention he was playing this game with a sinus infection and was drained mentally and physically playing with a 101 degree fever. Game five was the biggest game for the Mavericks in the series, because they knew it would be extremely difficult to win two games in a row in Miami. With the score 100-100 with 2:45 remaining in the fourth quarter, Nowitzki swished a shot to give Dallas the lead for good. Nowitzki finished the biggest game of his career with 29 points, making 9-18 field goals, and made all 10 of his free-throws. Dallas was one game away from doing something they have never done in their 31-year history, and they knew game six was the game they needed to get.
Miami came out on fire in game six, running out to a 20-11 lead, and Lebron James started the game 4-4 from the field with nine early points, but luckily for Dallas that was pretty much all James did. Dallas showed their resiliency once again, and battled back to end the first quarter with a five point lead. At halftime, Dallas maintained a 53-51 lead, but more importantly, the Mavericks had a two point lead with their star, Nowitzki, struggling, shooting 1-12 in the first half. Nowitzki had got this team so far and the one game he was struggling the rest of the team knew they had to step up and make some big time shots, which they did. After watching the first half, I got the feeling that this was going to be the last game of the 2010-11 season, because this was a game Miami should have been up by double-digits, and not down by two points at halftime with Nowitzki missing 11 of his 12 shots. Miami clearly did not want it as bad as the Dallas Mavericks did. As the third quarter started, the Heat took a 56-55 lead after a Bosh jumper with 10:56 left in the third quarter, but little did Miami know this would be their last lead in the game. Nowitzki battled back and had a good second half going 8-15 from the floor and made huge baskets in the fourth quarter to ice the game. In the fourth, Nowitzki made five of his final six shots, and when Nowitzki drained a two point jumper with 2:27 remaining to give Dallas a ten point lead, he gave himself a fist pump knowing that this was the exclamation point in bringing a championship back home to Dallas. Most importantly, Nowitzki not only earned the respect from the Miami Heat, but from the rest of the NBA to show the world that he is among the league's best. D'Wyane Wade was definitely not thinking the same thing about Nowitzki after the 2006 Finals, this time he was probably thinking the same thing about his teammate, Lebron James. The best scene from it all towards the end of the game was watching Nowitzki run into the locker room with two seconds remaining because he did not want the world to see him cry in joy as he finally achieved his childhood dream. The NBA Finals MVP, Nowitzki, averaged 26 points a game, 9.6 rebounds, made 45-46 free-throws, and in the fourth quarter of the six games in the NBA Finals, he scored as many points as Lebron James and D'Wyane Wade combined (62). Also, Nowitzki had four double-doubles in the NBA Finals and ended up with seven double-doubles in the 2011 playoffs. Nowitzki became the first European player to ever be named Finals MVP, and is clearly the best player from another country to ever play the game.
During an off-season when we witnessed "The Decision," because Lebron James did not think he could bring a championship by himself to the city of Cleveland, Dirk Nowitzki felt he owed the city of Dallas something and he re-signed with the Mavericks, and I guess you could say it paid off. Nowitzki was loyal to his fans and his owner, even though he could have elected to sign somewhere else. Also, Nowitzki elected to take less money so the team could sign Brenden Haywood to a contract extension, and also bring in Tyson Chandler. Chandler was the biggest off-season move for the Mavericks because he changed the team that was considered soft into a team that had toughness, and gave them that swagger that they lacked in years past. Nowitzki has always been a guy that does not do his talking with his mouth, but yet, with his actions and the way he plays the game. During the 2011 playoffs, Nowitzki averaged 27.7 points per game, 8.2 rebounds, shot 48 % from the field, shot 46 % from 3-point range, and 94 % from the free-throw line (an NBA playoff record with at least 50 free-throw attempts). Nowitzki did it all in the 2011 playoffs, and carried the Mavericks all the way to greatness. This was truly one of the best playoff performance in NBA history, and ranks up there with the playoffs that Michael Jordan had. Nowitzki was clearly the best player in the 2011 NBA playoffs and outplayed the likes of Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, D'Wyane Wade, Kevin Durant, LaMarcus Aldridge, and many other superstars. Dirk Nowitzki cemented his place among the top 20 players to ever play the game, and also now has to be considered as one of the top five players currently in the NBA. This guy put a team, a city, and the country on his back to knock off the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals, and did it like he had no pressure on him. Dirk Nowitzki is clearly the best European player to ever lace them up on the hardware. He has to be considered the best power forward in the game. We will never see another guy like Dirk Nowitzki, a seven footer who shoots like a guard, and has an unguardable fade away jumper off one foot. Once again, the hero came up on top, and it looks like Batman can hold off the villains to keep Gotham safe, for at least one more year.
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