Dirk Nowitzki Should Take His Gratitude to South Beach

LeBron James took his talents to South Beach last summer. This summer, Dirk Nowitzki should send a “thank you” card there.

Four games in to the 2011 NBA Finals, the series is tied, 2-2. In Game 2 and Game 4, the Mavericks trailed by several possessions in the fourth quarter. Both times, the Heat were held to less than 10 points for the remainder of the game after the Mavericks began to rally. Both times, Dirk Nowitzki rose above to snatch a victory for his team from the jaws of defeat. In Game 2, he rose above the Heat defense. Last night, he rose above an elevated body temperature, playing with a fever over 100 degrees.

Dirk caught every breath he could in between the whistles. 1

ONCE, TWICE, THREE TIMES
As I have said so often, once is a coincidence, twice is a pattern, and three times is a trend. This is now the third time in the Mavericks past six games in which they have faced a fourth quarter deficit that appeared too wide to close and the Mavericks shut down their opponent defensively while Nowitzki made, seemingly, every shot from everywhere on the court to close the gap and eventually win the game. This is a trend.

Last night was the first game in the series. Among the vast majority of the NBA’s other 28 teams available as opponents, the Heat, nine times out of ten, hold on to a 15 point and 9 point fourth quarter lead to win Games 2 and 4, respectively. Had the Heat won those games, this series would be over and the Heat would be champs.

In the same breath, one could argue that if the Mavericks were in a series with another team, under the same circumstances in the fourth quarter, this series would be over and the Mavs could have spent the offseason with the stain of being swept from the playoffs. The Heat, collectively, only have the man in the mirror to blame for the Heat not being NBA champions. LeBron James’ 8 point performance last night, in spite of his 9 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 steals, was not enough to put the Mavericks, or any NBA team, away. The Heat’s defense was not aggressive enough in the fourth quarter to slam the door on a team with a player like Dirk Nowitzki, who can hit any open (and even “not so open”) shot from anywhere at any time. The Heat did not take care of the basketball well enough to deny the Mavericks the opportunity to score enough points to take the lead in the fourth quarter. The Heat can only point to “the Heat” for being responsible for the final result of every game in this series.

"Should we help them out a little more?" 2

WILL THE MAVERICKS BE TAKING THEIR CHAMPAGNE TO SOUTH BEACH?

Dirk Nowitzki is a great player. If the Mavericks can win two more games in this series, a tall order with Game 6 being played in Miami, Nowitzki will be the Most Valuable Player of the series. Make no mistake, however, that Nowitski’s impressive accomplishments would not be possible without a willing opponent. If Dallas does, in fact, earn championship rings from this series, Dirk and his teammates, in addition to thanking God, their families, and the fans, should thank the Miami Heat for making the accomplishment possible.

If the Mavericks win, they should at least allow the Heat to touch the trophy. After all, they contributed, too. 3

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1) Image from dallas.sbnation.com
2) Image from NBC Sports
3) Image from point-spreads.com