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Raptors attempt to extend NBA champs’ winless… |
The Dallas Mavericks aren’t the National Basketball Association’s only winless team, but they are the only franchise without a victory and a 2011 championship banner hanging above their home court. Off to the worst start by a defending champion in 40 years, the Mavericks again try to pick up their first win Friday (7:30 p.m. CT) and bounce back from a heartbreaking defeat against the Toronto Raptors. Dallas (0-3) won the franchise’s first title with 105-95 win over Miami on June 12, and that could end up being the Mavericks’ last win of the 2011 calendar year if they don’t defeat the visiting Raptors (1-1). While Dallas looked sluggish in its first two games, trailing by as many as 35 points against the Heat and by as much as 33 against Denver, a win was well within reach Thursday against Oklahoma City. The Mavericks led by 12 early and a three-pointer by Vince Carter with 1.4 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter put Dallas up by one. The Thunder responded with a deep three-pointer by Kevin Durant at the buzzer, sending the Mavericks to a 104-102 loss. With the defeat, Dallas became the first defending champion to start 0-3 since the Boston Celtics lost four straight in 1969-70. While their disappointing start is making headlines, the Mavericks are trying not to pay attention. “I think the more we go out and just play the game itself more, good things happen on the court,” Shawn Marion said. “We’ve got to just go out there and stop worrying about other things and just go out there and just play the game and just play hard.” The Mavericks are off to their worst start since opening 0-4 in 2006-07. They went on to win an NBA-best and franchise-record 67 games that season, but rebounding from a slow start could be more difficult this year because of the lockout and significant roster turnover. Dallas is replacing two key contributors from last season’s team in Tyson Chandler and J.J. Barea. Nowitzki still go-to manThe Mavericks’ offence obviously still revolves around Dirk Nowitzki, and he is coming off his best performance of the season, finishing with 29 points and 10 rebounds. Nowitzki had 31 points and 13 rebounds in a 114-96 victory in Toronto on Feb. 27, but a sprained right knee kept him out of the first meeting, an 84-76 loss, snapping the Mavericks’ 10-game home winning streak in the series. The Raptors arrive in Dallas to open a three-game trip after losing to Indiana 90-85 on Wednesday. DeMar DeRozan scored 16 of his game-high 22 points in the fourth quarter to help Toronto trim a 14-point, fourth-period deficit to two, but it wasn’t enough. DeRozan also played well down the stretch in Monday’s 104-96 win over Cleveland, scoring nine of his 15 points in the final period. Toronto coach Dwane Casey, an assistant with the Mavericks the last three seasons, is thrilled with DeRozan’s late-game exploits, but would also like to see him be more assertive early. “Start off aggressive, that’s one thing I need to do,” DeRozan said. “Just got to get off to a better start, but I love the fourth quarter. It’s fun to me.” Toronto has been strong defensively in its first two games, although it hasn’t faced the stiffest competition. It held the Pacers to 39.5 per cent shooting after limiting the Cavaliers to 41.2 per cent. “We got the concept of the defence and we know what we got to do and when we have to do it,” Andrea Bargnani said. “The effort is there.” Dallas’ defence has been a big reason for its early struggles. It is allowing an average of 108.0 points on 51.8 per cent shooting. Leave your comments on the news below. Posted in nba, Uncategorized | Comments Off
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NBA Dallas Mavericks January 2012 National and… |
With the NBA season finally underway, Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, and newly acquired Lamar Odom are on a quest to lead the Dallas Mavericks to an NBA championship repeat in this shortened 66-game season. Luckily Mavs fans in Dallas and across the country can watch each game on television. Check with your service provider for channel listings in your area. Note: All start times Central January 2012 Sun 1, Dallas Mavericks at Minnesota Timberwolves, 6 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Mon 2, Oklahoma City Thunder at Dallas Mavericks, 7:30 p.m. (FSSW, NBATV) Wed 4, Phoenix Suns at Dallas Mavericks, 7:30 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Thu 5, Dallas Mavericks at San Antonio Spurs, 7:30 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Sat 7, New Orleans Hornets at Dallas Mavericks, 8 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Tue 10, Dallas Mavericks at Detroit Pistons, 6:30 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Wed 11, Dallas Mavericks at Boston Celtics, 7 p.m. (FSSW, ESPN) Fri 13, Milwaukee Bucks at Dallas Mavericks, 7:30 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Sat 14, Sacramento Kings at Dallas Mavericks, 8 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Mon 16, Dallas Mavericks at Los Angeles Lakers, 9:30 p.m. (TNT) Wed 18, Dallas Mavericks at Los Angeles Clippers, 9:30 p.m. (FSSW, ESPN) Thu 19, Dallas Mavericks at Utah Jazz, 9:30 p.m. (TNT) Sat 21, Dallas Mavericks at New Orleans Hornets, 7 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Mon 23, Phoenix Suns at Dallas Mavericks, 7:30 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Wed 25, Minnesota Timberwolves at Dallas Mavericks, 7:30 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Fri 27, Utah Jazz at Dallas Mavericks, 7:30 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Sun 29, San Antonio Spurs at Dallas Mavericks, 5:30 p.m. (FSSW, ESPN) Mon 30, Dallas Mavericks at Phoenix Suns, 8 p.m. (FSSW, NBA LP) Sources: All data provided by NBA.com Paul Rados is a Cleveland based freelance sportswriter and Featured Contributor for the Yahoo! Contributor Network. Follow him on Twitter @PSRados or leave him a message on Facebook. For a complete look at his freelance work please visit his Blog. Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content. Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news. |
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Raptors-Mavericks Preview |
The Dallas Mavericks aren’t the NBA’s only winless team, but they are the Off to the worst start by a defending champion in 40 years, the Mavericks Dallas (0-3) won the franchise’s first title with 105-95 win over Miami on While Dallas looked sluggish in its first two games, trailing by as many as The Mavericks led by 12 early and a 3-pointer by Vince Carter with 1.4 With the defeat, Dallas became the first defending champion to start 0-3 “I think the more we go out and just play the game itself more, good things “We’ve got to just go out there and stop worrying about other things and The Mavericks are off to their worst start since opening 0-4 in 2006-07. The Mavericks’ offense obviously still revolves around Dirk Nowitzki, and he Nowitzki had 31 points and 13 rebounds in a 114-96 victory in Toronto on The Raptors arrive in Dallas to open a three-game trip after losing to DeMar DeRozan scored 16 of his game-high 22 points in the fourth quarter to Toronto coach Dwane Casey, an assistant with the Mavericks the last three “Start off aggressive, that’s one thing I need to do,” DeRozan said. “Just Toronto has been strong defensively in its first two games, although it “We got the concept of the defense and we know what we got to do and when we Dallas’ defense has been a big reason for its early struggles. It is Feel free to leave your comments below. |
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Durant buzzer-beater keeps Thunder perfect |
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS OKLAHOMA CITY — Kevin Durant thought he might have just given away a victory and let the Dallas Mavericks steal another one in heartbreaking fashion. Then he found a way to take it right back. Durant scored 30 points and hit a three-pointer at the final buzzer to lift the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 104-102 win against Dallas on Thursday night in a rematch of last season’s Western Conference finals. “As a kid, of course you dream about hitting a game-winning shot in the NBA,” said Durant, who has hit two other game-winners at the buzzer in his five seasons. “It’s a dream come true.” The Thunder let Dallas wipe away a five-point deficit in the final 46 seconds to go ahead on Vince Carter’s three-pointer with 1.4 seconds remaining. That was just enough time for Thabo Sefolosha to get the ball to Durant, who drilled a three from the right wing that improved his team to 4-0. “It was crazy, a crazy course of events,” Durant said. “When two tough teams always go at it, it always comes down to the last play.” Dirk Nowitzki had 29 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Mavericks, whose title defence is off to a 0-3 start. Dallas had been blown out in its first two losses against Miami and Denver before letting a close one slip away. “I think the more we go out and just play the game itself more, good things happen on the court,” Shawn Marion said. “We’ve got to just go out there and stop worrying about other things and just go out there and just play the game and just play hard.” Russell Westbrook had 16 points in his second straight subpar performance, but he made up for it with a few critical plays down the stretch. He started the game 3 for 11 with seven turnovers before getting a longer-than-usual benching in favour of Eric Maynor. He returned when the game got close midway through the fourth quarter, providing a momentary lead with a two-handed breakaway dunk that turned into a three-point play. He followed that with a 17-footer from the right wing for a 96-93 lead, but the Mavericks — who made it a habit to stage late comebacks against Oklahoma City in last season’s West finals — had a few tricks left. Nowitzki tied it at 96 with a three-pointer but, after a Durant jumper, was called for a technical foul for arguing an offensive foul. Durant hit that foul shot and Westbrook added another jumper from the right elbow to put Oklahoma City up 101-96 with 46 seconds left. Jason Terry hit a three-pointer to get Dallas within two. Durant then missed a three-pointer at the other end and Serge Ibaka missed both of his free throws after getting fouled on an offensive rebound. .Nowitzki pitched it back to Carter for the go-ahead three, and Durant blamed himself for going for a block against Nowitzki and leaving Carter open. Durant returned to the bench for a timeout, with rookie Reggie Jackson screaming encouragement that he was going to hit the game-winner. “I just tried to be confident, tell myself I could make it and luckily I did,” Durant said. “It’s special to hit a game-winner,” he added. “The season’s still young. To beat the champs in the early season is always pretty cool, but we’ve got to move on and get ready for the next game.” Ibaka finished with 16 points, eight rebounds and three blocks for Oklahoma City. Terry had 16 points and nine assists, and Delonte West scored 15 for the Mavericks. That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow. |
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Buzzer-beating 3 by Durant keeps Thunder perfect… |
Durant scored 30 points and hit a 3-pointer at the final buzzer to lift the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 104-102 win against Dallas on Thursday night in a rematch of last season’s Western Conference finals. “As a kid, of course you dream about hitting a game-winning shot in the NBA,” said Durant, who has hit two other game-winners at the buzzer in his five seasons. “It’s a dream come true.” The Thunder let Dallas wipe away a five-point deficit in the final 46 seconds to go ahead on Vince Carter’s 3-pointer with 1.4 seconds remaining. That was just enough time for Thabo Sefolosha to get the ball to Durant, who drilled a 3 from the right wing that improved his team to 4-0. “It was crazy, a crazy course of events,” Durant said. “When two tough teams always go at it, it always comes down to the last play.” Dirk Nowitzki had 29 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Mavericks, whose title defense is off to a 0-3 start. Dallas had been blown out in its first two losses against Miami and Denver before letting a close one slip away. “I think the more we go out and just play the game itself more, good things happen on the court,” Shawn Marion said. “We’ve got to just go out there and stop worrying about other things and just go out there and just play the game and just play hard.” Russell Westbrook had 16 points in his second straight subpar performance, but he made up for it with a few critical plays down the stretch. He started the game 3 for 11 with seven turnovers before getting a longer-than-usual benching in favor of Eric Maynor. He returned when the game got close midway through the fourth quarter, providing a momentary lead with a two-handed breakaway dunk that turned into a three-point play. He followed that with a 17-footer from the right wing for a 96-93 lead, but the Mavericks — who made it a habit to stage late comebacks against Oklahoma City in last season’s West finals — had a few tricks left. Nowitzki tied it at 96 with a 3-pointer but, after a Durant jumper, was called for a technical foul for arguing an offensive foul. Durant hit that foul shot and Westbrook added another jumper from the right elbow to put Oklahoma City up 101-96 with 46 seconds left Jason Terry hit a 3-pointer to get Dallas within two. Durant then missed a 3-pointer at the other end and Serge Ibaka missed both of his free throws after getting fouled on an offensive rebound. Nowitzki pitched it back to Carter for the go-ahead 3, and Durant blamed himself for going for a block against Nowitzki and leaving Carter open. Durant returned to the bench for a timeout, with rookie Reggie Jackson screaming encouragement that he was going to hit the game-winner. “I just tried to be confident, tell myself I could make it and luckily I did,” Durant said. “It’s special to hit a game-winner,” he added. “The season’s still young. To beat the champs in the early season is always pretty cool, but we’ve got to move on and get ready for the next game.” Ibaka finished with 16 points, eight rebounds and three blocks for Oklahoma City. Terry had 16 points and nine assists, and Delonte West scored 15 for the Mavericks. Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news. |
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