NBA Game of the Week for the Week of December 26-January 1

The first full week of the 2011-2012 NBA season includes 60 games that will help the season get into full swing. All thirty teams in the league will play at least three games this week and most teams will play four.

The young, maturing Oklahoma City Thunder will host the defending NBA Champion Dallas Mavericks in this week’s NBA Game of the Week. When the Mavericks and Thunder last met, a trip to the 2011 NBA Finals was at stake.

This game alone will not determine the ultimate fate of either of these teams this year. But it can serve as a gauge. Oklahoma City can get an idea of just how much they have grown since losing Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals to Dallas last season. The Mavericks can use the game to help them figure out how new additions Vince Carter, Lamar Odom and Delonte West can be used to help fill in the void left by the departures of J.J. Barea and Tyson Chandler.

(All statistics and records are through December 25)

Thursday, December 29, Dallas Mavericks (0-1) at Oklahoma City Thunder (1-0), 8:00 p.m. ET on TNT

Unlike the Mavericks, Oklahoma City had an uneventful offseason personnel wise. The Thunder maintained their core and are hoping that their growth and cohesiveness will help them in an abbreviated 66-game season.

Both the Mavericks and Thunder played on Christmas Day and their performances could not have been more different. After unveiling their championship banner, the Dallas Mavericks were totally outplayed by the Miami Heat in their season opener. The final score of 105-94 is not indicative of how much of a blowout this game really was. Dallas never held a lead in the game and at one point the defending champions trailed the Heat 78-43.

Two-time scoring champion Kevin Durant opened the season with an even 30 points in Oklahoma City’s 97-89 victory over the Orlando Magic. Defensively, the Thunder hounded the Magic into 18 turnovers and held them to 37 percent shooting from the field.

If the Mavericks want to defeat the Thunder on Thursday, they will have to play with much more intensity than they did against the Heat. After their flat performance on Sunday, the defending NBA champions will have to play with some championship pride to get a victory over the maturing Oklahoma City Thunder.

Mark is a lifelong fan of the NBA who has loved the game of basketball ever since his first trip to an NBA arena. Mark has watched more basketball games than anyone can count and has more than 100 articles about the NBA published on the internet. Mark also shares his random NBA musings on RandomNBAFan.com.

Information from ESPN.com’s NBA Schedule, Miami Heat vs. Dallas Mavericks—Play By Play—December 25, 2011 and Orlando Magic vs. Oklahoma City Thunder—Box Score—December 25, 2011 was used for this article.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

What are your opinions.

Despite a 62-win season and a determined expectation for more success, hoop pundits are ranking the Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder ahead of the Chicago Bulls in preseason power polls.

Here’s quick rundown of power polls that have been released so far.

CBS Sports: 1 – Heat; 2 – Thunder; 3 – Bulls; 4 – Mavericks; 5 – Lakers.

Fox Sports: 1 – Heat; 2 – Mavericks; 3 – Thunder; 4 – Bulls; 5 – Celtics.

NBA.com: 1 – Heat; 2 – Mavericks; 3 – Thunder; 4 – Bulls; 5 – Spurs.

NBC Sports: 1 – Mavericks; 2 – Heat; 3 – Bulls; 4 – Thunder; 5 – Lakers.

Sports Illustrated: 1 – Heat; 2 – Thunder; 3 – Mavericks; 4 – Bulls; 5 – Nuggets.

So hoop pundits generally agree that the NBA’s top four teams this season are likely to include the Bulls, Heat, Mavs and Thunder.

That’s a pretty good list, although, much like the experts, I’m having a hard time figuring out who that fifth team might be. The Celtics and Spurs are too old to withstand the rigors of the condensed 66-game schedule, and it seems like the Lakers are in a state of flux; maybe a New York or Memphis, or some other completely unexpected team, could sneak into the top 5.

I’m also not sure the Mavs will be as good as everyone is expecting.

If I were developing my own power poll, here’s how my rankings would look: 1 – Bulls; 2 – Thunder; 3 – Heat; 4 – Mavericks; 5 – Knicks/Grizzlies/???.

Be all of that as it may, the across-the-board ranking of the Bulls at no better than #3 or #4 is difficult to understand.

The Bulls are basically the same team as last year’s 62-win team, but with one big difference: They went out and got the shooting guard they so desperately needed. While it’s too early to know what the success of that acquisition might be, the Derrick Rose-Rip Hamilton tandem sure looked good in the team’s final exhibition game.

Meanwhile, the Miami Heat added Shane Battier and, lol, Eddie Curry, while the Mavs completely revamped their lineup. Only the Thunder remains intact from last season – all 10 members from last year’s rotation return – when they were pretty darned good.

Time will tell if the preseason power polls were accurate, but one thing is for sure: The Bulls will be in the thick of things, and are likely to exceed the pundits’ preseason power poll rankings.

Notes: Memo to whoever’s in charge of ESPN’s NBA home page – get rid of the Miami Heat Index already. What pathetic pandering…..Anyone watch the Heat-Magic game last night? The Magic looked a lot better than I expected, the Heat, not so much…..Jannero Pargo, who rode the pine for the Bulls last year after an earlier three-year stint with the team, signed with the Atlanta Hawks, while the Detroit Pistons are rumored to be interested in Keith Bogans…..K.C. Johnson’s Bulls Mailbag has returned for the season!

Sources: Power Rankings: Heat start at top, but it’s a new NBA from there, CBSSports.com; NBA preseason power rankings, Fox Sports; NBA Power Rankings: Mavericks start out season on top, NBC Sports/ProBasketballTalk; After preseason, Heat are on top, NBA.com; Heat, Thunder top preseason heap, Sports Illustrated.

YCN featured sports contributor Steve Merritt is – for better or worse – a lifelong Chicago Bulls, Bears and Cubs fan. Follow the Bulls’ 2011-12 season from a die-hard fan’s perspective on his blog, A Fan’s Take: The 2011-12 Chicago Bulls.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

Comment Below!.

DALLAS — Dirk Nowitzki is back for the NBA champion Dallas Mavericks. The supporting cast has a new look.

Tyson Chandler, J.J. Barea and Caron Butler are gone. But the front office has added Lamar Odom and Vince Carter to plug some of the holes, along with backup guard Delonte West. In a 66-game season, there is no telling how the older Mavericks will fare but the veterans know that making the playoffs will give them a shot at defending the franchise’s first title.

Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news.

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Dallas Mavericks guard Jose Juan Barea and Miami Heat point guard Carlos Arroyo will play for Puerto Rico at this month’s Pan American Games.

The vice president of Puerto Rico’s Basketball Federation says the two players will start practicing with the national team next week.

Ricardo Carrillo tells the Associated Press that Daniel Santiago also will join the team Friday.

The Pan American Games will be held in Guadalajara, Mexico, and feature athletes from 42 countries.

Leave any suggestions in the comment box.

A Miami Heat team in it’s first season together went all the way to the NBA finals before losing to a Dallas Mavericks team that found it’s stride after years together. That chemistry was part of the difference in that series.

Watching the Heat lose was something fans everywhere and Kevin Love savored.

You should know LeBron James says that loss stung. Badly.

He spoke with Hoopshype and said this about the week after the NBA finals.

LJ: It was the worst week I ever had. I hate losing.

What did you do?

LJ: I did nothing. Nothing at all.

LeBron did say that he thought the Heat making it to the finals in their first year together made it a successful season. He said that living in Miami was an adjustment because he’d never lived outside Ohio before. And he gave props to Clevelanders when asked what comes to his mind about that city.

Passionate. Passionate fans who love their sports. Love the Indians, love the Browns, love the Cavaliers… And I have a lot of respect for them.

Okay commenters, have at him.

Leave any suggestions in the comment box.

Dwyane Wade(notes) and the Miami Heat made it to the sixth game of the NBA Finals before succumbing to Dirk Nowitzki(notes) and the Dallas Mavericks. Now, Wade isn’t planning to take a break even if the NBA season isn’t played.

The Associated Press reports that Wade has decided to play somewhere next season, whether it’s in the NBA or not. “I’m going to play basketball this year,” Wade told the AP. “I don’t know where, but I love the game so much that I will play it. And we will figure that out.”

The 29-year-old guard also told the news service that he hasn’t received any international offers yet.

For now, Wade is preparing for the NBA season in case it somehow starts on time, the AP reports: “I’m working into things slowly. Right now I’m taking my time, doing what I do for my body, which might be different than others.”

Don’t forget to follow Scoop du Jour on Twitter or Facebook.

Source: Associated Press

Related: Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat

Gotta run!.

IDG News Service —
His Miami Heat team lost the NBA finals to the Dallas Mavericks last month and now Dwyane Wade is headed back to a Texas court, but not to play basketball.

Instead of facing Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki, Wade is going after currently unknown perpetrators who in recent years hacked a variety of his personal online accounts.

Wade, one of the best players in the National Basketball Association (NBA), named as defendants 50 generic “John Does” in a complaint filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.

Wade filed the civil lawsuit in Texas because a substantial amount of the hacking activity allegedly initiated in the state, where in 2006 Wade led the Miami Heat to its first and only championship, beating the Mavericks.

If it were proven that the alleged hacking was indeed carried out from Texas, it will be interesting to see if part of the motivation was to get back at Wade over the basketball rivalry.

Wade alleges that between 2007 and last month, malicious hackers broke into various of his online accounts, including a Yahoo e-mail account and a Twitter account, and accessed and misused sensitive information and communications contained in them.

Wade is seeking a temporary and permanent injunction forbidding the malicious hackers from further accessing and using any of the compromised personal and business data. He also seeks to recover unspecified damages based on the harm inflicted by the hacking.

The player alleges that the defendants created mayhem after compromising his online accounts, changing account settings, including his password, and using the accounts to impersonate him for malicious purposes, such as threatening and insulting other people, and deceiving them into disclosing confidential information.

Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news.

The Dallas Mavericks defeated
the Miami Heat 112-103 to move within one win of their
first National Basketball Association championship.

Dirk Nowitzki scored 29 points and Dallas went 13-of-
19 on 3-pointers to lead the best-of-seven NBA Finals by
three games to two.

Jason Terry added 21 points and hit two key 3-pointers
in the closing minutes as the Mavericks ended last night’s
game at American Airlines Center in Dallas with a 17-4 run.
Two days earlier, the Mavericks finished with a 21-9 run to
win 86-83.

“It’s just like being out there on the playground
back home in Seattle,” Terry said in a news conference.
“Emulating your idols in the Finals situation, game on the
line. Raise up, knock it down.”

LeBron James scored two points in the fourth quarter
for the Heat, continuing his late-game struggles in this
series. He scored five points in the final period of Game
1, two in each of the next two games and none in Game 4.

After scoring a career playoff low eight points in
Game 4, James had 17 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists
last night for his seventh career playoff triple-double and
first of this year’s postseason.

“A triple-double means absolutely nothing with a
loss,” James told reporters. “I could have made a couple
of more plays for my team.”

Dwyane Wade overcame a hip injury to lead Miami with
23 points and Chris Bosh added 19.

The Mavericks went 20-for-32 on 3-pointers in a 122-86
victory on May 8 that completed a second-round sweep of the
reigning champion Los Angeles Lakers. They were even more
accurate last night — shooting 68 percent from beyond the
3-point arc.

3-Point Shooting

Terry, 33, and 38-year-old Jason Kidd both went 3-for-
5 on 3-pointers. J.J. Barea, at 6 feet (1.83 meters) the
smallest player on the court, went 4-for-5 and Nowitzki hit
his only 3-point attempt.

“He made big shots,” James said of Terry. “He made
some great 3-point shots tonight, with a hand contested in
his face, some of them was open. He’s just aggressive.
We’ve always said that when he plays well they’re very
tough to beat and that’s what he’s done the last two
games.”

It was the first game in the series in which either
team scored 100 or more points.

Return to Miami

Game 6 is set for Miami on June 12. If the Heat win,
they’ll host the decider two days later.

“We didn’t want go to Miami and give them two shots
to close this out,” Nowitzki said at a news conference.
“We’re going in there Sunday swinging, like we did
today.”

The Mavericks led almost the entire first quarter
before Mario Chalmers sank a shot from just inside half
court at the buzzer to give Miami a 31-30 advantage.

Wade bruised his hip with about four minutes left in
the first quarter in a collision with Dallas forward Brian Cardinal, who was trying to take a charge. Wade returned
early in the second quarter and limped for the rest of the
half.

He missed most of the third period and the Mavericks
led 84-79 entering the fourth quarter.

‘No Problem’

“I’ll be good for Game 6,” Wade told reporters. “No
problem at all.”

Allowing the Mavericks to score easy baskets in the
first half gave them the confidence they needed to hit hard
ones late in the game, Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said.

“If you’re given good shots during the course of the
game, you can make tough shots down the stretch,” he said
at a news conference.

To contact the reporters on this story:
Mason Levinson at American Airlines Center in Dallas at
mlevinson@bloomberg.net;
Rob Gloster in San Francisco at
rgloster@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Michael Sillup at msillup@bloomberg.net

What do you guys think about this.

DALLAS – The Dallas Mavericks closed the fourth period on a 14-3 run to beat the Miami Heat 112-103, win Game 5 Thursday night, and pull within one win of their first NBA title.

Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavs with 29 points and LeBron James had a triple-double with 17 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, but scored just two points in the fourth quarter.

The Mavs lead the series 3-2 with Game 6 Sunday in Miami.

Dwyane Wade, playing with a bruised left hip, led the Heat with 23 points.

Third quarter

The Dallas Mavericks used a 10-2 run to build a lead of as many as nine and lead the Miami Heat 84-79 at the end of three quarters.

Heat guard Dwyane Wade didn’t come back into the game out of the halftime break until just under four minutes remained in the quarter. He has a bruised left hip. Three Heat players, LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Mario Chalmers each have 15 points.

The Mavs are being led by Dirk Nowitzki who has 21.

Second quarter

Dirk Nowitzki scored the last six points of the quarter for Dallas Mavericks who lead the Miami Heat 60-57 at halftime.

Chris Bosh leads the Heat with 13 while Dwyane Wade, who returned to the game after a hip bruise, has 11.

Nowitzki had 16 points and Tyson Chandler 11 for the Mavs.

Dallas is shooting 66 percent from the field but is being out-rebounded 18-12.

First quarter

Miami Heat guard Mario Chalmers hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Miami Heat a 31-30 lead after one quarter.

Heat guard Dwyane Wade went to the dressing room late in the quarter after running into the Mavs’ Brian Cardinal and appearing to injury a hip or hand.

Tyson Chandler leads all scorers with nine points. LeBron James is 1 of 4 from the field with four rebounds and three assists. 

Pregame

Brendan Haywood’s sore right hip will keep him inactive for tonight’s Game 5 between the Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat at American Airlines Center.

Mavs Coach Rick Carlisle said before the game that guard Roddy Beaubois would be on the team’s active list.

Carlisle would not release his starting lineup for tonight’s game, as is his custom, until shortly before tip off.

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DALLAS —
Mavericks 86, Heat 83 — Series tied 2-2

A switch in the starting lineup, then a switch of their defense.

The Dallas Mavericks pulled out all the tricks, and that allowed them to pull out an 86-83 victory over the Miami Heat on Tuesday night to even the NBA finals at two games apiece.

Revived by a switch to a zone defense, the Mavericks held the Heat without a field goal for more than 7 minutes in the fourth quarter, rallying from five points down nearly midway through the period.

And on the court during that late run was DeShawn Stevenson, sent to the bench to start the game as Mavs coach Rick Carlisle changed his lineup. Known as a defensive player, Stevenson kept the Mavs close in the first half with 11 points, but was back to his traditional role down the stretch.

(Copyright ©2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow.

Read More: Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat, Miami Heat at Dallas Mavericks, Jun 7, 2011 9:00 PM EDT

The Dallas Mavericks almost erased another double-digit lead in Game 3 of the NBA Finals to come away with the win. But after a made Chris Bosh jumper and a Dirk Nowitzki turnover and miss, the Mavericks now find themselves down 2-1 in the series. If the Mavericks want to even things up and at least give themselves a chance to win this series, they are going to have to make a few different adjustments.

Offense: Stop Trying To Create Transition Chances

Dallas’ turnover problems in Game 2 didn’t really get talked about at length because of the fact that Dallas came back and the Miami Heat ended up playing “Hero Basketball” for the final seven minutes of the game. Most of these turnovers were a result of the Mavericks trying to force the issue and create transition opportunities. The Mavericks cut their turnovers in Game 3 (only turning it over 14 times), but the problem of forcing the basketball and trying to create transition opportunities out of nothing continued to be a problem for Dallas:

One of the tendency teams have when playing a tremendous halfcourt defense like Miami is to say something along the lines of “we need to get out and run, not let them set up their defense.”  However, what makes Miami so special is that they are great at getting back and playing transition defense.  It is becoming more and more apparent that Dallas isn’t comfortable running (look at Peja Stojakovic’s “outlet pass” or J.J. Barea;s hesitance when trying to force a delayed transition opportunity) and trying to create opportunities.  This is what leads to turnovers, so instead of running their stuff (which has done a decent job of getting good looks), the Mavericks are throwing possessions away.

I’m not saying don’t run, when the opportunities are there, you need to take advantage.  However, trying to create opportunities out of nothing just doesn’t work against Miami.  Slow it down and run your offense.

Defense: Don’t Double Wade/James Post Up Opportunities

In Game 3, the Heat scored 13 points on 12 post-up possessions, according to Synergy Sports Technology.  These post-up opportunities can be broken up into two categories, wing post-ups (possessions where Dwyane Wade or LeBron James got the ball on the block) and big post-ups (Chris Bosh and Joel Anthony).  The Heat were wildly successful when posting up their wings, scoring 11 points on just 6 possessions with only one possession not resulting in any points.  The biggest reason for Wade and James’ success is that they were ready for and knew how to handle the double teams that Dallas sent just about every single time:

James got posted up two times (once at the start of the game and once at the start of the second half), and both times it looked like it was a set play designed to take advantage of Dallas’ double team.  The ball would go to LeBron on the post, Joel Anthony would set a pindown on the weakside (once for Mike Bibby and once for Wade) and the result was an open three for Bibby and an open jumper for Bosh after the defense overplayed Wade on the pindown.

While the post-up chances for Wade came more in the flow of the game (compared to James’ set plays), the Mavericks still sent doubles, and the Heat were still ready for these doubles:

On Wade post-ups, the Heat like to use James to enter the basketball. The Heat do this for two reasons. First, if Shawn Marion falls asleep and shades too far off of James, Wade can simply kick it out to James and let him attack (which is what happens on the first possession). Also, it takes away the double team from the man making the entry pass (no team is going to leave James to double the post), forcing the double to come from the weakside. That is what happens on the second play in the video above. The Mavericks double on the pass from the weakside and Wade does a good job of swinging it to the opposite side, and the result is an open jumper for Udonis Haslem.

The only time that Dallas was able to stop a wing post-up was when they allowed Wade’s defender (Jason Kidd) to play him one on one, and then bringing help when Wade commits to his move to the rim:

What happens here is that no double comes and Tyson Chandler helps as Wade attacks the rim.  Wade is forced to double clutch, allowing Kidd to swipe at the basketball, knocking it loose.  

The Heat have done a good job of scouting, noticing that Dallas will send the double team just about every time, and their guys are prepared for it, ready to make the pass out.  You play Miami’s wing posts one-on-one, you not only prevent the kickout, but you also switch things up, and that too can throw Miami off their game on the block.

That’s all for today.

Read More: 2011 nba finals, 2011 nba finals tv schedule, 2011 nba finals schedule, nba finals schedule, Chris Bosh (F – MIA), Jason Terry (G – DAL), Dirk Nowitzki (F – DAL), LeBron James (F – MIA), Dwyane Wade (G – MIA), Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat

The Dallas Mavericks absolutely can’t afford to lose Game 4 of the 2011 NBA Finals. The Miami Heat hold a 2-1 lead in the series and with a win Tuesday would be a virtual lock to win the Larry O’Brien Trophy. The task for the Mavericks is to solve the Heat defense and find a way to get some of their other scorers involved in the game and putting up points.

There’s two ways to look at the series so far if you are a Dallas fan. On the one hand, the Mavericks won a road game and were very much in Game 3 and lost by just two points. On the other hand, all the breaks (and calls) went their way in that third game and they still lost. They won the rebounding (+6) and took 12 more free throws and still didn’t win. The Heat have yet to get a big game from Chris Bosh and they essentially blew Game 2 with their own hubris after taking a big lead late in the fourth quarter.

What’s pretty clear in watching this series is that the Heat have more talent on the floor at crunch time. LeBron James hasn’t had to put up big shooting numbers because the Mavericks don’t have anyone that can guard Dwyane Wade. James has been able to focus his efforts on the defensive end where he’s shut down Jason Terry and at some point in this series, if needed, he’s going to guard Dirk Nowitzki. 

The Heat have lead the majority of this series so far and have yet to play a complete game. If they can bring the right mental focus to Game 4 (as they did in Game 3), they should be able to win Tuesday’s game and essentially end the series. For Dallas to win, their shooters will need to find some other way to get open looks and hit them when they come. Most importantly, Dallas can’t turnover the ball as they’ve done too many times in this series.

Game 4 of the 2011 NBA Finals tips off on Tuesday June 7, 2011 at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT on ABC. Down 2-1 in the series, Dallas needs to play it’s best basketball to avoid a deep hole.

Here’s the full remaining schedule for the 2011 NBA Finals:
Game 5 Thursday June 9, 2011 at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT
Game 6 * Sunday June 12, 2011 at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. PT
Game 7 * Tuesday June 14, 2011 at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT
*If necessary

Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade and LeBron James, right, wait to shoot during a practice session for Game 4 of the NBA Finals basketball game Monday, June 6, 2011, in Dallas. The Heat lead the Dallas Mavericks 2-1 in the series. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Feel free to leave your comments below.

By Tom Ziller

– NBA Contributor

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Jun 7, 2011 – Dirk Nowitzki has written a textbook on comebacks throughout the NBA Playoffs, but for the first time the Dallas Mavericks need a series comeback in the 2011 NBA Finals. The Mavericks, after splitting two in South Beach, fell in Game 3 against the Miami Heat on Sunday, putting Dallas in a precarious position. One more Miami win in Big D in the next two games would give the Heat two chances to close out the championship at home.

In other words, Dallas can survive losing one of the three games scheduled in Texas, but it can’t drop two and reasonably hope to survive. That makes Game 4 on Tuesday (9 p.m. ET, ABC) critical, obviously. All Finals games are critical — it’s the Finals, after all! — but this is where the series hinges on dogfight or desperation.

The Heat defense proved too much to handle for every Maverick but Dirk in Game 3; Nowitzki had a marvelous second half, but got little offensive help and missed a potential game-typing jumper in the closing seconds to hand Miami the win. On the other end, Dallas has played solid defense itself, but has no long-term solution for Dwyane Wade, who has been a killer. DeShawn Stevenson is the preferred defender on Wade, but he’s a minus offensively against normal teams, let alone Miami. That leaves Jason Terry, J.J. Barea or Jason Kidd on Wade. Good luck.

Chris Bosh hit the Game 3 winner for Miami despite a poked eye; he said Monday he feels OK and his vision hasn’t been affected. Brendan Haywood, however, may miss action due to a hip injury. That malady opened the door for seldom-used Frenchman Ian Mahinmi, who suffered the indignity of being crushed by LeBron James on a dunk.

Be sure to see our 2011 NBA Finals hub for full series coverage. For more on the Heat, visit Peninsula Is Mightier. For more on the Mavericks, visit Mavs Moneyball and SB Nation Dallas.

Read More: Dirk Nowitzki (F – DAL), Dwyane Wade (G – MIA), Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat, Miami Heat at Dallas Mavericks, Jun 7, 2011 9:00 PM EDT

Not much else going on in the NBA world today.

Read More: Tyson Chandler (C – DAL), Brendan Haywood (C – DAL), Ian Mahinmi (C – DAL), Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat

The Dallas Mavericks will likely be without reserve center Brendan Haywood when they play the Miami Heat in Game 3 of the 2011 NBA Finals on Sunday night. He is listed as a game-time decision with a strained hip flexor, but the team will prepare as though he will not see the court.

How will the Mavericks compensate if Haywood is unable to play? The 6-foot-11 Ian Mahinmi could see extensive time as Tyson Chandler’s backup, but he averaged less than nine minutes per game in the regular season and 3.1 points. In the postseason, he’s played in just three games.

The alternative is playing with a smaller lineup, but SB Nation Dallas points out what happened to the Mavericks when they did that in Game 2:

[...] the last stretch during which Dallas went without a center was the early part of the fourth quarter in Game two. They found the lead stretched from four to 15 points during those five minutes. They went back to Chandler and immediately began their comeback.

A smaller lineup or the untested Mahinmi, the Mavericks will need someone to step up on defense when Chandler is on the bench.

For full series coverage, check out our Heat vs. Mavericks hub. For more on the Heat, visit Peninsula Is Mightier. For more on the Mavericks, visit Mavs Moneyball and SB Nation Dallas.

Leave your comments on the news below.

Dallas Mavericks will try to get the upper-hand in their best-of-seven series of the 2011 NBA Finals as they play against the Miami Heat on Sunday night, June 5, 2011, at the American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas, according to a report at NBA.com.

Center stage will be on Miami forward Chris Bosh, as he will be playing his first NBA Finals game against his home town Dallas since turning pro in 2003.

Bosh was a Dallas superstar during his high school days. He led his team to a perfect, 40-0, record and a state title.

After two games, the Heat and Mavericks are locked up at one game apiece. However, Dallas‘s game two victory has shifted the homecourt advantage away from Miami. This means that the Heat needs to get a victory on the road to win the 2011 NBA Finals. This scenario puts the burden on Bosh, as he tries to lead his Miami team to at least a victory over his hometown team.

During the first two NBA Finals games, Bosh averages 15.5 points on a very low 9-of-34 field goal.

In December 15, 2003, Bosh played his first NBA game against Dallas when he was with the Toronto Raptors. Reports say that Bosh was so nervous during that game that he missed a dunk in the early part of the game.

When asked about his homecoming finals game, Bosh said that the “thrill of playing at home is gone. I just concentrate on trying to win games. I’ve been there a bunch of times, played in that arena my fair share of times. I go back all the time. Nothing’s changed, it looks the same, the people are the same. That’s why the thrill is kind of gone. As you get older, it becomes more of a task.”

Chris Bosh
Image Credit: Wikipedia

Tags: Chris Bosh, Dallas Mavericks, Dallas vs Miami, Miami Heat, NBA, NBA Finals Game 3

Miami Heat vs Dallas Mavericks 2011 NBA Finals Matchup, A 2006 Rematch

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Image Credit: NBA.comMiami Heat has beefed up their roster last summer to be able to return into the NBA Finals, and they did. The Dallas Mavericks however, is preparing for a rematch against Miami after being denied by the Heat in 2006.
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Image Credit: NBA.com The Miami Heat rallied in the fourth quarter, to win Game 1 of the 2011 NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks, 92-84 on Tuesday night at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida, according to a report at NBA.com.
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Image Credit: NBA.com The Dallas Mavericks rallied back to win Game 2 of the 2011 NBA Finals against the Miami Heat, 95-93, on Thursday night, June 2, 2011 at the American Airlines arena in Miami, Florida, according to a report at NBA.com.
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NBA Finals 2011 Schedule: Heat vs Mavericks Matchup On ABC

NBA Finals 2011 Schedule on ABC
Image Credit: NBA.com NBA Finals 2011 schedule is set to start on Tuesday, May 31, 2011, live on ABC. The 2011 NBA Finals best-of-seven series will be a matchup between the Miami Heat versus Dallas Mavericks. Game 1 of the series will be played at the American Airlines Arena, Miami, Fl [...]


Bulls vs Heat Game 5: Miami Heat wins (83-80), advanced to 2011 NBA Finals against Mavericks

Miami Heat won Game 5 for the 2011 Eastern Conference Finals over Chicago Bulls (83-80), and advanced to the 2011 NBA Finals vs. Dallas Mavericks.
Miami Heat’s LeBron James guarding
Chicago Bulls’ Derrick Rose
Image Credit: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images
As shown at ABS-CBN on Thursday, May 26, the Miami Heat [...]


Bulls vs. Heat Game 3 Eastern Finals: Miami Heat wins (96-85)

Miami Heat’s Chris Bosh and
Bulls’ Taj Gibson on Game 3
Image Credit: Nuccio DiNuzzo/Chicago Tribune
Miami Heat won Game 3 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals (96-85), which was held at the American Airlines Arena in Miami on Sunday, May 22, 2011.
As shown at ABS-CBN, the Chicago Bulls-Miami Heat Game 3 [...]


NBA Playoffs: Mavericks vs Thunder, Dallas Wins And Advances To 2011 NBA Finals

Dallas Mavericks: 2011 West Conference Champs
Image Credit: NBA.com Dirk Nowitzki anchored a fourth quarter Dallas Mavericks rally that led to series clinching victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder, 100-96, on Wednesday night, May 25, 2011, according to a report at NBA.com. (For the complete schedule of the NBA Fina [...]


Miami Heat Led By Chris Bosh Wins Third Straight With Rout vs San Antonio Spurs

Chris Bosh led the Heat vs Spurs
Image Credit: NBA.comThe Miami Heat avenged their worst loss of the 2011 NBA season by winning over the San Antonio Spurs, 110-80, according to NBA.com on Monday, March 15, 2011.
Miami lost to San Antonio, 125-95, last March 4, 2011, but the Heat was able to turn back the tide again [...]


NBA Playoffs: Heat vs Bulls, Miami Wins Game 4 Eastern Finals In OT Over Chicago

NBA Playoffs: Heat vs Bulls Game 4
Image Credit: NBA.com The Miami Heat wins in overtime against the Chicago Bulls, 101-93, in Game 4 of the 2011 NBA Eastern Conference Finals on Tuesday night, in American Airlines Arena, Miami, according to a report at NBA.com.
LeBron James led the Heat as he scored 35 points whi [...]


Heat vs Bulls Game 2 2011 East Finals Results: Miami 85, Chicago 75

LeBron James
Image Credit: NBA.com Lebron James led the Miami Heat to a Game 2 2011 Eastern Conference Finals win against the Chicago Bulls, 85-75, on Wednesday night at the United Center, in Chicago, according to a report at NBA.com.
Miami made a crucial run down the stretch to pull away from Chicago and even thei [...]

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