LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Professional basketball’s Dallas Mavericks and their star player Dirk Nowitzki took home top Espy Awards on Wednesday night, capping a year that saw them become improbable champions.

The Mavericks, who won the National Basketball Association championship over a Miami Heat team filled with superstars including LeBron James and Dwayne Wade, won the Espy for best team and Nowitzki was named best male athlete.

“If this Dallas Mavericks team proved anything, it’s that good guys do win and can win and will win,” said team owner Mark Cuban on stage accepting the team honor.

The win was somewhat awkward, however, because the NBA and its players are currently embroiled in a bitter contract dispute that has caused team owners to lock out players, and the two opposing groups are not talking to each other.

German-born Nowitzki, accepting his award for best male athlete, acknowledged the uncomfortable scene at the awards saying he would like to thank Cuban, but couldn’t “since I can’t talk to him.”

Olympic and World Cup champion skier Lindsey Vonn picked up the trophy for best female athlete for the second straight year. Like others, she thanked numerous people, but then Vonn looked at pop star Justin Bieber in the audience and asked “will you take a picture with me for my Facebook page.”

Bieber laughed and nodded yes.

The Espys are given to athletes by all sports cable TV network ESPN, and annually are a top gathering for men and women in fields from professional football to skiing, auto racing and even lesser-watched games such as lacrosse. Winners are chosen by fan voting.

Other awards included best breakthrough athlete, which went to pro basketball player Blake Griffin of the Los Angeles Clippers and best championship performance for Tim Thomas, the goalie for pro hockey’s Stanley Cup winner, the Boston Bruins. Thomas also was named best National Hockey League player.

U.S. women’s soccer team player Abby Wambach was given an award for best play with her recent goal in the women’s World Cup. Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers was named best National Football League Player, and Nascar racing champion took home the Espy for best driver.

Host Seth Meyers got the show off to a comic start, poking fun at athletes ranging from football’s Brett Favre to baseball pitcher Brian Wilson and his much talked-about, bushy black beard. “Some pitchers have goatees; Brian Wilson has a goat,” joked Meyers.

(Editing by)

DALLAS — It wasn’t exactly one of those “Hangover” moments when Jason Terry, at a preseason party at the home of Dallas Mavericks teammate DeShawn Stevenson, sat down next to a visiting tattoo artist and, in a moment where he had taken leave of his senses due to overindulgence, had the Larry O’Brien Trophy etched in ink on the inside of his right biceps.

The decision to have the trophy, named after the one-time NBA commissioner, stenciled in perpetuity on his arm was made to send a message to his teammates. As one of two holdovers from the Mavericks’ 2006 failed NBA Finals appearance against the Miami Heat — Dirk Nowitzki is the other — Terry aimed, he said before this NBA Finals series began, to “symbolize the fact that we had a realistic shot of getting here.”

If the Mavericks, who lead the best-of-seven series 3-2 thanks in large part to Terry’s eight-point fourth quarter in Dallas’ 112-103 victory in Game 5 on Thursday night, lose the next two games in Miami, Terry has said he’ll have the tattoo removed.

To avoid that discomfort, all Terry and his teammates have to do is repeat their performance in the past two games in Dallas when they stunned the Heat and rendered LeBron James ineffective in the fourth quarter.

Terry’s 3-pointer over the outstretched hands of James with 33.3 seconds remaining was the 11th point in a 14-3 closeout that gave the Mavericks a 108-101 lead and was one of the crushing blows in Dallas’ victory.

“That’s my job,” said Terry, who also made a 3-pointer with 3:23 remaining that tied the score at 100 to go along with two critical assists — on Nowitzki’s driving slam dunk with 2:45 left and Jason Kidd’s 3-pointer with 1:26 remaining for a 105-100 lead. “All season long, ever since I’ve been a Maverick (seven seasons), I’ve been the guy in the fourth quarter they depended on to either make plays or make shots — so I relish that role.

“Regardless of what’s going on throughout three quarters of the game, in the fourth quarter I know I’m depended on to come through.”

Early in the fourth quarter, Dallas Coach Rick Carlisle kept guard J.J. Barea, who started the past two games in the Finals, on the court because Barea had a hot hand throughout, finishing 4-of-5 from beyond the 3-point line (the Mavericks were 13-of-19, 68.4 percent from beyond the arc).

It might have seemed odd at the time, given Terry’s fourth-quarter history, but likely the proper decision because Terry, who finished with 21 points, didn’t seem to be that assertive in the third quarter.

His assist to Kidd was a game-changer.

“I had some opportunities in the third quarter where I wasn’t as decisive,” said Terry, a 6-foot-2 guard in his 12th season out of Arizona. “So I knew once Coach put me back in the game, I had to get something done immediately. I was really looking to get to the basket and draw a foul. They do a great job of help defense.

“My outlet was Jason Kidd. He shoots it well from the spot he was in. The right decision. The right play to make.”

Terry wasn’t finished.

His 3-pointer with 33 seconds remaining was as big as his two assists.

And, as loquacious as ever, he didn’t mind talking about it.

“Preparation for me,” said Terry, a former NBA Sixth Man of the Year. “It’s something I do at the end of my workouts. Get into a good rhythm. Rhythm dribble. If there’s space, I’m going to let if fly. The clock was winding down. It’s just like being out there on the playground back home in Seattle. Emulating your idols in the Finals situation, game on the line. Raise up, knock it down.”

After being called out by Nowitzki after the Mavericks’ loss in Game 3 in Dallas loss for not being clutch, Terry has come up big in the past two games.

And he’s let everyone know. Including Nowitzki.

“We all know JET (Terry’s initials) is a confident young man,” said Nowitzki, who finished with a game-high 29 points in Game 5. “He always has a lot to say to us in the locker room. He’s always talking; he’s just an energetic guy. He loves to talk, and he loves to hear himself talk.”

Along the way, he has earned the admiration of his opponents, including James.

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

Now Terry finds himself, and his team, just one win away from a permanent reminder of the NBA’s ultimate prize.

DALLAS — For much of his career, Dallas Mavericks power forward Dirk Nowitzki has been an enigma.

Despite his bountiful talent and deadly shooting touch, this 7-foot native of Wurzburg, Germany, has been considered soft, lacking a killer instinct.

He has won an MVP award but not the NBA Finals.

New Orleans Hornets fans will remember the infamous face-to-face confrontation with David West in the 2008 playoffs when West forcefully tapped two fingers on Nowitzki’s face and Nowitzki made no attempt at any sort of retribution.

New Orleans eliminated the Mavs in five games, which led Dallas to fire Avery Johnson as coach and bring in Rick Carlisle.

But now in these Finals, Nowitzki has transformed from marshmallow to granite, almost single-handedly leading Dallas to a pair of victories, one in Game 4 on Tuesday night with his body ravaged by flu symptoms, a sinus infection and a 101-degree fever.

He’s also playing with a torn tendon in his left middle finger.

And he scored the Mavs’ last 12 points in Game 3 only to see his team come up two short of a victory.

No one is questioning his toughness anymore.

“He’s one of the greatest ever,” said Carlisle. “He wants the ball and he wants the responsibility of winning and losing the game. We make every effort to put him in those situations.”

Nowitzki’s driving layup, with his injured left hand, in Game 2 was the difference between winning and losing, and his layup with his right hand with 14.4 seconds to go in Game 4 put Dallas ahead 84-81 in what would become an 86-83 victory.

When it became evident Tuesday that Nowitzki was under the weather, his teammates were unconcerned.

“We knew he was going to play,” said DeShawn Stevenson. “He’s a soldier. He’s our franchise player, and we go through him. Him being out there with a fever said a lot, in the Finals especially, with his finger messed up. He’s a tough player.”

Finally, Nowitzki is being described as “tough.”

“He’s a competitor,” said guard Jason Kidd. “He loves this time of the year. He’s a guy that plays with bumps and bruises and never complains. Just goes out there and does his job. That rubs off on everybody.”

Two days of relative rest left Nowitzki almost cured and ready for action in Game 5, a game the Mavs were treating as though it was the finale in the best-of-seven series.

“You don’t want to give them two chances to close it out at home, so this is our Game 7 and the last home game for this year in this building,” Nowitzki said at the Mavs’ Thursday morning shootaround at American Airlines Center. “It should be a great atmosphere, and hopefully we can pull it out.”

Nowitzki downplayed the significance of his own ailments and those of his teammates — Brendan Haywood’s strained right hip flexor, and a late-game calf problem for Shawn Marion in Game 4 — as results of the calendar.

Haywood was inactive Thursday night, as he was in Game 3.

“I’ve said it all series long,” Nowitzki said, “that I think everybody’s banged up at this point. It’s June. We’ve played eight, nine months of competitive basketball. We’ve got to grind it out. We’ve got a week left or something in this season and ultimately to win the NBA championship — which obviously you don’t get enough chances to play at this stage — we’ve got to forget all about this and just leave it all out there.”

CHECKING OUT COMMENTS: Heat guard Dwyane Wade said he thinks this week’s chatter from certain members of the Mavericks could provide a helpful assist and be the antidote LeBron James needs to fix his ailing game.

“He doesn’t need it,” Wade said, “but it adds fuel to the fire. We appreciate Dallas for that. Even if (James) had lost focus, he was going to get it back. But we appreciate the words that are coming out of their mouths.

“LeBron obviously wants to play better, but it’s not always about the scoring aspect. It’s just about playing better overall.”

James was held to eight points in Game 4, the first time in his career he’s failed to crack double figures in scoring in a postseason game, and the first time in any game since the 2007 season.

CLOSE GAMES: The last time the first four games of the NBA Finals were decided by less than 15 points was 1969, when the Celtics beat the Lakers in Bill Russell’s last Finals appearance. The average margin then was 12.

The average margin of victory in the first four games of this series is 3.8 points.

Jimmy Smith can be reached at [email protected] or 504.826.3814.

For days, the Dallas Mavericks insisted nothing was wrong with the shots they were taking. They just weren’t falling.

They did in Game 5 of the NBA finals.

And now the Mavs are on the brink of their first championship.

Behind 29 points from Dirk Nowitzki, and series-best shooting performances by Jason Terry, Jason Kidd and more, the Mavericks torched the Heat 112-103 Thursday night for a 3-2 series lead.

Now this collection of veterans without a single title among them are headed to Miami needing to win one of the last two games to fly home with the Larry O’Brien Trophy.

Five years after a 2-0 lead fell apart in Miami, Nowitzki refuses to celebrate until he’s actually handed that shiny gold statue.

“I really can’t enjoy (a 3-2 series lead) much,” he said, still sniffling a bit because of a sinus infection. “In the playoffs, for some reason, you’re always on the edge. You don’t sleep much. You think basketball 24/7. I can enjoy it hopefully next week when we’re on vacation.”

The Mavericks hit the Heat with an offensive assault their vaunted defense simply couldn’t stop.

It was a throwback performance to their early 2000s clubs guided by Don Nelson, when the Mavs tried to outscore everyone with little regard to defense.

Dallas posted the most points against Miami in a game, a half (60) and a quarter (30) this postseason.

The Mavs also had the best field-goal percentage (.565) and the most 3-pointers (13), and matched the most field goals (39) against the Heat in these playoffs.

And, to think, these guys had a .414 shooting percentage over the first four games of the series.

The reward for their improved aim was the comfort of playing from ahead most of the night.

Consider this difference: Dallas went from leading for a total of 35 minutes, 41 seconds over the first three games, to leading for 30:59 in this game alone, according to STATS, LLC.

“I thought in the first four games, we looked at the film, we stepped into good shots,” Nowitzki said. “For some reason, we weren’t knocking them down like we did in the first three series. If we had struggled like that in the first three series, I don’t know if we would’ve gotten here. We talked about it, keeping stepping into shots when they are there. … I thought we had big, timely shots tonight.”

Four Mavericks had their most points of the series: Terry with 21, J.J. Barea with 17, Kidd with 13 and Brian Cardinal with four. Tyson Chandler matched his high with 13.

“My teammates get on me sometimes about shooting the ball and looking to score a little bit to help them,” said Kidd, who was scoreless last game. “Tonight was one of those games where I had some good looks and they went in.”

As crisply as Dallas shot, poor defense kept this game from being a blowout.

Although the Mavericks were up by seven in the opening quarter, they came away trailing 31-30. They were ahead 60-57 at halftime and stretched it to 80-71, matching their biggest lead of the series, only to find themselves trailing 100-97 with 3:38 left.

That was nothing for a team that already had wiped out fourth-quarter deficits of 12 and nine points in its other wins.

So this veteran club responded the way it had all night, by hitting 3s.

Terry nailed the first, an open look from straightaway, to tie it at 100 with 3:23 left. After a dunk by Nowitzki put Dallas ahead – for good, as it turned out – Kidd started stretching the lead with a 3-pointer and Terry followed with another from the right side with 33.8 seconds left. He punctuated by his traditional flying jet pose in honor of his nickname and his initials: JET.

“We’re a very resilient team, you know that,” said Terry, who matched Nowitzki with eight points in the fourth quarter, even more impressive since he was often covered by LeBron James.

“We’ve been in tough battles all playoffs long. It’s not going to stop. It’s going to get even harder. But we’re ready. We’re determined, and this is our time.”

The Mavericks wound up closing the game on a 15-3 run. They became the first team this series to win consecutive games.

So, how did they treat the most significant win in franchise history?

Mildly, as they have all postseason.

Nowitzki put his arms up toward the bench, but hardly smiled. No, it wasn’t the lingering effects of his sinus infection. It was the unfinished business of having 15 playoff wins, when they need 16.

After all, Boston held a 3-2 lead over the Lakers last year, only to blow it. Overall, 19 of the 26 teams that have led a finals 3-2 have gone on to be crowned champs, including Miami in ’06.

“We’re trying to execute our game plan and see if we have the most points come Sunday,” Kidd said. “We’re not looking to knock no one out. We’re here to play team basketball and continue to do what we’ve been doing the last two games.”

By
Sportsmail Reporter

Last updated at 9:31 AM on 10th June 2011

The Dallas Mavericks are on the brink of winning their first-ever NBA crown after a storming late run earned a  112-103 victory over the Miami Heat in Game Five.

With a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series, Dallas can claim the title by winning one of the two remaining contests, but they will have to complete the feat in Miami where the teams split the opening two games.

The Mavericks went on a 15-3 run to finish off the Heat, turning a three-point deficit into the comfortable victory amid chants of ‘Beat the Heat’ from a boisterous 20,433 crowd.

In your face: Dirk Nowitzki (No 41) slam dunks during another fine shift for the Mavericks

‘That was a big win for us, obviously,’ said Mavericks power forward Dirk Nowitzki after scoring 29 points.

‘We didn’t want to go to Miami and give them basically two shots to close us out. So we kept plugging there in the fourth. And now we have to go down there and basically approach Sunday’s game as Game Seven. You don’t want to give this great team any hope.’

Sharp-shooting guard Jason Terry had a pair of three-pointers during the game-ending run, finishing with 21 points on eight-of-12 shooting and adding six assists.

Dallas shot 57 per cent, including 13 of 19 from beyond the arc.

Threesy does it: Jason Terry celebrates after nailing one from outside the arc late in the game

‘All season long, ever since I’ve been a Maverick, I’ve been the guy in the fourth quarter they depended on to either make plays or make shots,’ said Terry.

‘So I really relish that role. Regardless of what’s going on throughout three quarters of the game, in the fourth quarter I know I’m depended on to come through. Thank God I was able to do that again.’

LeBron James disappeared once again in the fourth quarter, tallying only two points.

The former NBA scoring champion and two-times MVP has now amassed a combined 11 points in the final quarter of the entire series.

James was blanked in the final frame of Tuesday’s 86-83 Mavericks victory, and while he was more aggressive on Thursday, he had similar results.

Fan-tastic: Nowitzki leaves the court a hero after the Mavericks’ win over the Heat in Game Five

‘We as a team, we played good enough to win again,’ said James, who scored 17 points and had 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Put ourself in position to win down the stretch. Guys made plays. They just made a few more than we did. That’s what it came down to.’

Dwyane Wade had 23 for the Heat, scoring 10 in the final quarter, while Chris Bosh added 19.

Wade bruised his hip in the opening quarter when he collided with Brian Cardinal of the Mavericks. He went to the locker room but returned shortly after and played 34 minutes.

‘It was unfortunate I had to leave the game,’ said Wade. ‘But I came back and I finished it. Once you’re on the court, you’re on the court. I don’t have no excuses.

‘I was able to help my team get an opportunity to win. And I’ll be fine Sunday.’

Glamour game: The Dallas Mavericks cheerleaders helped lift the spirits during a fourth-quarter timeout

Dallas shot 56.5 per cent from the floor but were outrebounded 36-26 by a Miami team that committed 16 turnovers on the way to registering consecutive losses for the first time this post-season.

Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said Terry took on the responsibility of team leader when the Mavericks’ best player, Nowitzki, was on the bench.

‘He played great, and during periods where Dirk was out of the game we were going to him and he was delivering,’ Carlisle said.

‘Those are tough minutes for us because it’s hard when Dirk is out of the game. But it’s the total game we’ve all been preaching to Jet (Terry) since the play-offs began and he did a terrific job.’

Terry does not want the series to go to a Game Seven and added: ‘We want to get this first one.’

Gutted: Miami pair LeBron James and Dwayne Wade can’t hide their disappointment as Dallas storm back

Read More: LeBron James (F – MIA), Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat, Miami Heat at Dallas Mavericks, Jun 7, 2011 9:00 PM EDT

In Game 4, we saw another fourth quarter comeback by the Dallas Mavericks, sparked by a poor Miami Heat performance on the offensive end.  If the Heat are going to win Game 5 and take a commanding lead 3-2 NBA Finals lead, they are going to have to fix their fourth quarter offense while trying to figure out how to stop Dallas’ go-to play.

Offense: Run Meaningful Offense Late

Much has been made of LeBron James’ passive nature in the fourth quarter, but when mentioning that we seem to forget that most of the Heat were passive on offense, reverting to their “stand around and watch” offense that gave Miami so much trouble during the regular season.  The lack of an offensive game plan hurt the Heat as you got a lot of dribbling and a lot of simple screen and rolls that resulted in a lot of missed shots:

During these possessions, there is simply not enough movement to put pressure on the defense and force them to rotate.  Sure, there is some movement before the play starts, but once the Heat get into their offense, there is a lot of standing around.  You have Chris Bosh isolated at the elbow as everyone else just stands around.  This allows the defense to feel free to help, forcing the turnover.  

The problem for someone like me, who has no rooting interest in this series (other than wanting to see great basketball), is that the Heat actually do have a good offense when they want to use it.  They have sets that do a good job of getting their players open in space:

The three plays above were run in the second quarter of game four.  Why doesn’t coach Spoelstra have his team run this play when he sees his offense stalling?  I know that the defense ratchets the defense up in the fourth quarter, but makes us think that this play won’t work in the fourth?  If you don’t want to get into an elaborate offensive set late, I don’t see the problem in trying to the Wade/James pick and pop.  It is something simple that has worked late in the game against Dallas already:

This isn’t an amazing offensive scheme, but it forces the defense’s hand.  It makes them rotate and it puts the defense out of position.  The result is a wide open jumper for Chris Bosh.

When the Heat struggle in the fourth, they make it easy on the Mavericks’ defense.  That happens when you have one player dribbling the basketball up top with the rest of the team standing and watching him.  If the Heat want to win Game 5, their offense in the fourth quarter needs to be better.

Defense: Don’t Hedge Off Of Dirk Nowitzki On Dallas’ Staggered Ball Screens

When the Dallas Mavericks broke out their staggered ball screens in Game 2, it gave the Heat a world of trouble, as they were able to score eight points in four possessions on 75 percent shooting.  While we didn’t really see the play in Game 3, the Dallas Mavericks used it again in Game 4, and it is obvious that the play is still giving the Heat trouble.  In my post about Dallas’ pick and roll adjustment over at NBAPlaybook, we saw that the Mavericks ran their double staggered ball screens twice, scoring five points.  When rewatching the possessions, you can see that Miami is still searching for a way to stop this set.  They tried two different ways to stop the play, but both times, it was effectively the Heat using Nowitzki’s man to hedge:

On this first play, Joel Anthony is the man defending Nowitzki.  As J.J. Barea comes off of the staggered ball screen, Anthony hedges, but he doesn’t hedge far because he doesn’t want to leave Nowitzki.  This soft hedge allows Barea to turn the corner, attack the paint, and force the help, allowing Barea to kick the ball out for an open three point shot.

On this play, Udonis Haslem leaves Nowitzki to try and trap the basketball.  Nowitzki reads it and slips the screen, putting Wade in a position where he has to try and defend two players at the same time.  The result is Wade rotating over to Nowitzki late, and fouling him.

So how would I defend this play?  I would try to trap the ball handler (like Miami have tried in the past), but not use Nowitzki’s man to do so.  I would use whoever is defending Tyson Chandler and have him trap the basketball along with the man who is defending the ball handler.  I know this leaves Chandler open for a roll, but I’d be willing to take my chances of having a smaller guy (either Barea or Terry) trying to throw a pinpoint pass to Chandler rolling to the rim.  In addition to that, it keeps Nowitzki from beating you and keeps the ball handler from getting to the middle of the lane.

By BRIAN MAHONEY
AP Basketball Writer

DALLAS (AP) – Those LeBron James dunks sure look great on highlight shows and commercials. They make good posters, too.

The Dallas Mavericks are getting sick of them.

The Mavericks’ turnovers are making it easy for James and the Miami Heat, something they know they have to clean up for any chance to win the NBA title.

“We have to eliminate a couple of the turnovers that lead to the quick points,” Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said. “It’s extremely difficult when you’re watching James go down the court and dunk the ball with his head over the rim. That makes it tough to win.”

Problem is, Dirk Nowitzki admits the turnovers won’t really stop against a Heat team that’s so good at forcing them.

“It’s just going to happen. They’re so fast, long, athletic,” Nowitzki said. “They do a good job swarming the ball once we put it down. We’re going to turn it over some. I already thought we cut it down from Game 2 to this one, so hopefully in Game 4 we can cut down a couple more and we’ll be OK.”

Nowitzki committed the last, and most costly of the miscues, a pass out of bounds with 30 seconds left in the Heat’s 88-86 victory Sunday in Game 3. And when searching for reasons for their 2-1 deficit, the Mavericks know exactly where to start.

“We have to take care of the ball against this team,” point guard Jason Kidd said. “Make or miss shots, you can’t just give these guys easy layups on the other end. That’s what they’re doing to us right now.”

Nowitzki, perhaps the dominant offensive player this postseason, had carried the Mavs again over the final 6 minutes, scoring their last 12 points to tie it at 86 with 1:40 remaining.

But after Chris Bosh’s jumper with 39 seconds left, Nowitzki got the ball near the top of the key but saw his lane close down, so he tried to pass to Shawn Marion along the sideline. He was off balance and the ball soared into the seats with 30 seconds to go.

Nowitzki said he wanted to shoot it, but saw Dwyane Wade coming over and didn’t think he’d be able to get a good attempt off. Nowitzki said he saw Marion but his teammate left the corner, calling the play a “miscommunication.”

Given a last attempt after James’ missed 3-pointer, Nowitzki did shoot it on the final possession, but he was well defended by Udonis Haslem and the shot bounced off the rim just before the buzzer.

The Mavs know they are at a disadvantage physically against the Heat’s athletes, which makes their execution even more important. When the game gets into the full court, the Heat can beat the older Mavs players down the floor.

“We’ve got to eliminate a couple of the turnovers that lead to quick points,” Carlisle said.

Miami frequently capitalized when Dallas did mess up, such as late in the first quarter. The Mavericks should have had the last shot of the period and would have at most been down four points. Instead, J.J. Barea’s pass went out of bounds with 3.5 seconds left and the Heat hurried up the floor to get Mario Chalmers’ 36-foot heave for a 29-22 lead.

Carlisle said the Heat were the best team in the league during the regular season in converting steals into points. Dallas had six turnovers at halftime, but Miami scored 14 points off them, which Carlisle called “an inordinate number.”

“So it’s a good example of the importance of taking care of the ball,” Carlisle said.

Carlisle talked about the difficulty of playing from behind, and the way watching James soar for dunks his players created can become demoralizing. He said the Mavs had “one or two untimely turnovers” – but that’s all it takes to swing a game that was decided by two points.

Miami got 31 points off turnovers in Game 2, and Dallas was only able to rally in that game because it protected the ball down the stretch and turned it into a half-court contest, and the Heat kept missing jumpers.

But the Mavs would make things much easier on themselves if they didn’t spot the Heat so many free points, and force themselves to rely on comebacks.

“The big thing is we have had spots of turning the ball over and giving them opportunities,” Kidd said. “So we have to take care of the ball.”

Barea turned it over four times in 19 minutes off the bench Sunday, perhaps as damaging as his 2 for 8 shooting. Kidd also had four turnovers.

“Our overall game’s got to be better,” Carlisle said.

___

Follow Brian Mahoney on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/Briancmahoney

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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

Chris Bosh of the Miami Heat drives on Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks in Game Three of the 2011 NBA Finals. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

With seconds left in the game, Maverick forward Dirk Nowitzki bounced a shot off the back of the rim that fell to earth. Miami pulled out the win 88–86 giving themselves a 2–1 lead in the best-of-seven finals.

“We were digging out of holes all night,” said Maverick Coach Rick Carlisle.

The Mavericks would trail by as much as 14 points in the second quarter, but final game stats indicated the Mavericks outscored the Heat in every quarter except the first, trailing 47–42 at the half. That 29–22 lead the Heat enjoyed in the first quarter was the killer for the Mavericks.

During the first half, the Mavericks were willing to take the short jump shots and the deep threes, as the Heat drove the lane and muscled for position under the bucket. That kind of play helped to rack up their points.

Time and time again Miami guard Dwayne Wade stole the ball or was fed the ball for a fierce successful drive to the bucket. Wade went 12–21 from the field, 2–4 3-pts range and 3–4 from the free-throw line, and concluded the game with 29-points.

Dirk Nowitzki drives for a shot attempt against Chris Bosh. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

LeBron James was not much of a scoring force, but scored 17 points, going 1–4 from the 3-point range and shooting 6–14 from the field and 4–4 from the line.

Dallas started strong in the first quarter and led 14–9 with 2:26 left, but a strong power-slam by James and turnovers by the Mavericks took the sizzle out of the Dallas bacon.

Offensive aggressiveness with every ball possession hurt the Heat the first half. Heat Coach Erik Spoelstra changed that at halftime. Wade continued to drive, but the other Heat players appeared less interested in driving with vigor, and looked for timely shots with good looks at the basket.

LeBron James goes up for a dunk in front of Jason Kidd in the second half. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

With 7:29 left in the third quarter, the Heat led the Mavericks 55–48. At the 4:36 mark the game was tied at 57 all. The end of quarter saw the Heat leading 67–64.

The excitement was reserved for the final quarter. With 10;10 left in the game the score read 70 all. Three minutes later the Mavericks were down by 7.

Dallas Dirk Nowitzki scored only 2 points in the first quarter. He warmed in the second and third quarters for 19 points and caught fire in the fourth, scoring 12 straight points for the roaring Mavericks. Nowitzki ended the game with 34 points going 11–21 from the field, 3–5 3pts, and 9–9 from the line.

The game was tied up 9 times. The Heat had 27 fouls and the Mavericks had 14.

In the post-game interview Coach Spoelstra said, “We have to continue to be active. We had some breakdowns. Look, you have to give that team some credit. They have some shooters. They have a great quarterback who makes you pay for mistakes. They have the shooting. And Nowitzki obviously draws a lot of attention.”

Game 4 of the Finals will be Thursday in Dallas. Game time is 8 p.m. at the American Airlines Center.

Wear a strong belt because the action could put your britches in the wind.

Storming back from a 15-point deficit to win Game 2 against the Miami Heat on Thursday night has put the Dallas Mavericks in a familiar position they enjoyed five years ago in the NBA Finals.

Again, they are entering Game 3 with momentum.

But the Mavericks are hoping tonight’s outcome won’t be the same as in 2006, when they blew a 13-point lead against the Heat in the final 6:34 of Game 3 and lost.

Dallas didn’t recover, and lost the series, dropping the final four games after holding a 2-0 lead.

This time, the series is tied at one game each.

The lone Mavericks’ holdovers from the 2006 team are Dirk Nowitzki and guard Jason Terry.

“We know what we have to do to come out and be successful,’’ Terry said. “We’re coming home. This is a homecoming for us. We really want to come out early on in the game. We feel good about ourselves.’’

In this year’s Game 2, the Mavericks outscored the Heat 22-5 in the final 6:19 to take a 95-93 victory in Miami. But the stakes are much higher for Game 3 in Dallas.

All 11 times the NBA Finals have been tied at one game each, the Game 3 winner has won the championship.

“I think we’re a veteran team; we just can’t let up,’’ Nowitzki said. “We’re not good enough to just relax. We need to play with an edge at all times in every game.’’

The Heat has spent the past two days evaluating their collapse. Backup guard Mario Chalmers made the Heat’s lone field goal in the final 7:14, and the Mavericks scored on 10 of their final 11 possessions. Nowitzki scored the Mavericks’ final nine points, including the winning a layup with three seconds remaining.

“We’ve had a couple of days to think about it now,’’ Heat Coach Erik Spoelstra said Saturday. “Obviously, we weren’t happy about the way the game ended. We came back to work yesterday and today to fix some of these things. There is not a good win in the playoffs, and there’s not a bad win. It’s black and white. It’s either a win or it’s a loss, and you have to move on.’’

The Mavericks are aiming to again force the Heat into taking tough shots — as they did in fourth quarter Thursday— rebound, and take advantage of Nowitzki’s scoring.

“We are coming out with that mindset like we had in Game 1,’’ Heat forward LeBron James said. “It starts defensively. We have to be in tune as close to 48 minutes as possible, especially versus this team, who shoots the ball extremely well, who plays extremely well, especially at home. But it’s a sense of urgency.

“That’s the only way we know how to play, when we feel like we’re desperate. It’s the only way we approach games.’’

On Saturday, the Heat again tried to downplay its celebration in front of the Mavericks’ bench after Dwyane Wade’s 3-pointer extended Miami’s lead to 15. Wade and James’ celebration fired up the Mavericks, sparking their decisive run.

“We have enthusiastic guys, excitable players,’’ Spoelstra said. “I would certainly rather have that than a bunch of zombies out there that don’t care about winning. But I’m more concerned about how we executed or had a lack of execution going down the stretch.’’

John Reid can be reached at [email protected] or 504.826.3407.

DALLAS —
Dirk’s different.

So we hear.

Different from the guy who shot just 39 percent in the 2006 NBA Finals, who
was distracted by David Hasselhoff placards, who sometimes deferred when
Dallas needed him to dominate.

“He is a much different player,” ABC/ESPN analyst Mark Jackson said
Saturday. “Much more comfortable in the post area, much more
comfortable reading double teams, much more comfortable with physical play
against him defensively, has a whole different swagger about him. And he was
great then.”

Sure was.

Great enough to score 50 in Game 5 of the 2006 Western Conference finals
against Phoenix, to earn the NBA MVP Award in 2006-07 and to establish
himself as one of the unquestioned greats of his era.

But, as Pat Riley likes to say, there is no way to greatness.

Greatness is the way.

So is it finally time for Nowitzki – taking a 1-1 tie in the NBA Finals into
three home games against the Heat – to lead the way to a title?

For Miami, there are troubling signs it might be.

Forget the whats and whys and hows.

The major problem with the Heat’s Game 2 meltdown is the now.

Now, after allowing Nowitzki to steal Thursday’s contest, by scoring the final
nine points, the Heat has put him in striking distance to steal this series
and to earn an even more exalted spot in basketball history.

The legend grows daily.

Nowitzki is on one of the all-time playoff runs, averaging 28.1 points on 50.5
percent shooting – even after sinking just 42.5 percent in the first two
games of the Finals.

He has scored at least nine points in each of the past seven fourth quarters,
and did so in Game 2 with a splint on an injured left middle finger that he
now says is “really good.”

Nowitzki has helped the Mavericks eliminate the old (Lakers) and new (Thunder)
powers in the West, and, Wednesday, his teammate Jason Terry shared a
contribution from the opening series against Portland, when it appeared the
Mavericks were doomed to another first-round failure.

“When I first came to Dallas (in 2004), Dirk’s leadership was questioned
all the time with the media,” Terry said. “They didn’t see him
vocal enough, getting on guys enough.”

“Obviously, at the beginning, I had a little language barrier,”
Nowitzki said. “Over the years, I got more comfortable taking the guys
to the side and addressing something when I see something. I guess that
comes with experience.”

Nowitzki had experienced the Mavericks’ collapse in Game 3 of the 2006 NBA
Finals against Miami, as well as their first-round flameout against the
eighth-seeded Warriors in 2007.

Then, in Game 4 of this year’s first round, Portland’s Brandon Roy took his
team apart.

“We come in the locker room after the game,” Terry said. “Coach
(Rick Carlisle) wasn’t the first one to talk. It was Dirk. I think guys
looked at that and seen that, ‘Hey, this is our leader.’ We’re going to ride
with him.”

Nowitzki has taken the Mavericks back to the brink of glory.

Yet even now, back in his house for three games in five nights, he’s still
playing with house money. Most around the game believe he can enhance, but
not diminish, his legacy during these Finals.

That is something that few will say of LeBron James, the “Chosen One”
who switched teams to chase a title, and likely won’t satisfy the masses
until snagging several. Nowitzki has already established himself as the
greatest of something – greatest European to play his prime years in America
- and has exceeded any expectation anyone had when Milwaukee took him ninth
overall and dealt him to Dallas.

Jackson calls him “a top 30 player that has ever lived, a Hall of Famer
and an all-time great, win, lose or draw. If he has on his resume, he got to
the Finals but lost to Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal, and then lost to
Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh also, I mean, how could you hold
that against him? To me, it’s a shame for people to think that.”

Jackson’s television partner, Jeff Van Gundy, believes it will be “a
benefit” to Nowitzki’s legacy to prevail but would still define him as
a champion even if he doesn’t, just as he does Charles Barkley, Karl Malone,
John Stockton and Patrick Ewing. Van Gundy argues that for many ring-less
greats, the biggest problem has been date of birth.

“Sometimes when you are the best player on your team and (Michael) Jordan
is the best player on his team, guess what, you’re bleeped,” Van Gundy
said.

Nowitzki is the best player on his team, same as in the 2006 NBA Finals. Now
he sees James on the other side as well as Wade, but he’s a different
player, a better player, and playing by different rules than his star
opponents in terms of what the public demands. He won’t make it easy for the
Heat to achieve the same result.

The Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade and LeBron James might be wise not to celebrate in front of the Dallas Mavericks’ bench any more during the NBA Finals.

After making a 3-point shot over Jason Terry from the far corner that extended Miami’s lead to 15 with 6:20 to play in Game 2 on Thursday night, Wade joyously kept his right arm raised and his wrist cocked while James shouted praises and playfully jabbed him in the chest as they headed back to the Heat bench for a timeout.

It got the Mavericks riled up enough to close out the game on a 22-5 run. Dirk Nowitzki scored Dallas’ final nine points, including a layup with three seconds remaining that gave the Dallas the lead for good in a 95-93 victory.

“Seeing them celebrate like that, man, it was really disheartening,’’ Terry said. “Then I took another glance at the score and the time, there was a lot of time left.’’

Terry said he looked at Nowitzki and said there’s no way they were going to go out losing in a rout.

“He (Wade) celebrated in front of our bench,’’ Mavericks center Tyson Chandler said. “I think it angered us. We came out there and responded.’’

After the game, James said they didn’t celebrate, but admitted they were excited about Wade hitting a big shot that extended the lead.

“It was a shot made going into a timeout,’’ Wade said. “Every team does something. If it pumped them up — they won the game. Don’t make nothing out of that celebration like you guys did in the Boston series.’’

NO LIMITATION: With a torn tendon in his left middle finger he sustained in Game 1, Nowitzki played with a splint Thursday night. But it had no affect on him when the Mavericks made their 22-5 run to close out the game.

Nowitzki scored a game-high 24 points on 10-of-22 shooting.

“It felt great,’’ Nowitzki said. “Like I said before the game, I thought it wasn’t going to bother me, and it didn’t.’’

SLUMP ENDS: Heat point guard Mike Bibby broke out of a horrid shooting slump by scoring 14 points in Game 2, but it didn’t lead to a win.

Going into Game 2, Bibby had not scored more than eight points through 15 playoff games. He came out firing in the third quarter, hitting two of four 3-point attempts that helped the Heat extend their lead to 10.

“Mike shot the ball well,’’ Wade said. “That’s the Mike that we love to see. We want him to continue to shoot like that.’’

So the Dallas Mavericks took notice. Then took offense.

While the Miami Heat started dancing early, the Mavericks enhanced their Comeback Kings reputation with one of the most stunning rallies in NBA Finals history, overcoming a 15-point deficit in the final 6:20 to pull out a 95-93 victory in Game 2 of the NBA Finals.

With the Mavericks clearly motivated by the Heat’s premature giddiness, Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry guided them to a remarkable revival, hitting a three-pointer with 26.7 seconds left to put the Mavericks ahead 93-90. Miami tied the score on Mario Chalmers’ three-pointer with 24.5 showing on a busted defense by the Mavericks.

Nowitzki rescued them again, spinning off of Chris Bosh and pushing in a soft, left-handed layup with 3.6 left.

That would be the same left hand that he has a torn tendon in his middle finger that required him to play with a splint.

So, who needs a splint now after the Mavericks got a split?

They certainly fractured the Heat’s hope of sweeping the first two games in Miami.

And so, the Mavericks leveled the best-of-seven NBA Finals 1-1 and now return to Dallas for the middle three games of the series knowing that they have a grand opportunity to be NBA champions for the first time within the next 10 days.

It was eerily similar to Game 3 in 2006, when the Mavericks blew a 13-point lead in the final seven minutes.

They liked being on the good side of the equation a lot better.

“If you’re going to win a championship, you’ve got to have the wherewithal to hang in when things are tough,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “All year, our guys have believed and tonight was another good example. They had to win the game and it wasn’t easy.”

And for the longest time, it looked like there was no hope of a happy ending.

When Dwyane Wade, who had 36 points, poured in a three-pointer from the corner right in front of the Mavericks’ bench with 7:14 to go, the Mavericks were down 88-73. Carlisle called a timeout and LeBron James threw some soft punches into Wade’s chest as the pair did a little dance heading to the Miami bench.

“They were emotional and excited,” said Brian Cardinal. “I don’t know if it ignited us. I’m sure it helped refocus everybody. You notice everything. That’s the beauty of having 15 guys on the bench. Everybody’s got an eyeball on something.

A 22-5 run later, the Mavericks had proven that they were well aware of the Heat’s antics.

Terry had eight points as the Mavericks crept back slowly. First, they got it to 88-81. Then it was 90-86.

Then Nowitzki hit a jump shot off a Terry feed. Suddenly, it was a two-point game and Nowitzki tied with a layup with 57.6 seconds left.

That set up his three-pointer. When Chalmers answered, the Mavericks were miffed.

“In our huddle, there were a lot of curse words,” Terry said. “That was my mistake. I left Chalmers wide open.”

But Nowitzki erased the mistake and the Mavericks were the ones who ended up dancing.

“First of all, every team in the league does something when they go on a run, whether it’s chest bump or whatever,” said Wade of the celebratory moment. “They won the game, so obviously it did something. But that’s not the first time and it won’t be the last time. Don’t make anything about the celebration. It had nothing to do with the outcome of the game for us. Defensively, we had breakdowns.”

After Nowitzki’s lefty layup, the Heat had no timeouts left and got only a desperation three-pointer from Wade at the buzzer, which was off the mark, a rare miss on a night when he had 36 points.

“It was a turning point in the game,” Terry said of the Heat’s antics. “We said there’s no way we’re going out like this, with them dunking on us and stuff. It would have really been disheartening.”

Instead, it was a big show of heart for the Mavericks.