2005-06 NBA Season Discussion Thread

[a6m5]

I can definitely see this going either way. Like Saleen said, Dallas won a hard fought series(one of the best in a decade or so) against the Spurs, who I thought was better than Miami or Detroit. Then again, it's just not that simple with the matchups and variables.

 

[McLaren]

Wow, what a game tonight. Dallas and Miami very close at the beginning of the game, but the Heat just lost it at the end. Had quite a lot of fouls on Miami.

Well, Miami has 6 games left to regain.

 

[SS69]

did any notice the lack of heart in miami towards the end? mavs in 5.

 

[a6m5]

Cool sig, McLaren. 👍 I had to go to basketball of my own, so I didn't know the final score. Thanks.

Miami, 80. Although I just caught parts of it, and was not impressed with the Mav's defense, Miami's score tells me that Mavs "D" was alright.

I couldn't believe how cold Dirk was. I did see him nail couple of timely threes late in the game, but it looked like Dirk wasn't in his groove. It is kind of comforting that the Mavs won without their scoring machine going off though. When he does, lookout, Heat!

I'm still standing by my prediction of Dallas in six. 5's definitely a possibility, but I give credit for the Playoff and Championship experience Heat's players bring. Especially Shaq, but even Wade..... still on his rookie contract!!! 👍

Edit:

did any notice the lack of heart in miami towards the end? mavs in 5.

I had to leave with 5 minutes or so left in the game. What happened?

 

[SS69]

I had to leave with 5 minutes or so left in the game. What happened?

they just gave up. yea the game was pretty much over but they really didnt show much of an attempt to come back. at the end they didnt even try to foul dallas to stop the clock. they didnt even want to take the last shot for the hell of it. to me that shows a lack of heart. most teams will fight to the end even if it's obvious they lost.

 

[a6m5]

I'd never guessed. Thanks, SS69.

A very good sign(sorry, Giancarlo ). 👍 If the Mavs were in their shoes, I don't think Avery would let the players get away with that kind of effort.

 

[JCE]

I've been waiting over 20 years for a Mavericks championship. I went to countless games of their putrid seasons year after year...now we Dallas fans have finally been rewarded. Miami's done, like SS69 said--Miami clearly gave up--this is a BAD SIGN for Miami fans. ANY team that gives up has already setup the mindset of losing. I've seen teams and even players score points quickly--remember Reggie Miller's quick 8pts in 9 seconds vs the Knicks? It's not over until the clock hits 0:00.

The bench is the key for either team I think...and Dallas just honestly has a much better bench. Harris...what can you say he could run circles around Miami. Miami lacks speed, and any kind of up tempo game. This will kill them in the end. Pat Riley has great playoff coaching experience...10 years ago. He's a great coach...but Avery won the coach of the year for a VERY good reason.

I think the Heat will win in 6 or 7 games simply because the Mavs have been changing their style of play through the first 3 rounds of the playoffs, whereas Miami has stuck to their same style - just gelling together as a team. That's seemed to work well so far.

This means Dallas CAN and HAS adapt(ed) to any style of play while Miami is ONE DIMENSIONAL. D-Wade will get his and Shaq will have an up and down series--but that's it. Dallas' bench will be the deciding factor. And, Dallas' halfcourt offense is better than Miami's, and Miami doesn't have ANY fastbreak offense to speak of. You don't think Dallas has "gelled" as a team? If they didn't gel they would of NEVER beat San Antonio IN San Antonio. I've NEVER seen a Mavericks team so on the same page in the 20+ years I've been watching them.

If should be pretty clear that Dallas is going to beat Miami, hell even Barkley finally admits it. The real NBA Finals was vs San Antonio in most people's eyes--with exception to Detriot, Phoenix, & Miami fans. That was possibly the best series I've ever seen. I was so emotionally drained after it was over...

 

[McLaren]

Exactly! Even when there was around 10 seconds on the clock, they had a chance to regain at least 5 points.

As you said, this is bad for Miami. The only thing the team can hope for is that playing at their home court will improve their spirits because if a team acts like Miami did at its home court, the fans are going to be upset.

 

[Omnis]

Man, Avery Johnson looks like Stitch.





Miami played horribly. They could've EASILY won the game if they didn't miss every single shot and stuff. I hope we win tommorow and then remain straight once we get on home court. GO HEAT!

 

[Saleen Man]

Everyone saying Miami is done, oddly enough, is from Texas. I don't think Miami is done at all. I agree with JCE3000GT on one thing, this series will come down to the bench and the "supporting casts". That's why Dallas won Game 1. Sure Nowitzki was cold, but who relies on Jason Terry to be ridiculously hot all game and score 32? And how about those free throws....no one but Shaq and Wade got to the free throw line all game for Miami, and they combined to shoot 7-19. Don't count Miami out because of one poor performance.

 

[Omnis]

Wade never ceases to amaze me in every game, though. Poor guy... playing through the flu and stuff. I wonder if Mark Cuban had someone sabotage him on purpose.

 

[a6m5]

Don't count Miami out because of one poor performance.

I counted out Miami when they reached the Finals. On Jason Terry thing; I think it evened out in the end by Terry picking up Dirk's slack. Terry is having a great playoff though. He was hurting San Anton, too. On paper, it looks like Miami should win with their big name roster, but I really think the edge for Dallas is Avery Johnson. I don't know if he won the Coach of the Year, but he should've. If there was one, a Rookie of the Year for coach too. Go Avery! 👍

 

[McLaren]

Everyone saying Miami is done, oddly enough, is from Texas. I don't think Miami is done at all. I agree with JCE3000GT on one thing, this series will come down to the bench and the "supporting casts". That's why Dallas won Game 1. Sure Nowitzki was cold, but who relies on Jason Terry to be ridiculously hot all game and score 32? And how about those free throws....no one but Shaq and Wade got to the free throw line all game for Miami, and they combined to shoot 7-19. Don't count Miami out because of one poor performance.

Our news coverage is also adding that if Miami can not beat Dallas when it was on one of its worse offensive plays (mentioning Dirk's performance), what will happen to Miami when Dallas has a good offence?

 

[Giancarlo]

If Miami had only made their free throws the game would have been much closer. We will not have another 80 point game in this series, that's insane; we haven't played that badly since our last loss to Detroit (another 30% FT shooting night), and Dallas only won by 10.

I really don't think it's that big a deal that they lost, and find it unfair that you Dallas fans already think it's over. It's only game 1, and this is the Finals for crying out loud.

 

[McLaren]

I'm not saying it's over for Miami, but c'mon.

They gave absolutely no effort at the end, even with the Mavericks on a poor Offence. BUT, I do think the next game will be better. Wade should be fully recovered from his flu.

 

[a6m5]

I really don't think it's that big a deal that they lost, and find it unfair that you Dallas fans already think it's over.

If I was one of the "Dallas fans", don't take what I say to heart. For me, it's one of those things, "if Miami reach the Finals, they wouldn't be able to beat San Anton, or Dallas". I'm pretty good when it comes to guessing the playoff series results, but there's been just one year, when I guessed 100% right. And you are right about the first win being not that big of a deal. Now, if Dallas lost one at home, that would be a big deal to Dallas, because then, their home court advantage is taken away.

 

[McLaren]

What kind of BS was that?

The ref was right next to the Mavs player, and if he hadn't been so close and had his foot out, Dallas wouldn't have tripped....

 

[Omnis]

Jesus CHRIST, man! Miami has the WORST defense I've seen ALL SEASON. Bad defense + brickout = games lost. I can't believe that miami is doing so poorly, I really can't.

I think stupid Mark Cuban has a telekenetic device hidden under his bangs. Udonis Haslem also took that really bad fall. Screw Jason Terry...Haslem's shoulder is probably fubar.

 

[a6m5]

Udonis Haslem also took that really bad fall. Screw Jason Terry...Haslem's shoulder is probably fubar.

It pains me to see his frustration on the bench. What happened to him? Did Terry take him out?

As for the game, it's over for me. What was it? 82-58 going into the 4th quarter? Unless you are Dallas fan, there isn't anything to see anymore.

P.S. I don't think it's the problem with the Miami Defense, but it's the Dallas offense. When Mavs are shooting lights out like they were in the end of 2nd thru the 3rd, that creates so many easy baskets inside. One issue Miami defense do have to deal with is the transition defense. When Dallas get the defensive rebound(and there are a lot of those with the way Miami's shooting), Dallas guards are going AROUND Miami players(standing still), finishing at the other end.

2 possibilities here: 1) They didn't do their homework. 2) They are lazy.

Every casual NBA fan knows that Dallas like to run. So the 1st excuse is highly unlikely. Either way, Miami don't deserve to win with that kind of effort.

 

[McLaren]

Maybe I'm the only one, but does Game 2 resemble Game 1?

They begin very close, and near the end of the 1st quarter, Miami has the lead by a couple of points. Then, halfway into the 2nd Quarter they get close, but near the end, Dallas begins the break away. 3rd quarter=Dallas continuing the break away.

Hopefully, tonight, we won't see the Heat just give up.
And perhaps, they'll show their true colors on Tuesday.

 

[a6m5]

Hopefully, tonight, we won't see the Heat just give up.
And perhaps, they'll show their true colors on Tuesday.

Actually, tonight, I think they should just give up. 4th quarter's pretty much the "garbage" time tonight, so I wouldn't play my starters too much. Dallas will let them catch up, but it won't be enough.

No need to panic for Miami, but they will have to win their home games now. NBA officiating is such a BS that if Miami actually show effort on their home court, they will have good chance of evenning the series.

 

[Giancarlo]

If we lose the next game i'm not bothering to watch the rest of this series.

 

[a6m5]

If we lose the next game i'm not bothering to watch the rest of this series.

Yeah, if they drop three in a row, I'd say 50-50 chance that they'll get swept. Don't feel too bad about your team though. Only teams that I can think of that could beat Dallas right now would be either the Spurs(of course lost a really, really close one), or last year's Pistons. Mavs are just waaaay too hot right now.

 

[McLaren]

I noticed the NBA said that 93% of the teams who manage 2-0 this early have won.

With the Mavs in high spirits, and the Heat on their home turf, we should see a more exciting game.

 

[Omnis]

It pains me to see his frustration on the bench. What happened to him? Did Terry take him out?

As for the game, it's over for me. What was it? 82-58 going into the 4th quarter? Unless you are Dallas fan, there isn't anything to see anymore.

P.S. I don't think it's the problem with the Miami Defense, but it's the Dallas offense. When Mavs are shooting lights out like they were in the end of 2nd thru the 3rd, that creates so many easy baskets inside. One issue Miami defense do have to deal with is the transition defense. When Dallas get the defensive rebound(and there are a lot of those with the way Miami's shooting), Dallas guards are going AROUND Miami players(standing still), finishing at the other end.

2 possibilities here: 1) They didn't do their homework. 2) They are lazy.

Every casual NBA fan knows that Dallas like to run. So the 1st excuse is highly unlikely. Either way, Miami don't deserve to win with that kind of effort.

Haslem made an AWESOME block on Jason Terry and sent terry flying backwards, but Haslem fell straight on his elbow and butt. I'm guessing that he strained his shoulder joint because all of that impact traveled straight up his humerus. Everyone thought he fouled Terry or something, though. I dunno.

Anyway, here is the Heat's number 1 problem: bricks. Their shooting average today was HORRIBLE. Their 3 point average was even worse, and most of the shots of their game were 3's. These guys are pros, they shouldn't be missing open shots.

Gary Payton particularly pisses me off. What good is he? He does next to nothing on defense. Miami's problem all game is that they got sucked into the paint. When they played man-up, they STILL went to the basket. Dallas is a smart team. If you make mistakes, they capitalize. Shaq getting 5 points is ridiculous. Our players are way to nervous. They need to let shaq be the leader of the pack and stuff. The only way the lakers were successful was when Kobe became an afterthought as opposed to Shaquille, which allowed Kobe and the rest of the team to play relaxed and throw up unexpected points. Hopefully we can come home and stop sucking so much.

I honestly think the Heat are beating themselves.

 

[JCE]

The Heat may not be helping themselves by shooting poorly from the foul line and the floor--but come on give the Mavericks some credit. I can't STAND the media bias towards the Heat with exception to the local DALLAS media. ABC/ESPN and TNT are obviously slanted to the Mavs opponents. Hell Barkley and Kenny flatout said before game 6 of the Suns series they wanted the Suns to win...now how can you be OBJECTIVE if you admit your bias on national TV? It's like Dallas has sneaked in to the Finals and is sneaking the trophy away from Miami. Last time I checked Dallas won 60 games (3rd best in the NBA behind Detriot and San Antonio), Dallas has outstanding DEFENSE, Dallas has mental and phyiscal toughness for the first time in 26 years (thank you lil general!), and they have a team mentality. You know what won this game? It's not Miami LOSING it--it's Dallas' BENCH. 41-20 point differential from the bench in favor of Dallas. I'll tell you what REALLY put a grin on my face is Erick Dampier out scoring and out rebounding Shaq and Dirk having the quietest 26pt 16reb game that I've ever seen him have. I honestly didn't know he had 26pts until I saw the postgame interview when they flashed the point total on the screen.

Here's a little factiod, in NBA Finals history before this game there were 6 4pt plays--in this game there were TWO. It's like Dallas' bench just went off and got psycho. Stack was great as was Griffin's defense on D-Wade. If Miami wants to win at least one or two games they need to play small ball and not even bother bringing Shaq into the lineup. I'm sorry but Shaq's a liability with his 12.5% FT shooting in the Finals thus far. And as a whole Miami is not exactly a good FT shooting team. It looked like they gave up twice in this game...Dallas became complacent and a little lax in their defense and allowed Miami to get a tiny run going until the Mavs woke up and finished the game. Game 1 hero was J Terry and Game 2's hero was Stack...who's going to be Game 3's hero? My bet is on J-Ho Josh Howard.

 

[a6m5]

Great. Now I can't tell the difference between JCE and McLaren.

I agree with JCE. It's not so much Miami, it's Dallas.

And it's too bad about Haslem. I hope he'll make it back soon. When they were showing his face from the bench, you can tell that he so badly wanted to play.

 

[JCE]

Great. Now I can't tell the difference between JCE and McLaren.

I agree with JCE. It's not so much Miami, it's Dallas.

And it's too bad about Haslem. I hope he'll make it back soon. When they were showing his face from the bench, you can tell that he so badly wanted to play.

I ghetto-fied my logo by resizing the wallpaper and adding a similar color to McLaren's. I didn't want to jack McLaren's logo so I made my own. If he'll let me I'll switch to his--as his has a bit better and cleaner resolution--I'd be happy...then you really couldn't tell the difference.

And Haslem gets my respect for one thing, his decent defense on Dirk is Miami's only bright spot. But that's just the way it goes, he did foul Terry--but it was a good playoff hard foul. He just landed square on his hip and elbow. He'll be ok on Tuesday--it's the Finals he will play. But I doubt it'd make any difference...Dirk's probably thinking he had another bad game so watch out for Dirk to throw down 35-40pts on Tuesday. 👍

 

[Omnis]

I ghetto-fied my logo by resizing the wallpaper and adding a similar color to McLaren's. I didn't want to jack McLaren's logo so I made my own. If he'll let me I'll switch to his--as his has a bit better and cleaner resolution--I'd be happy...then you really couldn't tell the difference.

And Haslem gets my respect for one thing, his decent defense on Dirk is Miami's only bright spot. But that's just the way it goes, he did foul Terry--but it was a good playoff hard foul. He just landed square on his hip and elbow. He'll be ok on Tuesday--it's the Finals he will play. But I doubt it'd make any difference...Dirk's probably thinking he had another bad game so watch out for Dirk to throw down 35-40pts on Tuesday. 👍

WTF do you mean he fouled Terry? His hand and body went through the ball. Terry and Haslem only smashed together as Terry was traveling towards the hoop with the ball already out of his control.

Shaq SERIOUSLY needs to work on the free throws. If he could shoot FT's, everyone on our team would be shaq-fodder. Haha.

 

[Omnis]

With all this talk of Mavs avvies, I thought I'd make my own...