Where has that team been?

April 2nd, 2008 Posted in Game Recap

I haven’t given out a lot of praise to this team since I started the site, but that’s all I’m going to do tonight. Yes, it’s a little knee-jerky to get completely positive after finally beating a .500 or better team. But, after the way this team played tonight they deserve it. We’ll get back to nit-picking what Avery does or doesn’t do later.

That was an amazing showing tonight. It’s what I expected to happen every night when the Kidd trade was made. And it was great to finally see it happen. Yes, before we get too excited they’ll need to win one of the games this weekend against Phoenix and the Lakers, but maybe this will be the jump start to a strong finish to this season.

Jason Kidd dominated this game finishing with 5 points, 11 boards and 17 assists. It looks like Avery has finally given up the reins of this team to Kidd and it showed tonight. The Mavs had a huge advantage in fast break points as Kidd got this team running like they haven’t in the last month. The offense looked good with good ball movement and off the ball movement. Strong picks that actually lead to easy baskets. It was just fun to watch Kidd run this team tonight.

Jason Terry and Josh Howard also had great games ending up with 31 and 28 points respectively. Josh was getting to the rim and finishing, Terry was getting good, easy looks thanks to Kidd’s work. Josh may be back in the same form he was in at the beginning of the season and if he is that’s a very good thing for this team.

Dampier played 27 minutes and picked up 11 boards and 3 blocks to go along with 4 points. And he contributed in ways that don’t show up in the box score. He clogged up the lane, changed shots, set strong picks and just overall played a good game. Hopefully that was enough to show Avery that he belongs in these games.

It was great to see Eddie Jones playing the way he did. He played 20 minutes and had 12 points including an ally-oop dunk from Josh that tore the roof off the building. When he went out after seemingly reactivating his knee problem it was hard for me to watch. And you could see the disappoint in his face as well. Hopefully it was nothing serious and he’ll back this weekend as it looks like he can contribute to this team down the stretch here.

And then there was Dirk. His performance tonight was awe inspiring. Just his presence on the floor gave this team a boost and it was easily noticeable. You could tell he wasn’t anywhere near 100% but he was out there giving it all. He somehow manages to play 27 minutes and picked up 18 points and 5 boards. It was extremely nerve racking every time he went to floor when you just hope he gets back up okay.  I’m sure he’ll be sore tomorrow but he was there because his team needed him tonight.

To all of his doubters that are out there, you may question if he’s the right guy to lead this team but there is absolutely no way you can question the guys heart. And after tonight you can’t question that this is HIS team and he’s the guy all these other guys rally around. I could go on all night about him and his greatness tonight, but I’ll leave it at that.

Like I said, I don’t want to get too excited after one game where they finally win against a good team. But after tonight this team is making the playoffs. They now have a 2 game lead over the Warriors and the tie-break. And if they can keep playing like they did tonight then these guys can make a run in the playoffs.


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  1. 35 Responses to “Where has that team been?”

  2. By KeepingItReal on Apr 2, 2008 at 11:35:11 pm

    Good to finally see a win against a real opponent. Everyone just needs to give props to Dirk. He really lifted his team tonight

  3. By . on Apr 2, 2008 at 11:44:19 pm

    They have big games against PHX and LA coming up..

  4. By David on Apr 2, 2008 at 11:50:04 pm

    I told you Kidd is the best. I can’t wait to hear how the haters spin this.

  5. By John on Apr 2, 2008 at 11:54:43 pm

    That was freakin awesome, Dirk just does not get credit for how tough he is. The injury he had looked like his career was over but he still gutted it out and played tonight. Dirk Nowitzki is a warrior. People like Dwyane Whistle cry about their injuries and need wheelchairs, Dirk on the other hand stands tall like a man and helps his team win. Go mAVS

  6. By MFFL on Apr 2, 2008 at 11:58:44 pm

    Like I always have said, I still believe! When this team plays good, I can’t think of a single team they can’t beat. I really hope Dirk keeps improving and Eddie Jones is ok…and once Stack is back, watch out everyone. And as much as I want them to beat the Lakers this week, and I really think they can, I want them to beat the Suns more.

  7. By george on Apr 3, 2008 at 12:10:34 am

    FABULOUS !!!!!

    ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS !!!!!

    That’s the team I’ve been missing for so long, and they’re back!!! and I too…….

    >>>>>>>>>BELIEVE IN THEM<<<<<<<<<<<

  8. By georgia on Apr 3, 2008 at 12:11:39 am

    FABULOUS !!!!!

    ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS !!!!!

    That’s the team I’ve been missing for so long, and they’re back!!! and I too…….

    >>>>>>>>>BELIEVE IN THEM<<<<<<<<<<<

  9. By David on Apr 3, 2008 at 1:14:21 am

    Notice how smooth and aggressive we play when we’re on the fast break because Avery doesn’t have time to call shit plays. No one is better than Kidd on the fast break and tonight proved it. Let him push the ball every time and we’re extremely difficult to beat.

  10. By PHIL RICHARDS on Apr 3, 2008 at 1:34:29 am

    lets just remember that avery and the mavs are famous for going on big winning streaks and the way they looked against a hungry, backs against the wall warriors squad. well it was back to the 67 win mavs tonight
    dont see why it cant keep happening

  11. By Jason Kidd on Apr 3, 2008 at 1:36:33 am

    See what kind of damage we can do when Avery lets me run the offense?

  12. By Eric Dampier on Apr 3, 2008 at 1:50:48 am

    See how the Mavs can dominate the interior when Avery lets me play?

  13. By mike on Apr 3, 2008 at 3:54:09 am

    Kidd had more assists than the entire Warriors team. I’m with David on this one; where are you haters?

  14. By mike on Apr 3, 2008 at 3:55:48 am

    Another thing…

    WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! That was a frickin’ awesome performance by our Mavs tonight!! If you can’t get amped up about them after watching that, something’s wrong with you.

  15. By Kirk on Apr 3, 2008 at 9:13:12 am

    “Hope springs eternal…” -Alexander Pope

    That was an exciting game. There’s one or two issues to nitpick, particularly that Howard needed 25 shots to get 28 points and didn’t make it to the line once. However, there is a HUGE difference between J-Ho’s 13-15 footer and his shake-and-bake 17 footer. The former he makes, the latter he doesnt.

    There was also these funny situations where the ball was leaving his hands and NOT going towards the basket. In fact, the ball often left his hands and went towards his teammates! For easy buckets! It was amazing! For his career he averages 1.7 assists a game, last night he had 5. I was thrilled.

    Overall, I feel good after a game for the first time in two months. Now, lets buckle down and beat those smarmy Lakers.

  16. By Julian on Apr 3, 2008 at 9:29:41 am

    Great effort by the guys last night…let’s keep this momentum rolling baby! Lay the smackdown on those Lakers and Suns!!

  17. By Ronald on Apr 3, 2008 at 10:40:49 am

    AMEN to all of the above!

  18. By James on Apr 3, 2008 at 10:56:32 am

    Yes this team’s performance was nothing short of brilliant.

    By the way…I could have sworn that AJ was on the sideline coaching this team to this second blow out of the Warriors (the 1st was back on January 2nd..by 22 points)….not a bad job performance for a guy with a website SOLELY dedicated to getting him fired from his job, huh? :)

  19. By Martin on Apr 3, 2008 at 11:51:52 am

    It is an exciting game. But don’t forgot GS played back to back game which might affect their performance.

    Let’s see how they face Lakers and Suns.

  20. By Greg on Apr 3, 2008 at 12:37:51 pm

    Ok, new rule. If you post a comment in all caps it’s getting deleted. I don’t care what you say in the the comments as long as you aren’t attacking someone else. So feel free to keep posting about how bad the Mavs are even though Houston hasn’t exactly looked good since their little streak ended, just don’t do it in all caps.

  21. By Julian on Apr 3, 2008 at 12:48:59 pm

    It’s funny how attitudes change with one good win…what an emotional roller coaster this season has been.

  22. By Cliff on Apr 3, 2008 at 12:57:26 pm

    hahahaha… owned!

  23. By Jamaal Magloire on Apr 3, 2008 at 1:07:06 pm

    good win for us… but when the hell do i get minutes on this team??

  24. By Mav in Cali on Apr 3, 2008 at 1:09:27 pm

    Now that’s the Mav Team we’ve all been expecting to see since Kidd’s arrival. Avery finally let the reigns loose last night and that’s the exact result we should have been seeing the last 21 games…a fast-breaking, high energy, Kidd-led team!

    It seems that Avery is learning… a little bit slow for all of our tastes, but learning none the less. If Avery can continue to trust in his players (i.e. Kidd and Damp), let them do what they are paid to do and what they do best, and not micro-manage the entire game, then I like our odds in the playoffs.

    The true test for Avery will be when we are in close, high pressure situations. Last night after letting Kidd run the team, the Mavs were up by double digits the entire game, so there was really no situation in which Avery got stressed out. But I want to see how he reacts in LA or Phoenix if the entire game is close, and especially in the last 2 minutes if we’re down or up only by a couple of buckets. If he reverts back to the Little Dictator, then it’ll be the same old story, and we’ll all be back on this blog calling for his head!

  25. By ogleboy on Apr 3, 2008 at 1:10:06 pm

    if we keep playing like this then we shouldn’t have any probles against phoenix or l.a.

  26. By Mav in Cali on Apr 3, 2008 at 1:39:00 pm

    I hope you’re right ogleboy, cuz last night I had the time of my life watching the game! I live in the heart of of Warrior’s land (SF Bay Area), and for the 3rd time this season, I actually didn’t hear my neighbors screaming with joy with a Warrior’s win over Dallas.

  27. By georgia on Apr 3, 2008 at 2:50:03 pm

    I wrote in all caps because I was excited and happy…….not bashing anyone, ok??

    who’re you anyway…..but just a poster ??

    be happy…….we won!!!

  28. By georgia on Apr 3, 2008 at 2:54:07 pm

    ok Greg……sorry about that. I know who you are now.

    Great site btw…it’s one of my daily main reads….

    go mavs

  29. By Greg on Apr 3, 2008 at 3:01:55 pm

    No worries, it wasn’t directed at you. Besides, your post wasn’t all caps. :)

  30. By JParas on Apr 3, 2008 at 3:47:10 pm

    I love the fact the Avery left the “matching up” to the warriors and nellie. It was so pathetic to see GS try to go BIG. The Mavs are old…but still have tons of talent. Now Avery will have to make a decision to Double Kobe Quickly or let him score but shut down the support. Either way I think we can pull off the win if they stick to it aggresively and keep driving to the hole. Surprizingly agaist PHX we should RUN RUN RUN and take shaq out of it. Damp needs to stay out of foul troubleb b/c no one to backup. I knew Jet was good on the break but never thought he was as good as what he showed last night! Think they should start Jet. He is a streak shooter. when he gets hot he is sizzling:)

  31. By Julian on Apr 3, 2008 at 3:57:12 pm

    I believe it gives us a mental edge when we are not conforming to other teams. It obviously gives the opponent more confidence when we try to match up with them. We need as much positive enery flowing through the Mavs in order for them to make a run for the rest of the season. Avery needs to let them play as displayed last night and just have fun for crying out loud. It makes it more enjoyable from the coach to the players and the fans. GO MAVS!!!

  32. By T on Apr 3, 2008 at 4:11:27 pm

    About time to see the Mavs play with heart. Who thinks Dirk is soft now? The only thing “soft” about Dirk is his skin color. Go Mavs. I think Eddie Jones visited the fountain of youth before last nights game. Where has that Eddie Jones been? Great game…the fans needed a game like that

  33. By Tareque on Apr 3, 2008 at 4:48:50 pm

    Wow! What a game…finally we got a good one. BTW, yes Damp played and made a difference….

  34. By mike on Apr 3, 2008 at 5:11:34 pm

    Andris Biedrins is a pathetic excuse for a CENTER. I mean, 6′9″? Who are you trying to kid, Nellie? 2 games over those measly Warriors, with the 3-1 tiebreaker. Things are looking up for our Mavs. Nobody at ESPN thinks so, but they’ll look pretty silly going ‘goo-goo-ga-ga’ over the Celtics when they don’t even make it to the Finals this year.

  35. By blah on Apr 3, 2008 at 5:36:40 pm

    The key to beating the Suns is getting Amare into foul trouble. He is an unstoppable beast on offense; teams need to exploit his defensive liabilities to take him out of the game. And that means taking it hard to the hole.

  36. By MFFL on Apr 4, 2008 at 8:13:27 am

    That’s true blah! He’s one of the worst defenders I’ve seen, liable to make silly mistakes, even though he doesn’t think so. Or eliminate Nash’s passing with good defense, because Amare only scores when Nash spoon feeds him the ball.

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