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And so it is...

So it looks like the Mavs brought a magnificently anti-climactic end to their wonderful playoff run. We folded under the pressure of actual expectations, great interior defense, ridiculous officiating and an unstoppable superstar, and lost to the Heat 4-2. The Mavs brought me to the brink, only to spectacularly knock me back down. In a way, the circle is complete. My manager Mark may have jinxed it when he said after game 2, Good, so you've got two teams winning championships this year. But the reality is I got a taste of both extremes. Absolute Euphoria and Horrible Heartbreak. And so it is.

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I had a day to digest and vent and unwind the anger and sadness of it all, but the part that still gets to me is that for whatever reason, the Mavs that made it through the West never really showed up in the Finals. Sure we had our chances to put it away, but even when we were winning, it just wasn't the same Swiss Army knife team that ran the Spurs off the court and clamped down on the Suns. I think from the coaches down, once we choked away Game 3 to D-Wade's I'm-stealing-Dirk's-mojo-for-good transcendent fourth quarter, everyone was just too nervous, too afraid to lose. It's like once we were the favorites, we lost that toughness, that underdog swagger and forgot to play loose and have fun. I hate to admit it, but that's probably where Shaq's, Riley's even Payton's and Zo's experience came in. The wisdom and patience that comes with age. I think that, even more than D-Wade, was the real difference.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the officiating. I've never been one to complain about refs. I've hated certain calls, but I'm always quick to give them the benefit of the doubt. After all, it's a hard job, they have to make judgments on things that happen in split seconds, and of course there are mistakes, they're only human. I've always believed that referees try their hardest to call a fair game. And then Game 5 came along. I can't really say anything that our man Bill Simmons hasn't already said, but as my friend Steve says, it's always good to see affirmation of your injustice in print. Some key observations from Simmons,

First, Dwyane Wade shot as many free throws (25) as the entire Dallas team in Game 5. I just don't see how there's any way this can happen in a fairly-called game. It's theoretically impossible...not only did Salvatore officiate Sunday night's Game 5 (in which Miami had a 40-12 free-throw advantage at one point), but Salvatore called the foul on Wade's final drive in overtime (remember, the call where ABC couldn't find a replay to show that anyone touched him?) even though he was standing at midcourt a full 35-40 feet from the play, and even though two other refs were closer to the play. Not only was that NOT his call, he butchered it.

That's basically all there is to it. It wasn't enough that Miami's D was very good and knocked us off our game. It wasn't enough that Wade was playing at an astronomically high level, but now we have to deal with this? And we still had plenty of chances to put the Heat away. We just lacked the testicular fortitude to stand up to all that. In my mind, we legitimately choked away games 3 and 6, lost game 4 outright, but game 5 was stolen by the refs, pure and simple.

(The really sad part is all the backlash from casual and even die-hard NBA fans. Non Heat and Mav affiliated basketball fans wanted to see good games. As the sidebar from the column shows, one-sided officiating doesn't just tick off a team's fan base, it drives people away. For awhile yesterday I was in their camp. But I know next May, a Mavs-Spurs or a Mavs-Suns game is gonna blow me away and suck me back in.)

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The Mavs youth and lack of experience is obviously also a positive. Dirk's the oldest starter at only 28, and Avery Johnson isn't much older than him. And that's really the second best thing about sports (after the aforementioned euphoria). There's always a next. A next game, next series, next season. I believe we'll sign Terry and Howard and contend once again. I believe in Cuban's whiny persistence and Avery Johnson's tenaciousness. I believe Dirk will once again work his ass of this summer and figure out the Haslems and Poseys like he did the Bowens and Marions last summer. My annointment of Dirk's playoff run into the Dallas sports Pantheon may be a bit tainted, but I believe he's got way more to show us. I believe I'll be posting about another deep playoff run next year, and I believe the US will beat Ghana tomorrow morning, Italy will beat the Czechs and we'll have a first round date with the best football team in the world, Brazil.

Sure, we don't stand much of a chance, but it's the ride that counts baby, and it's why we love our games.

Go USA.

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"You play your heart out for eight, nine months every night ... all the way until the middle of June. You make it to the finals, to the big stage, then go home. Second is tough. ... But I'm sure that the more time goes by, we can be proud of what we did this year."
---Dirk Nowitzki

Posted by sheelpi at June 22, 2006 12:09 AM