Too Hard to Guard
Dirk Nowitzki (photo. Monte Isom)After You-Know-Who and You-Know-Who-Else, who would you say is the single toughest player in the NBA to guard? We might have to go with Dirk Nowitzki. As Dime’s Austin Burton wrote a couple months ago about the fourth-leading scorer in the League: “From 25 feet and in, he’s a consistent finisher with a plethora of moves (best up-fake in the League) that make him a lethal scorer against any defender (best fadeaway in the League). Whoever is in front of him, Dirk can drop buckets and create mismatches.“ Ask the Bulls about that, as Dirk dropped 44 points (16-34 FG, 11-11 FT) on ‘em last night, 14 of it in overtime of the Mavs’ win. Even more impressive was that Dirk did it mostly without Jason Terry and Josh Howard around to divert Chicago’s attention; Terry left the game after breaking a bone in his left hand, and Howard spent a lot of time on the bench in foul trouble. Vinny Del Negro was throwing all kinds of defenses and a variety of defenders at Dirk, but nobody could do anything with him. He hit three straight J’s to open up overtime, then iced it with free throws in the final seconds … Jason Kidd is finally starting to look his age in the face, but Derrick Rose made him look his age on the court. Kidd made some big plays here and there — like sticking the OT-forcing three with 13 seconds left in the fourth quarter, hitting another big three in OT, and handing out 10 assists for the game — but Rose (22 pts, 9 asts) was blowing past him easy even when Kidd played off him several steps … We haven’t heard yet how long Terry will be out, but we’re assuming it will be for a while. Not only do the Mavs’ playoff hopes take a big hit (they’re only two games up on 9th-place Phoenix), the injury also opens the door for somebody else to take the Sixth Man award, which is Terry’s to lose. Nobody — not even Manu Ginobili — has been better coming off the bench this season … You know how D-League teams will sometimes wear the same unis as their NBA affiliates? That’s what Nets/Nuggets looked like, at least from Denver’s side. Getting beat badly in every facet of the game, the Nuggets looked like they were still in training camp mode while the Nets were gearing up for the playoffs, moving the ball with a Spurs-like precision and getting wide-open shots whenever they wanted in a 114-70 laugher … Devin Harris led NJ with 28 points, while Carmelo (15 pts) was the only guy in blue who could have passed for a legit NBA player; one time ‘Melo got Vince Carter on a step-back move (with a little Jordan-on-Russell shove) that had Vince running from the free throw line all the way out of bounds on the baseline after ‘Melo had stopped. As ‘Melo canned the jumper, Vince kept his head down like he was hoping nobody saw him …
Tracy McGrady (photo. Marc Morrison)If you haven’t picked up on the formula when Yao and Al Jefferson go head-to-head, here it is: Big Al puts up big numbers, Yao walks out with the win. Yesterday Jefferson went for 36 points and 22 boards in a loss, his team’s sixth straight to Houston. The Wolves blew it during a 17-2 Rockets run covering the third and fourth quarter, sparked by Rafer Alston hitting a couple threes and Yao (30 pts) scoring inside … Post-game quote from T-Mac: “[We'll win] if we play with that type of energy, scrambling, helping each other on defense, covering for one another. That’s what we do, that’s who we are.” Think about that and then watch the play in the first quarter when Kevin Love passed out of a Yao/Scola double-team to Jefferson on the wing. While Al seemed kind of surprised that nobody was within five feet of him and hesitated, T-Mac, who was the closest Rocket, just stood there and watched. And when Jefferson finally made a move toward the basket (which resulted in a layup), T-Mac actually backed away from him. We missed the scrambling, covering for one another part of that sequence … Two ways you can look at Detroit’s overtime win in Milwaukee: Glass half-full, the Pistons finally got a good game from Allen Iverson (27 pts, 9 asts), Rip Hamilton (38 pts) and Rasheed Wallace (27 pts, 7 threes) at the same time, put up 120-plus points even with Rodney Stuckey and Tayshaun struggling to make shots (combined 4-for-21 FG), and pulled out a tough road win. Glass half-empty, the Pistons were taken down to the wire by a team that’s decimated by injuries — i.e., the Bucks are starting Luc Richard Mbah a Moute at two-guard — and the backcourt got torched by Ramon Sessions (44 pts, 12 asts), who wasn’t even starting a couple months ago … After Sessions hit a couple free throws to put the Bucks up by one with 45 seconds left in the extra frame, A.I. got the lead back with a step-back mid-range J, and after Keith Bogans missed a jumper, Rip hit two free throws to make it a three-point game. Richard Jefferson missed a three with six seconds left, and Rip hit two more from the stripe to seal it … Rough night for Zaza Pachulia: In the second half of Hawks/Clippers, he got crammed on something nasty by Al Thornton, one of those dunks where Thorton flew into the paint so fast and dunked so hard, his momentum almost made him bite it on the landing. Later in the half, Zaza was playing help defense when Baron Davis shook Acie Law with a behind-the-back dribble, then in the same motion threw the ball between Zaza’s legs before recovering it flipping in a layup. And finally, Zaza’s team got blown out (at home) by the Clippers … If you missed it yesterday, the Lakers traded Vlad Radmanovic to the Bobcats for Adam Morrison and Shannon Brown. We were just talking about how Morrison had gotten his minutes jacked by D-League call-up Cartier Martin, signaling that his future in Charlotte was bleak. When he gets decent PT, Morrison’s not terrible. He can be a Wally Szczerbiak-type shooter/scorer off the bench for L.A., but this was probably more of a money move than anything; the Lakers get out from under Vlad’s long-term deal, helping them re-sign Trevor Ariza and possibly Lamar Odom this summer … We’re out like T-Mac’s help D …
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February 8th, 2009 at 4:54 am
burnie says:
Amare for LaMarcus and Raef! Pull the trigger!
February 8th, 2009 at 5:11 am
qwerty says:
Poor vlad.
February 8th, 2009 at 5:22 am
Hi, Jurg from Denmark says:
hi hi from jurg, in copenha’ denmark.
i would like to tell you about my fantasy team which is coming 6th from 12 competitors.
i have lost elton brandy, chirs bosh, mr andris biedrens, mr baron davis, and so many players to injury and then was silly billy to trade ramond sessions one day before he decids to give out 44point and 12 dime. and this makes me very sad.
and these injury will have to make jurg trade out of trouble. the only way to go.
and does anyone think that mr monta ellis can be a 20 point scorer every game again?
hi from jurg. hi.
February 8th, 2009 at 5:27 am
James says:
Dirk was unbelievable.
As someone who criticizes him for settling for fadeaways, I realized that those ridiculous shots must be like layups for him. Still he needs to go inside more, but otherwise, this dude gets hated on way too much. Dirk has been clutch in all the close games this season and in years past.
February 8th, 2009 at 5:28 am
James says:
Oh and another thing- Ramon Sessions is a sick player.
February 8th, 2009 at 5:37 am
Tim says:
When was the last time Iverson dunked in a game?
http://searchwarp.com/swa223242.htm
February 8th, 2009 at 6:32 am
mavs all the way says:
well well well…
February 8th, 2009 at 6:44 am
mavs all the way says:
i’d say…. we’re in trouble.
i agree burnie. bring it on! what can you say about this:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/120217-phoenix-suns-shopping-amare-stoudemire-who-they-can-get-for-him
interesting huh? that trade to pistons or wizards looks good.
jurg, maybe next season.
james, i feel you brother. amen to that.
and Tim, that’s pathetic.
February 8th, 2009 at 6:54 am
The Bloke says:
shame big al’s team stinks. were he on a better team, he’d definitly be an all star. take him away and sota would have trouble winning 10 games…
bigup to dirk. gut gemacht!!
February 8th, 2009 at 8:36 am
Flip says:
Nice game by Dirk, youre right in pointing out that he’s one of the hardest players to guard and adjust to in the NBA.
On a different note: Ramon Sessions is playing out of his mind right now…
February 8th, 2009 at 9:01 am
that's whats up says:
I have a feeling the Nugget d*ckriders won’t log on to post today.
Your team’s legitimacy was always in question.
That’s because they ain’t shit and they ain’t doin’ shit.
February 8th, 2009 at 9:02 am
fallinup says:
Here you go guys. Everyone should be interested in a little ankle insurance.
Diversify your portfolio now!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPnRFkPWyDM
February 8th, 2009 at 9:35 am
Bron42 aka Downtown Funky Stuff Malone says:
“Dirk has been clutch in all the close games this season and in years past.
” He hits a game winner and has a big game against the bulls and now hes clutch in years past? lol did you just become a mavs fan and miss the past years? Tall, shooter who avoids the post describes dirk, never clutch.
@that’s whats up,
Are there any actual nuggets fans on this site? or are they just melo fans?
how long before adam morrison morphs into toni kukoc now in the lakers triangle.
p.s:and yao gets dunked on some moreeeee
February 8th, 2009 at 9:45 am
jzsmoove says:
I saw some of the Raps game last night and it was terrible! It was worse than watching a college hoops match. The aura itself at the Fedex Forum was atrociuos there was no life at all. The Raptors are sinking to a new low reminds me of the time just before Vince left. And the Grizzlies should not look build around Mayo whatsoever. He aint staying period. No top notch talent would want to waste their time on a losing organization.
February 8th, 2009 at 10:04 am
rangerjohn says:
i hate to say it but i agree with bron42, as i have said, dirk has had some clutch games but damn they are far out weighed by none clutch games. i mean damn its like saying because i had a 3 stroke lead on tiger woods at a pro am tourney 5 yrs ago on the 1st day that i am the best golfer in the world. (to bad it was a 3 day toruney lmao)
i was much more impressed with sessions then dirks performance. hell ramon when 13 of 18 while dirk went 16 of 34. i would hardly say he was shooting lights out. i mean damn thats 72% to 47%. it came against the bulls who are not exactly the best team in the league. sessions had 12 assists and 5 rebounds to go with his 44 points. dirk had 9 reb and 1 assist.
just not impressed by anything dirk does. maybe im racist, wait he is white too, that cant be it.
and the rockets need to change something bad! maybe its yao AND tracy. yao got destroyed by al jeff, he had a nice scoring night and he did get 5 blocks but damn 36 and 22? nahh just tracy, yao can stay lol.
February 8th, 2009 at 11:03 am
Pig says:
man nuggets were ugly..i thought that they were potential dark horses in playoffs but i just don’t belive it anymore
February 8th, 2009 at 11:28 am
Jim says:
I guarantee this trade happened just so Phil could say at some point: “Well, he’s a talented kid. It doesn’t take a genius to get production out of him.”
February 8th, 2009 at 11:47 am
Rafa23 says:
@ rangerjohn
I’m not a dirk fan and I understand you dont like or even hate dirk, but your not impressed by anything he does?
you could say he is soft or not clutch(i think he has been clutch most of his carreer, just choked on important stages), but remember 06 playoffs? he was clutch as hell and played a great series aginst your spurs.
and last night, he mist 9 of his first 10 shots, meaning he hit a lot later in the game.
again, not a dirk fan. but lets get beyond that hate and at least agree he is a great player.
February 8th, 2009 at 11:51 am
Kante says:
Most Americans won´t agree that Dirk is great because he is European. If he would be American he would have many many more Respect…
But: Dirk is great!!
February 8th, 2009 at 12:16 pm
James says:
Ha I knew my comment would get some haters’ panties in a twist.
Been watching the NBA and the Mavs b/c my wife is from DFW for the past 20 years. Don’t tell me that Dirk is anymore of a “choker” than any other all star, save maybe Kobe and Lebron. He has multiple game-winners and if he was so shitty in the clutch, there would be no way the Mavs would have gotten to the finals in the first place or had as many regular season wins as they have had. Stop with the bullshit, Dirk had one bad series against the Warriors, mediocre performance in the finals and all of a sudden his playoff averages of 25/11 is “soft”
And rangerjohn- going for 65% after starting 1-10 after the only other two scorers on the team goes out is just an every day performance from Dirk, so you’re right, it’s not that impressive as Ramon Sessions going off, b/c for Dirk it’s a normal occurence.
February 8th, 2009 at 12:30 pm
RJ says:
Bron42 is the one that has missed the past few years. I can think of more than a “couple games” where Dirk has delivered. “never clutch”? At least sound like you know what you’re talking. In fact, why don’t you back up your claims and go compile a list of close mav games the past few seasons and see how much of a larger % is b/c Dirk closed the game down the stretch.
February 8th, 2009 at 12:33 pm
KobeLaL says:
funny a lebron fan talking about “never clutch”
the one image I can’t get out of my head is how many times Lebron bricks a FT or jumper in the clutch lol.
But good job stat=padding to try to a fake tripe double.
February 8th, 2009 at 1:46 pm
infinite dip says:
here to give the clippers love for two blowout victories on tha road, keep it up fellas
February 8th, 2009 at 2:08 pm
Celts Fan says:
Can eddie house get some 6th man love? DEfINITELY NOT gonna win it, but top 5 is reasonable, right?
February 8th, 2009 at 2:17 pm
RonNation says:
pretty sure dirk got “man’s game bitch”‘d by milsap last week
February 8th, 2009 at 3:41 pm
rangerjohn says:
rafa
im sorry but dirk is not GREAT. a very good player but not great. he has a great shot but he has absolutely NOTHING else. i mean is baron davis a GREAT player? is tony parker a GREAT player? nope, none of those guys are great, good but not great. hell okur shoots the outside shot as good as dirk.
by the way, the league better start paying attention to MY SPURS!
February 8th, 2009 at 5:05 pm
Top_Gun says:
Nowitzky had a great game but at the beginning of the season, Chris Bosh was having consecutive games with 30+ points and 10+ rebounds. He has obviously slowed down since the offense doesn’t through him as much anymore.
February 8th, 2009 at 5:20 pm
Aron Phillips says:
@Celts Fan
Eddie House is one of the greatest SCORERS in the L.
February 8th, 2009 at 8:30 pm
downunder says:
if pheonix stupid enough to deal amare for aldridge/lafrenz at least get the spanish guard in the deal also, or try for steve blake. the blazers would still come out on top of that trade. i like bosh for amare better. or go for al jefferson, playing a slow game, might as well get someone who’ll play well with shaq.
February 8th, 2009 at 10:38 pm
Ian says:
ranger
dirk is great leave that baron davis bs for another day
February 9th, 2009 at 1:22 am
Celts Fan says:
@Ian – Dirk is NOT great, Dirk is very good. The term great gets tossed around waaaaay too much nowadays. The list of guys that are truly great is a short one.
Duncan, Kobe, and Shaq. That’s it, that’s the list.
There are plenty of guys that have the potential to be great when all’s said and done (LeBron, CP3, and Dwight seem like mortal locks.) There are plenty of guys that do certain things greatly (Ray Allen’s a great shooter, Bruce Bowen was a great defender, etc.) but to truly be great, you have to dominate all facets of the game for an extended period of time and have your teams succeed (KG missing the Playoffs – McHale’s fault or not – those years in Minn. is the only reason I keep him off this list, but another chip would probably slide him in.) Greatness isn’t a term you just toss around; it’s reserved for the best of the best of the best. Dirk’s an all star and probable HOFer, but he is not and never will be truly great.
February 9th, 2009 at 1:37 am
KDizzle(6-0 week - Haterproof) says:
@ celts fan post #31
great post
February 9th, 2009 at 8:12 am
rangerjohn says:
celt, i comepletly agree with post 31
February 10th, 2009 at 12:59 pm
dagwaller says:
Celts, I agree with your post. I’m probably one of the biggest Dirk fans on this forum, but with the rubric you set, it’s impossible to put him on the “great” side of things.
I was just happy to see some people defending Dirk, since I KNEW as soon as I saw Dirk put up 44 points there would be a couple fools (Bron and rangerjohn) hating on him anyway hahaha.
February 10th, 2009 at 1:53 pm
hucklebuck says:
Dirk is hardest player to guard in League. Period. harder than KOBE, LEBRON, WADE, or any other player in the League. I don’t remember the last time Dirk had a jumpshot ever blocked. The other 3 have had a couple blocked this year alone.