The aftermath
- I didn't watch this game. I couldn't watch this game, as I had a busy night at work. But I didn't manage to follow the box score and twitter in the closing minutes. I saw the Mavericks blow another lead and then I saw a tie game with seconds left. And then Twitter blew up. And I knew all was good.
- There was a time earlier in this season where we were talking about how bad Dirk has been in the clutch. And his percentages are still probably lower than usual. But Dirk is Dirk, and his "clutch time" shots were going to start falling again. This one took a little more rim than usual, but it did the trick.
- Some fun stats, courtesy of the great @mavstats: it was Dirk's 13th game-winning basket. It was his third buzzer beater. And it was the third time this season the Mavericks allowed a 40-plus point scorer, the first season since 2008-09 for that to happen.
- As always, Dirk says it best. "The clock was going down and down. I figured if I put it down now it might be too late. So, I just heaved one over him [Melo], but basically I'm seven foot, so I was a little lucky I still saw the rim and heaved one in. I think it hit every part of the rim, it hit the glass, it hit Jerry West. It wasn't the greatest shot, but we'll take it."
Socially acceptable
The Aftermath continues to evolve, as this feature now has all the best tweets and social media postings. My timeline right after it happened is what inspired it.
Dirk happened. pic.twitter.com/uxUuajVoAF
— Tim Cato (@tim_cato) February 25, 2014
(Notice me, realizing I just missed out big time. Also, GET OUT @SBNATION YOU DON'T BELONG.)
Rebecca's reaction, manning the MMB twitter, was pretty much perfect.
DIRK NOWITZKI I LOVE YOU SO FREAKING MUCH
— Mavs Moneyball (@mavsmoneyball) February 25, 2014
SERIOUSLY. DIRK. FOREVER. ALWAYS.
— Mavs Moneyball (@mavsmoneyball) February 25, 2014
The big boss and the guru of NBA writers.
Best part of owning a team , running out on the court after a game winner !!! @swish41 What day is it !!!
— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) February 25, 2014
Dirk still Dirk.
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) February 25, 2014
A depressed Knickerbockers point of view.
Mavs-Knicks: that was like an assassin coming out from behind the drapes and garroting you with piano wire
— netw3rk (@netw3rk) February 25, 2014
Dirk stays winning. (IMPORTANT NOTE: This isn't the first time Dirk and a folk band have crossed paths.)
Dirk and VC put on a show for Marcus Mumford from @MumfordAndSons tonight! #DALatNYK pic.twitter.com/NSYF1Jhqf6
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) February 25, 2014
And that fan in the gray hoodie is PRICELESS.
And finally, this genius idea from Mr. SeriousFace.
Can the NBA make a show where Dirk, Kobe, and some of the other older dudes who have silly game winners sit around and talk about them?
— Kirk Henderson (@KirkSeriousFace) February 25, 2014
If you like gifs...
DIRK. (Don't miss the 'Melo shoulder shrug. So deflated.)
He's an old man. Let's keep the celebrating low-key, guys.
The bench didn't get the memo...
By my unofficial count, that is Brandan's 1473972nd alley oop dunk this season.
Now, we take a minute to appreciate a couple of passes that are much more difficult than they might initially appear.
(the upload isn't working and I'm tired. just click the link: http://twitpic.com/dwlomi)
Some light reading
- Ranking Dirk's game winner on "the Horry Scale." Spoiler alert: he thinks 3 of 5, but there's a poll and it's close. A fun take.
- Fantastic Maverick quotes in this ESPN recap from Mike Mazzeo. He's a New York-based writer, so unfortunately I won't get an opportunity to link him very often. But an excellent breakdown.
- I'm a big fan of the D-League, so here's a couple of things you need to go read. First, Zac Crain has a short profile of Eddy Najera and his role as the coach of the Legends this season for D Magazine. I wish it was longer, but Najera is apparently very anti-media, so we should be happy Zac was able to squeeze that much out of him. Second, Grantland has a huge article on the uber pace of the Vipers, which has been discussed before but is broken down excellently here.
- One final shameless plug: Rebecca Lawson and I were in New Orleans a couple of weekends ago for All-Star Weekend. On Sunday, we chronicled our adventures, and I think you'd definitely be interested if you are a fan of basketball. Mine is right here and Rebecca's fantastic narrative can be read if you follow this link.