Caplan's recap focuses on Dampier.
He had eight and eight in the first quarter, cleaning up the offensive backboards for five rebounds and six put-back points while his teammates clanked jump shots left and right.
"We started really sluggish, but Damp really had us going early," said Dirk Nowitzki, who missed his first seven shots. "He was really the only guy that kept us in the game early on."
------------------
How "on" was Dampier last night? He was even funny postgame!
"Now let's try to string together a couple of them," Dampier said. Then, seeing a chance to razz Dirk Nowitzki as he walked by, Dampier added: "If we can get Dirk playing some [defense], we can string together 20 in a row." ------------------- This might not have been Erick Dampier's best game in a Mavericks uniform. But it was by far the most eye-popping. How about 16pts/18reb against CHI just this season? Or this game, which I still remember just because of how good Dampier was. --------------------- I've been waiting for someone to write this article. Caplan talked to Gerald Green about his lack of playing time. "I’m still taking everything in, how we have been winning, the ways we’ve been losing, still doing everything, still reading scouting reports, things like that to keep me informed even though I’m not playing," Green said. "It’s not easy, everybody wants to play. What I have to do is continue to work hard and believe and have confidence in myself and to keep on asking questions if I don’t understand something or if I need help." ---------------------- Brandon Bass on his DNP against Washington. "Hell yeah, it was surprising," he said. Later, he said it "definitely got my attention." ---------------------- Mike Fisher has his random notes, including his take on Dirk's "it's all open" comments. Dirk has set up housekeeping in Dallas and would certainly prefer to win a title here rather than be a hired gun who helps some other city win one. Still, The Summer Sweepstakes of 2010 is a loooong way away. But it's encouraging to hear talk as if he's thinking of helping the Mavs push the shopping cart rather than thinking of putting himself on the display shelf.
Sefko has a short article on Dampier that starts off with a bit of hyperbole.