What the Dallas Mavericks and the Portland Trail Blazers said
after Game 6.
(pics be late,try DocFunk in the meantime)
Quotes
Mavericks
Coach Rick Carlisle
(On the Series) "We knew it was gonna be a brutally hard series, but we also knew it was what we needed. We also knew that we needed to beat them and do it in a way that was in character with a team that deserved to move on. And so, we don’t want anything coming our way easy, and coincidentally the next team we’re playing is not gonna be easy either."
(On the Start) "I thought the way the game started was tough, getting down 12 early. And that’s some real adversity. You’re looking at an opportunity to move on and those kinds of things, but everybody stuck together, nobody hung their heads, everybody kept encouraging each other and we had some guys start off shooting the ball cold, didn’t matter. We played possession by possession and as the game went on we gained momentum. That was important."
(On Portlands late run) "They made a run on us in the fourth. We’ve had teams make runs on us all year, but there wasn’t gonna be a miracle tonight. And tonight Nowitzki, Kidd and Terry weren’t gonna let us lose the game. It was as simple as that."
(On Readiness and Rose Gardens) "A big part of life is acceptance of your situation, whatever it is. And you've got to make the best of whatever is thrown at you and thrown your way. And, hey, I tell you what, I tell you this, walking in this place and playing a playoff game is no fun, brother. This is the loudest place I've ever been and I've been in a lot of places in 27 years, trust me. "
(On playing Portland in the 1st round) "It was predestined, for whatever reason. And we knew it was going to be a brutally hard series. But we also knew it was something that we needed, and we also knew that we needed to beat them and do it in a way that was in character with a team that deserved to move on."
(On the Win) "For our guys to hang in and be able to win in this environment is huge for us. To go through what we went through in Game 4, these things happen for a reason. But we feel our work has just begun."
(On Portland) "They're a very dangerous team. They're extremely well coached. I worked for this organization for three years and it's nothing but class. Nate's a great coach, their players are terrific, they're a young team. They're going to keep moving up. This was an opportunity for them to become an elite team by knocking us off, and we knew that. It was one of the things that drove our guys.
(On LA) "We know how good they are, but our team has a strong belief in itself."
Dirk Nowitzki
(On the Roadwin-closeout) "It's definitely big for our confidence to win a road game in the playoffs. We haven't done it for a while so we definitely needed one. In this league, if you have a chance to close out a team, you always want to go for it.
(On Chris Johnson) "I went to the basket for an and-1 and he kind of punched me in the face there. Hey, that was kind of their thing. They wanted to really be physical with us. We talked about how that's not going to happen today. This is our moment."
(On closing) "We talked about it before the game, that this was kind of our Game 7. We didn't want to play again on Saturday."
(On Portland) "They gave us all we could handle. We knew they were tough, they were well coached, and they kept making plays. Their fans were unbelievable, always pushing them forward. They're a bunch of guys with a lot of pride. "
(On not collapsing against a late Blazers run this time) "We talked about it before and during the game, we just had to just keep fighting. It wasn’t pretty there, they kept making shots, kept making plays."
(On Kidd's three) "The Jason Kidd 3 really to me was the big shot of the game."
(On the Mavs) "Just didn’t want to give in to their run and refused to lose, that’s what this game came down to. I thought everybody contributed in a nice way tonight for a big road win."
(On the first Playoff Road Victory in...years) in "We couldn't get a road win last year and we had a couple of cracks at it this year. We had a big lead in Game 4 and let it slip away then had a big lead in Game 6, so I'm proud of the guys and how they battled in the fourth period and found a way to win."
(On the Portland crowd at the end) "A lot of the fans were saying, 'Go Beat LA.'"
(On Experts) "Not a lot of people picked us to win this series, not a lot people are gonna pick us to win the next series. So, we’re just gonna go out there and keep competing, play smart, play off each other like we have all season and we’ll see what happens."
(On the Lakers next) "We're seeing the defending champions so we have our hands full."
(On Matchups with LA and gettin a Win there) "I (still) think we actually match up pretty well with them. We've gotta go for it, Game 1 and Game 2."
Jason Terry
(On the Mavs Win) "We're such a confident team. We have so many veteran guys, starting at the top with Jason Kidd on down to Dirk, that we believe. Especially in close ballgames, we've been winning them all season long. So we're confident."
(On butterfingers late in the game - again) "It was unbelievable. [But] hey, that's part of adversity. In years past maybe we lose the game because of that turnover."
(On his game) "Tonight the game was in rhythm. I missed my first four shots, coach rolled with me, my teammates kept encouraging me to shoot and make plays and I was able to do so. Defensively, this probably was my best series since I've been a Maverick."
(On his Defense) "Coach has been challenging me and telling me regardless of what happens on offense, defensively we need you out, alert, really taking ownership in your matchups. They gave me a big assignment guarding Brandon Roy three out of the five games and I thought I held my own."
(On the 2nd Round) "When you’ve got the Lakers coming to town, you’ve got to really focus and shift your gears and be locked in. The road to the championship always goes through the champion, whether you like it or not.""
Tyson Manhandler
(On Terry's turnover) "I'm just thinking about tackling him. That's my boy, though. You know I love him to death. He came [through] down the stretch for us, though. He's the type of player that can make a mistake like that and for some reason or another it gets him fired up."
(On Gm 6 vs Gm 4) "The difference between tonight and the other night is the fourth quarter the other night we backed up. We allowed them to roll the ball in, we allowed Brandon Roy to get to his sweet spot. Tonight, we started picking them up fullcourt."
(On Aldridge) "He's a big-time player. I think he's established himself as a big-time player in this league. His repetoire is just growing and growing. I told him after the game, you've had a heckuva year. I just congratulated him on all his success and what he's been able to accomplish as a basketball player."
(On Toughness and touching Dirk's face) "Toughness doesn’t always mean throwing a punch back or something like that. It means getting up and going at them even tougher. You’re frustrated, and I think it was useful and it was the reason we won the game. Dirk got up and instead of getting into an altercation, he said, I’m going to punish you on the other end."
(On the identity of the team) "We're the Mavericks. I think we're still growing."
(On the 2nd Round) "Going to play against the Lakers is something I've dreamed of since I was a little kid. It's going to be an exciting series."
Jason 'Well-rounded Game' Kidd
(On closing in Porland) "It just shows the maturity of a veteran ballclub, having short-term memory, moving on and getting that win in Game 5, and then coming up here and then winning on the road."
(On POR's late run) "We knew they were gonna make a run. We saw that in Game 4. But everybody kept their composure."
(On hitting his late three this time around) "I rushed it in Game 4. I had plenty of time to shoot it. I got a little excited. I thought if the ball came to me, just to relax and take my time. That’s what I did."
(On showing Jason Terry some hyperbole Love) "He had a great series. He was shooting the ball, making plays, finding guys. Defensively, he was great. So now we got to build on it and keep him going."
Shawn Marion
Crashing Crash
(On the 4th) "For the first six minutes of the 4th, we were just trading baskets with them and it seemed like it was just the Dirk and LaMarcus Aldridge show."
Blazers
Coach Nate McMillan
(On the Game) "Congratulations to Dallas and Rick. I just felt like this whole series, any time we made a mistake, they made us pay. They made big shot after shot throughout this series. Jason Kidd tonight goes 1 for 4 from the three point line and in the fourth quarter, he hits the big one. Same with Barea. I thought Marion's bucket late in the single coverage - you don't want to leave the perimeter - was a big bucket. They did that throughout the series. Last game it was offensive rebounding. Anytime we made a mistake, they made us pay. Tonight, I thought our guys competed. We got off to a good start. We lost Gerald for that first half and lost a little momentum in that second quarter and it took us awhile to get going again. But I just really appreciate, respect the effort our guys gave tonight."
(On Shooting and Momentum) "The momentum, I thought in the second quarter, we lost that and we couldn't score for ab out six, seven minutes there. Third quarter, we got off somewhat to a slow start, we drop down by 17. But we fought back, we had a big fourth quarter. I felt like they made plays throughout the series whenever we made a mistake or left someone open, they knocked down those shots tonight. We had some guys to have good looks and we go 5-for-21 from the three point line, so you need to knock down those shots when you get them."
(On the Season's End) "You're never ready for this moment when the season is over. It's like it just creeps up on you and all of the sudden tomorrow you're going home. So basically just as I told them I appreciate their effort. I really respect how they played tonight, really all season long."
(On Portland) "I thought we fought through a lot of adversity this season. We had an opportunity to do something special this year. The goal was to get back to Dallas. I felt if we got back to Dallas we could win that game. But we didn't and we end the way we ended the last two years."
LaMarcus Aldridge
(On the Loss ending the Season) "I think with all the adversity we faced, it was a good year. But for us personally, this wasn't what we wanted. We wanted to advance and we wanted to go to the second round."
(On the Game) "I think everybody played their hearts out tonight. I thought everybody gave it their all, we put it on the line. They just made more plays than us."
Vids
Game Recap
Slick Rick
LMA
Wallace
(per KVAL) PORvoices
Links
MMB | CATap
Despite losing there twice in Games 3 and 4, the latter in stunning fashion, the Mavericks seemed to be unaffected by the noise or hostile environment. Instead of folding once the Trail Blazers strung several baskets together, someone would step up and hit a crowd-silencing basket. It was a veteran group doing what veterans do; ignoring the distractions, and simply getting done what needed to be done.
Blazersedge, Recap | Media Row Report |
Chris Johnson played 5 minutes and scored 2 points. More importantly finally...FINALLY somebody took some decent fouls on Dirk Nowitzki. It's too bad it came so late and it's too bad that it woke him up in this case. This showed the basic difference between the Mavericks and Blazers. Punch Dallas in the face and they respond. Punch Portland in the face and they get all confused. But serious credit to Johnson for mixing it up with Dirk. Let everybody else take note. [...]
For tonight's game, suffice it to say that it was Games 1-5 in a nutshell. Portland surged on the tide of emotion, played tough, made a few heroic stands, but over the course of time Dallas played better, executed better, and knew how to win in moments when the Blazers were still guessing where their next bucket would come from. [..]
Dallas didn't exactly put together 48 minutes of beautiful basketball each outing but they played better more often and for longer stretches than did the Blazers. That won out in the end.
The Blazers bowed out in Game 6 on Thursday, 103-96, losing in the anticipated fashion. They shot 5-21 from deep, failing to hit the 25% mark for the fourth time in six games. Their better-shooting opponent finally kept the turnover differential within reach -- Dallas was only -2 -- nullifying Portland's major advantage at home. The Blazers bench was outscored 22-14 by Jason Terry himself, with Brandon Roy returning to mildly effective form and everyone else no-showing as has become recent postseason custom. LaMarcus Aldridge was very good, often excellent, but not super-elite.
Eye-on Basketball Series Grades
Overall grade: The Mavericks could very easily have won both of the games they lost and they were dominant at times during all four of their wins. The Rose Garden is a tough environment to steal a road win, though, and the third time was the charm. Their offensive balance and efficiency were excellent throughout and they exceeded expectations defensively and on the boards. They did it all against an inferior opponent, though, so there's a chance the ease of victory was simply fool's good. They won't have the luxury of letting wins slip through their fingers against Los Angeles.
Grade: B+
Columbian Rally off the Mark
I would like to write about ... CLANK! ... how the Trail Blazers used their grit and guile to force a Game 7 in their playoff series against Dallas.
About how they ... DOINK! ... gave themselves a puncher’s chance to reach the second round.
About how they ... D’OH! ... kept their season alive with a stirring victory Thursday in the Rose Garden.
Except that none of those things happened ... BRICK!
Appreciate the Namecalling. not.
Hoopdata Trade History | Boxscore (none in 3 4 5 a week days) | No Notes today
Dallas/Portland started too late for commentary tonight. Will provide a comprehensive stat look at that game and the whole series in a Texas-themed Friday night report that will run about an hour after Memphis/San Antonio finishes (that's the only Friday game).
An advanced Boxscore at Arturo (Also: Numbers for the whole Series)
Gerald Wallace had the kind of game that typically guarantees a win for a player’s team. But, well, Dirk! Just Dirk! The Blazers gave it a real go again but in the end the German Wunderkind got it done. Now we get Lakers-Mavs for the first time in 11 years. Awesome.
Portland Roundball Society Friday
After missing the Trail Blazers’ final shot of 2011—a three—Gerald Wallace whipped his headband at the ground in disgust after towing the Blazers with 32 points and 12 rebounds.
To a man, regardless of what they did or did not contribute, Thursday, the Blazers were shell-shocked after being closed out by the Mavericks at the Rose Garden, 103-96.
Check back Friday afternoon for the Game 6 wrap…
But in the meantime, one stat to chew on: the Blazers hit 30 of their 100 three-point attempts against Dallas in the first round.
BDL BTB
Später, beacuase.
Basketballprospectus No Repeats
Dallas 103, at Portland 96 (Dallas wins 4-2)
Pace: 80.2
Offensive Ratings: Dallas 126.7, Portland 121.3That the Mavericks would win this series seems clear looking back. Dallas had the best player in the series, was the better team over the course of the year and did not have any weaknesses as easily exploitable as the Blazers' shooting. At the same time, lots of things appear obvious after they happen, and the turnover battle not playing out as expected was one reason the Mavericks exceeded the expectations of many observers--myself included--and are moving on to the second round.
NBAPlaybook - nothing yet, but bet (not on it)
Portland could not get the easy buckets they needed. Dallas controlled the ball and had few turnovers, taking away the transition buckets Portland wanted. Dallas also controlled the glass, so few easy putbacks for Portland.
In fact, Portland’s late run to almost come back in the fourth quarter of Game 6 was fueled by six Dallas turnovers that let Portland get out and run a little.
But in the end, it was too little, too late. Dallas got control of the game (and Portland sat Andre Miller, which seemed an odd decision). Dallas looked like the better team.
For Dallas, a prime upset pick in the first round (guilty as charged) they proved the doubters wrong. This is a good team and playing well. Whether Tyson Chandler can control the Lakers front line and if Dirk can match the scoring pace of Kobe are different questions. But Dallas will get the chance to prove it belongs as a contender starting Monday in Los Angeles.
2MG's Difference
If you’re of the opinion that J.J. Barea may have played a bit too much, I’d encourage you to reconsider.
Stats
FT-Watch
Haywood bricked nil of [nada] from the line. Why oh why don't you chop that wood, Portland? He is now 3-15 on FTs in 6 games. Celebration for our third-best Center, Beaches! [nsfw]
Dirk missed zero FTs, Chandler 3 of 4. C'mon Son!
20-20-4 Watch
Chandler 9-7-1, Haywood 0-4-1. Mahinmi DNP-Playoffs/French. Good luck against Bynum & Co.
Field Goals
Mavs 39, Blazers 35.
PIP-Boys
POR 42 DAL 44.
Bonus
AND Malus
Disclaimer: If you couldn't tell by now, all italic sentences are made up thoughts, not actual quotes. Also, Friday. Looking forward to the Weekend.
Finally....KneeJerk Recap (TM) Jonthefon v2.06
The Mavs (beat/
lost to) [the Portland Trail Blazers]¹ tonight (thanks to/despite)totol reliance onDirk’s Awesomeness. The (cloud in the silver lining/major culprit) once moreas usualwas the (reliabilty/lack) of support from his team-mates, with the exception of Jason Terry/Shawn Marion². Especially useless wasJason Kidd/Tyson Chandler/Jose Barea/Peja Stojakovic/Brendan Haywood/DeShawn Stevenson³ and it is (GUESS WHAT) THEY’RE ALMOST NOTALLUSELESS!
¹ Inserted Opponent
² Only one of them, mind you.
³ Two at the minimum, up to all six seven of them.