Dirk to Infinity and Beyond
The Dallas Mavericks are going back to the NBA finals for the first time since 2006! They hope for a better result than five years ago, and frankly I can't blame them. In 2006 they were up 2 games to 0 and seemingly poised to win their first NBA title when disaster struck. They proceeded to lose 4 games in a row to the Miami Heat (the team they will play again in this years finals.) Dwayne Wade scored 42 points and Dallas blew a 13 point lead with 6 minutes to go. Dallas's phenom center Dirk Nowitzki actually had a chance to tie the game with a little over 3 seconds to play but uncharacteristically missed 1 of 2 free throws. Dallas never recovered from that painful loss and lost the next 3 games.
Dallas went on to win 67 games behind Dirk the following year and earn a #1 seed only to fall to the Golden State Warriors despite Dirk efforts. The Mavericks have continued their winning ways mostly because of their star center.
This year the Mavs put together a strong nucleus of Jason Terry, Shawn Marion, Tyson Chandler, and J.J. Barrera. For most of his time in Dallas Dirk has led a slightly above average Mavericks team to 50 win seasons which is quite a feat if you think about it. Being Dallas's only superstar he has had to deal with double and triple teams. But he has somehow managed to overcome all of this adversity. He has been like a machine in the 2011 playoffs hitting the most impossible shots. I hope Dirk wins the championship because all he has been through. Now he gets his chance at redemption!
Written by Mr. Cuse
