Dallas Mavericks - Portland TrailBlazers 1st Round Playoff Preview:
By Sam Littman
The Atlanta Braves of the NBA, Mark Cuban’s Mavs have strung together 10 consecutive 50-win seasons, an almost unprecedented accomplishment. Yet, just as the Braves managed just one World Series crown during their run of 11 straight NL East titles, the Mavs have made the Finals just once, dropping to the Wade/Shaq-led Heat in six very rough games. Wrapping up their best season since they won a whopping 67 games (and memorably belly flopped in the first round against Golden State) in 2007-08, the Mavs are locked and loaded for a deep playoff run despite the absence of veteran swingman Caron Butler. But in their way is everyone’s dark horse, the Portland TrailBlazers who are long, athletic and physical.
LaMarcus Aldridge
At this season’s outset the Blazers were centered around All Star Brandon Roy, but as the season progressed it became apparent that Roy’s will would be not enough to mitigate his chronic knee pain. Furthermore the injury of Greg Oden and Joel Przybella, and at times Marcus Camby forced newly appointed GM Rich Cho to trade for Gerald Wallace and add D Leaguers Chris Johnson and Earl Barron. Despite the injuries, the Blazers are the 6th seed in the playoffs. Andre Miller not only is their playmaker but is the identity of the team. His scrappiness and physical play exemplified by his altercation with Blake Griffin earlier this season filtered through the entire team. The Blazers are a team that are scared of no one and will continue to fight until they are defeated no matter the score and how great the odds are against them.
Mavs Overview:
Skeptics will quickly point to the Mavs’ age, injuries and lack of a great second option, but no matter what team's throw at Dallas, they often fail to estimate the prowess of combining former MVP Dirk Nowitzki, and the league’s most underrated big man, Tyson Chandler.
Notching at least 21 points and 7 rebounds for the eleventh year in a row, Nowitzki’s rebounding numbers dipped slightly, but he set a new career high in field goal percentage (51.8%) and finished in the top ten in PER for a ninth straight time. Nowitzki’s impact on the team is impossible to overstate; the Mavs are a sterling 54-18 with him in the lineup, and just 2-7 without him. And it’s not very hard to understand why. Nowitzki is one of the few players in the history of the game that could be considered unguardable on any given night as a legit 7-footer who possesses the best mid-range game in the entire league. Nowitzki can and will beat his defender in every way imaginable, and should you foul him, he’s only an 89% free throw shooter.
Tyson ChandlerThe anchor at center of this summer’s championship-winning USA team was not Dwight Howard, Tim Duncan or Al Horford, but the eternally undervalued Tyson Chandler, whom our country may not have won without. Like Nowitzki, Chandler is truly a physical specimen; he is a solid 7-1 and is one of the most athletic players ever at his size. One of the very best in the league when it comes to altering games with his size down low, Chandler’s bounciness, length and tireless motor spurs the Mavs’ revamped defense. One of the league’s most efficient players, Chandler averaged 13.1 points, 12.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per 36 minutes while shooting a ridiculous 65.2% from the field and 73.3% from the stripe.
Pair the monstrous 7-1 Chandler with the 7-0 Nowitzki down low and you have a tandem of uniquely talented big men rivaled only by the Lakers’ twin towers. One of the league’s biggest teams, the Mavs might be old but they will never be overmatched. With a 6-4 point guard, a lightning quick shooting guard with a freakish 6-10 wingspan, and a small forward who’s nicknamed “The Matrix” for a reason, this is a team that no one is looking forward to matching up with.
As in past years, the Mavs boast one of the league’s most lethal benches, led by the second best sixth man of the past decade, Jason Terry (15.8 points, 4.1 assists and 1.1 steals), speed demon JJ Barea (9.4 points and 3.9 assists), three-point marksman Peja Stojakovic (8.6 points and 1.7 threes), and still-efficient 7-footer Brendan Haywood (5.2 rebounds and 1 block in just 18 minutes). The Mavs can easily go 11 deep, with Deshawn Stevenson and Corey Brewer contributing a fair amount on a nightly basis.
No team has played better team basketball over the past month than Dallas, whose success, one could say, starts at the point with 10-time All-Star Jason Kidd. He may have lost a step over the years, but he still finished in the top 10 in the league in both assists and steals while making 1.6 threes per game, accomplishments that one still comes to expect from the future first-ballot Hall of Famer. Kidd orchestrates the offense masterfully night in and night out, ensuring that the shooters (Dirk, Peja, Terry) get their open looks, and the slashers (Marion, Beaubois, Barea) get the rock in stride.
Blazers Overview:
As mentioned in the intro, the Blazers are now led by LaMarcus Aldridge, one of the premier big men in the NBA. There are some similarities to Dirk and LaMarcus' games. Like Dirk, LaMarcus' range extends to the NBA 3 point line. And he can handle the pick and roll or the pick and pop option with point guard Andre Miller. While he is not quite the consistent dead on shooter that Dirk is, he is a much better offensive player in the post and on the defensive end. His length and athleticism allows him to help protect the paint. Along with the length of Marcus Camby this tandem will make any wing to take jump shots instead of going to the hole.
Nicolas Batum
Nicolas Batum and Rudy Fernandez are the team’s X- Factors. Fernandez in the preseason requested a trade but things have changed so drastically that he has told the press that he would like to re-sign with the team this offseason. This season he has became a spark off the bench turning into a Dan Majerle like player. His playmaking ability and history of dramatics with the Spanish National team makes him a player to watch. Frenchmen Batum is an NBA player version of a Swiss army knife as there is not a skill he does not possess. He can guard your point guard/ wing/ power forward, he can score from the outside, and he can create his own shot. Many times he defers and wants to blend in to the team’s scheme. However, when he decides to become a go to offensive player is when he fulfills his true potential. Versus the high scoring Mavs, it will be important for him to lead his team in scoring on a couple of occasions for the team to move on to the next round.
Gerald Wallace fits the team beautifully as his mentality is very similar to Miller’s. A floor burner, he has already became a fan favorite at the Rose Garden bringing instant energy and a physical and athletic presence. His addition allowed the Blazers to have 4 great defenders in simultaneously along with Camby, Miller, and Batum. He is one of the Blazers who may attempt to play physical with the Mavs and see if they will back down. He also is very similar on defense to former teammate Stephen Jackson and don’t be surprised if he spends the majority of his time guarding Dirk, seeing how well it worked for the Warriors 3 years ago.
Finally, as the playoffs begin, Brandon Roy has become a player who can still play All Star quality minutes from time to time, but can no longer be counted on to burden the load of the Blazers offense on a consistent basis. Should he be able to play extensive minutes at a high level, it will only help the team’s playoff chances.
Prediction: The Blazers were the absolute worst matchup for the Mavericks. The Mavericks are facing a type of team where they traditionally have failed to succeed against: A physical and athletic team who believes in themselves. Dirk and company must make it a priority to keep the Blazers off the boards and the Blazers must make it a low scoring grind it out affair as they do not quite have the outside shooting or offensive punch tha the Mavs do. That being said:
Blazers in 6
Schedule:
Game 1: Sat., April 16 in Dallas, 9:30 p.m., ESPN
Game 2: Tue., April 19 in Dallas, 9:30 p.m., TNT
Game 3: Thu., April 21 in Portland, 10:30 p.m., TNT
Game 4: Sat., April 23 in Portland, 5 p.m., TNT
Game 5: Mon., April 25 in Dallas, TBD
Game 6: Thu., April 28 in Portland, TBD
Game 7: Sat., April 30 in Dallas, TBD, TNT
