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From the New York Times: Link to Article
Game 7 in Texas Tug of War: Ginóbili Could Be the Driving Force
By LIZ ROBBINS
SAN ANTONIO, May 21 — Look for an advantage in Game 7 of the Texas tug of war between two teams that have split not only the Western Conference semifinals but also their regular-season series. It is like deciding whether to call a block or a charge in the waning seconds of a decisive game.
Consider the factors:
- Home-court advantage? San Antonio has it Monday because the Spurs won three more regular-season games than the Dallas Mavericks.
- Rallying rhetoric? The Mavericks' owner, Mark Cuban, has no rival, thanks to his spicy "muddy-watered thing they call the River Walk" comment disparaging San Antonio's tourist attraction.
- A 7-foot superstar? The two-time most valuable player Tim Duncan has averaged 30.8 points and 11.2 rebounds for San Antonio in the series. Dirk Nowitzki, named to the all-N.B.A. first team over Duncan this season, has averaged 25.5 points and 13 rebounds for Dallas.
- Public Enemy No. 1? Nowitzki told Mavericks fans to boo his former teammate and friend Michael Finley, and they obliged, growing louder after Finley protested Jason Terry's sucker-punching him in the groin in Game 5. Terry was suspended. Now it is Terry's turn to be booed at the visiting arena.
"At this point there's no advantage," Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich said Sunday. "We've played each other 10 times this year, and it's 5-5. Whoever loses would probably win the next game, it's that close."
But there is no "next" this year. When the Mavericks try for the third straight time to overcome the obstacle of the defending champion Spurs — the burr in their boot these last five years — they have to contend with more than San Antonio's intimidating tradition.
The Spurs have another intangible the Mavericks do not have: Manu Ginóbili.
Ginóbili has played on Spurs teams that have won two N.B.A. titles and on an Olympic gold-medal team for his native Argentina. He has a knack of throwing himself into the right place at the right time.
"Every player competes at a certain level, but there are special players who really are able to intuitively understand situations that help win games, whether it's a steal, an offensive board at the appropriate time, having the fortitude to shoot the 3 when maybe it's not exactly called for," Popovich said.
"Those types of things, great basketball players understand. Manu's one of those guys who's been in a lot of situations. He knows what wins."
Popovich also included Nowitzki in that group. But while Ginóbili can take advantage of the opportunities a heavily guarded Duncan provides, Nowitzki, a forward, does not have that consistent secondary threat to stretch the defense.
Terry seemed to lose the mantle of second star, along with his head, in the heated scramble for the loose ball that led to his punching Finley in Game 5. The scramble was with Ginóbili.
In Game 6, Ginóbili scored 8 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter. "You don't think about the fact you're with your back against the wall; you just compete and win," Ginóbili said. "Do whatever it takes to get that extra rebound, to draw that foul. It's very emotional, a lot of adrenaline."
Playing as if every minute were his last, Ginóbili soon felt that style catch up to him in his fourth season. He missed the most games of his career (16) this season because of injuries: a bone bruise in his right ankle, a right midfoot sprain, a right ankle sprain and a calf/quad contusion in his right and left legs.
The effects seemed to linger in the first round against Sacramento, when Ginóbili averaged 15 points. He is averaging 21 in this series.
"I am feeling better, but it's the mental stuff, too," he said. "I'm playing better."
Ginóbili pointed out that his mind-set had not always contributed to winning — as the middle three games of the series showed.
Ahead by 3-1, the Mavericks were salivating at their chance to unseat the incumbent champion.
Now the Spurs own the bigger Game 7 experience. The Mavericks beat Houston in a seven-game first-round playoff series last year, but the Spurs beat Detroit to win the N.B.A. finals in Game 7 when Duncan was named the M.V.P. and Ginóbili scored 11 points in that fourth quarter.
These two teams last met in the 2003 Western Conference finals, which the Spurs won in six games. In their first playoff meeting, the 2001 conference semifinals, the Spurs won in five. Is there a pattern here?
"I don't think the past has a lot to do with the present," said Finley, who spent eight years with the Mavericks before Dallas released him last summer. "The only person on that team who has been beaten by the Spurs over the years has been Dirk."
Recent history is enough for a rivalry (and enough for Cuban to stir the muddy waters), but Ginóbili does not care about his opponent. "Regardless of who we are playing against, I just want to win and make it to the finals," he said.
By LIZ ROBBINS
SAN ANTONIO, May 21 — Look for an advantage in Game 7 of the Texas tug of war between two teams that have split not only the Western Conference semifinals but also their regular-season series. It is like deciding whether to call a block or a charge in the waning seconds of a decisive game.
Consider the factors:
- Home-court advantage? San Antonio has it Monday because the Spurs won three more regular-season games than the Dallas Mavericks.
- Rallying rhetoric? The Mavericks' owner, Mark Cuban, has no rival, thanks to his spicy "muddy-watered thing they call the River Walk" comment disparaging San Antonio's tourist attraction.
- A 7-foot superstar? The two-time most valuable player Tim Duncan has averaged 30.8 points and 11.2 rebounds for San Antonio in the series. Dirk Nowitzki, named to the all-N.B.A. first team over Duncan this season, has averaged 25.5 points and 13 rebounds for Dallas.
- Public Enemy No. 1? Nowitzki told Mavericks fans to boo his former teammate and friend Michael Finley, and they obliged, growing louder after Finley protested Jason Terry's sucker-punching him in the groin in Game 5. Terry was suspended. Now it is Terry's turn to be booed at the visiting arena.
"At this point there's no advantage," Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich said Sunday. "We've played each other 10 times this year, and it's 5-5. Whoever loses would probably win the next game, it's that close."
But there is no "next" this year. When the Mavericks try for the third straight time to overcome the obstacle of the defending champion Spurs — the burr in their boot these last five years — they have to contend with more than San Antonio's intimidating tradition.
The Spurs have another intangible the Mavericks do not have: Manu Ginóbili.
Ginóbili has played on Spurs teams that have won two N.B.A. titles and on an Olympic gold-medal team for his native Argentina. He has a knack of throwing himself into the right place at the right time.
"Every player competes at a certain level, but there are special players who really are able to intuitively understand situations that help win games, whether it's a steal, an offensive board at the appropriate time, having the fortitude to shoot the 3 when maybe it's not exactly called for," Popovich said.
"Those types of things, great basketball players understand. Manu's one of those guys who's been in a lot of situations. He knows what wins."
Popovich also included Nowitzki in that group. But while Ginóbili can take advantage of the opportunities a heavily guarded Duncan provides, Nowitzki, a forward, does not have that consistent secondary threat to stretch the defense.
Terry seemed to lose the mantle of second star, along with his head, in the heated scramble for the loose ball that led to his punching Finley in Game 5. The scramble was with Ginóbili.
In Game 6, Ginóbili scored 8 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter. "You don't think about the fact you're with your back against the wall; you just compete and win," Ginóbili said. "Do whatever it takes to get that extra rebound, to draw that foul. It's very emotional, a lot of adrenaline."
Playing as if every minute were his last, Ginóbili soon felt that style catch up to him in his fourth season. He missed the most games of his career (16) this season because of injuries: a bone bruise in his right ankle, a right midfoot sprain, a right ankle sprain and a calf/quad contusion in his right and left legs.
The effects seemed to linger in the first round against Sacramento, when Ginóbili averaged 15 points. He is averaging 21 in this series.
"I am feeling better, but it's the mental stuff, too," he said. "I'm playing better."
Ginóbili pointed out that his mind-set had not always contributed to winning — as the middle three games of the series showed.
Ahead by 3-1, the Mavericks were salivating at their chance to unseat the incumbent champion.
Now the Spurs own the bigger Game 7 experience. The Mavericks beat Houston in a seven-game first-round playoff series last year, but the Spurs beat Detroit to win the N.B.A. finals in Game 7 when Duncan was named the M.V.P. and Ginóbili scored 11 points in that fourth quarter.
These two teams last met in the 2003 Western Conference finals, which the Spurs won in six games. In their first playoff meeting, the 2001 conference semifinals, the Spurs won in five. Is there a pattern here?
"I don't think the past has a lot to do with the present," said Finley, who spent eight years with the Mavericks before Dallas released him last summer. "The only person on that team who has been beaten by the Spurs over the years has been Dirk."
Recent history is enough for a rivalry (and enough for Cuban to stir the muddy waters), but Ginóbili does not care about his opponent. "Regardless of who we are playing against, I just want to win and make it to the finals," he said.