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Not a high-percentage shotIn fact, nothing has kicked me in the crotch more than the Dallas Mavericks harping on the idea that, as world champions, no one's respecting them.
They say this as they put out a starting five that includes Brendan Haywood and Vince Carter.
Those worthy of respect never talk about respect. The greats just play and all the hyperbole and accolades come with the territory.
Jason Kidd whined to the media last night after the Oklahoma City Thunder severely didn't respect the Mavs to the tune of 95-91, despite holding a 91-87 lead at one point.
"We don't get the benefit of the whistle. I don't think we're looked upon as champions, but that's a whole other story. Dirk should live at the line if they would call it the way it's supposed to be. But, he doesn't."
Some points:
1. First and foremost, Jason, hit a goddamn shot. Kidd's shooting 32 percent this year and of his 153 attempts, 129 have come from three-point range.
2. Everyone knows that if you drive the lane, you get calls. Case in point: Dirk Nowitzki. Historically, when Dirk has shot less three-pointers his free-throw attempts have gone up. In 2009-10, he shot a career low three-pointers. His free-throw attempts shot up. This year, his three-point attempts have shot up (one more a game over last year) and his free throws have gone down.
For the record, the Mavs are fourth in the league in three-point attempts at 22.2 and are near the bottom in free-throw attempts at 206.
This idea that free-throw attempts should be even is ridiculous. The Thunder attempted 33 free throws; the Mavericks, 10. Why? It's simple. The Mavericks are a bunch of jump shooters with zero interior presence. It's been like this for 10 years and until there's a total change in the make-up of the team, it will stay this way. Period.
3. Rick Carlisle is complaining about Ian Mahinmi's foul on Serge Ibaka in the last minute of the game. Guess what?! Refs do not respect Ian Mahinmi. Ian Mahinmi will never get the "benefit of the doubt."
Frankly, the Mavericks have bigger fucking fish to fry outside of this perceived lack of respect or whatever it is. This isn't "The Wire." You're professional basketball players. Win, and the respect will come.
Meanwhile, the Mavericks are a mess in a number of regards. Situational (how did Russell Westbrook not get blanketed on that last shot?) and transition defense (pathetic) are huge issues.
So are, apparently, end-of-game plays. We've seen it several times in the last two weeks. The Mavericks get a possession near the end of a close game and it typically never turns out well.
And, more and more, the ball never seems to wind up in Dirk Nowitzki's hands. In games previous, Jason Kidd and his 30 percent line from three-point range have been taking the shots. Last night, it was pure chaos with Jason Terry attempting the shots.
Granted, I don't mind Terry taking the last shot. He's a cold-blooded motherfucker. Still, it was clear that Terry's attempts were the worst possible outcomes for those plays or whatever you'd like to call that.
Recently, Carlisle himself has taken the blame for those plays. Which is fine, as long as they're fixed. And those were clearly broken last night.
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