| Game 3 Report Card Authored by Andrew Theodosi - June 14, 2006 - 8:43 am
In the closest game of the NBA Finals, the Heat overcame a strong third-quarter surge from the Mavericks to take the game 98-96. Dwyane Wade carried the heat with an amazing 42 points and a career high 13 rebounds.
Game 3 Report Card:
Avery Johnson: B-. Avery effectively used the zone defense through the match which subsequently left Dallas in a stronger position. However, his last drawn-up play which I will aptly dub “Alley Oopsie” was a failure. Made a few crucial mistakes in not playing some more than others, but his performance is not as bad as people are making it out to be.
Dirk Nowitzki: B-. Nowitzki had a great second half with 19 points on 7-11 FG and led the Mavs to a 13 point lead, but was unfortunately playing without “the basketball gods”. He missed a crucial free-throw to tie the match with 3 seconds left. Started off the match 0-6 FG but still ended with 30 points, albeit a quiet 30 points.
Josh Howard: B. Josh was instrumental during the third quarter, he scored 11 points and was truly the head honcho during that period. A lack of aggressiveness during the 4th led to Howard not attempting one single shot, even though he was 8-13 from the field during the previous three sectors. In possibly the biggest news, the Mavericks undefeated streak when Howard scores over 20 is now finished, over, ended, dead, whatever you want to call it. I am now trade marking the “15-0 club when Howard grabs a double-double”
Jason Terry: B. Despite starting the game of slow (as evidenced by the easy steal by Shaq), Terry heated up during the middle of the game consistently hitting the 15 footer swish after the pick set by Nowitzki. Shot a good percentage from the floor but was unfortunately torched by Dwyane Wade. Had a crucial turnover (bad pass) with a minute remaining and missed his final shot with 50 seconds left.
Erick Dampier: A. Once again, Dampier proved to be invaluable to the quest for a title. He was quite possibly the sole beacon of light in the Mavericks struggles. A distraught O’Neal came out firing against Diop and scored 8 in the first quarter, Dampier limited him to 8 points for the rest of the match. O’Neal had 7 turnovers and once again, Mr. Dampier showed his value.
Adrian Griffin: B. If Griffin wanted to feel a little shafted, he has the right to. Made Wade fight for all his points and wouldn’t give him any easy looks. Once again, he was hustling and trying to get the Mavs back into the game. 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals for Griff tonight, but had some ugly looks on offense.
Devin Harris: B. It’s hard to understand why the speedy sophomore didn’t get a better opportunity to go at the hobbled (yes, he was hobbling) Wade. Harris got to the rim at will including a huge drive towards the end which put the Mavericks back into contention. Went one-from-three from the FT line but had a solid game otherwise.
DeSagana Diop: C. Diop got into ridiculous foul trouble at the start, despite having an early 3 rebounds in the opening two minutes. Let Shaq get off to a flying start but was disabled by his foul trouble. Only got 10 minutes of action due to foul trouble and the great play of Dampier. Altered a few shots and had at least 2 blocks, despite not being credited with any.
Keith Van Horn: D. Scapegoat. He only played eight minutes but they seemed like an eternity for Mavs fans. Didn’t make any shots and had two turnovers, Van Horn was in the lineup when Dallas was starting to get blown out during the second quarter. Did not challenged for many rebounds as was always on the perimeter and his defense, or lack thereof was appalling. Was unfortunately called for an offensive foul when Wade was in the restricted area (funny, I saw a lot of them).
Jerry Stackhouse: C-. Stack shot an ugly 1-9 after being so valuable during the first two games. One of his worst matches of the whole season, tying with his 0-6 performance against the Warriors (most important worst match, cappish?). Stackhouse was extremely passive and did not drive as much as he should have. Surprisingly played 31 minutes.
Marquis Daniels: Started off the second quarter with a turnover, which was the only thing he did all match. Was not a factor, but Avery could of given him some of Stackhouse’s minutes. Is still yet to score this series. The Mavericks are 8-2 when Daniels plays between 10 and 17 minutes.
Head to Head: Shakira O’Neal vs Ericka Dampier
Minutes: 103 to 85
Rebounds: 24 to 29
Points: 38 to 28
Blocks: 2 to 2
Turnovers: 11 to 3
FG%: 64 to 79
Wins: 1 to 2
Mavericks fans are in pain all over the world, they need to relax and think that; Miami had to rely on
- 42 points and 13 rebounds from Dwyane Wade
- A little help from Dan Crawford, whom the mavericks are now 1-11 this season when he refs
- A complete meltdown in the fourth quarter
-All around efforts
But yet, they still only won by 2 (yes, 2!) points. Miami are no easy opponent, but the Mavericks have this series to lose for themselves. |
