Poise Counts

by user BigPPup

“If I’ve told you once I’ve told you a thousand times, poise counts…..” Such a true statement in life and it stands true in the realm of sports, especially in regards to the NBA Finals.

The 2006 NBA Finals got started last night, with the Dallas Mavericks coming out strong and defending home court in game 1 to take 1-0 lead over the Miami Heat. On a night where Dirk Nowitzki shot just 4-14 from the field, the Mavs were led to victory by an unusual suspect on Thursday night. Jason Terry stepped up yet again in this years playoffs to provide the boast for the Dallas squad.

We first got a good look at Jason Terry when he exploded onto our television sets during the San Antonio series. He used his speed and athleticism to outplay Tony Parker at his own game. During the Western Conference Finals he was outshined and out dueled by league MVP Steve Nash. Now against sub-par talent at the point guard position Jason Terry is ready to shine against the Miami Heat.

While spending the early part of his career lost in the obscurity of Atlanta Hawks basketball, Jason Terry never made the playoffs or came close for that matter. During those seasons, Terry would buy tickets to sit courtside at NBA playoff games and NBA Finals. Not because he wanted to be seen by the television cameras. He wanted to see what the environment was like around a playoff game. Feel the intensity, and the pressure that surrounds the Finals. Well it seems that all those dollars spent have paid off. Terry showed no signs of being scared of the pressure of NBA Finals Basketball.

Terry seemed unstoppable last night on the court. He went 13-18 from the floor shooting 72% racking up 32 points and leading all scorers. 20 of those points came in the first half while Dallas was struggling just to remain in the game. During the third quarter Terry did not take a shot, stating that he wanted to work the ball around and try to get Dirk involved in the game since he was having an off night. Whenever the Mavs needed a lift it was Terry who stepped up to make the big plays, never allowing the magnitude of the moment to fluster him. Poise counts.

Oddly enough one of Terry’s few missed shots came off an open lay up during the fourth quarter of the game. At a time when Dallas was up 10 and had a chance to stretch the lead to 12 with 5 minutes to go in the game, Terry came up short. On an open break he got caught somewhere between a dunk and a lay up and ended up getting neither. Before he realized what happened, Shaq had two dunks and we are in a timeout with the Heat down six and pushing. The crowd at American Airlines Arena was antsy and ready to turn their backs on the home team. That’s when Terry came fourth yet again with a big play. He forced an offense foul on O’Neal, and converting on the ensuing possession. Then he got a steal from Wade, to put the Mavs back up by six allowing them to hold on for the eventual 10 point win. Poise counts.

While the Mavericks were putting on a clinic on what to do on the court, and how to perform in the biggest game of your career, the Miami Heat showed exactly what happens when teams fail to execute at the basic aspects of the game.

The Heat were only able to muster 12 fourth quarter points, in what was a close game that they had several opportunities to take control of and win. What hurt the Heat most was their ability to shoot. Miami was ice cold from the floor during the fourth, with all their points coming from the paint or the line during the fourth quarter. Yes, Shaq can still be a dominate force, but late in a game in the fourth quarter is not Shaq’s time to shine anymore. He needs help from Flash, Walker and the rest of the assembled talent. They have to be able to step up and hit open jump shots. Then O’Neal gets space in the paint to roam. Instead of that, last night we saw Terry sneaking down into the paint to play help side defense on O’Neal and forcing the big man into ticky tack fouls. The role players have to step up and make their shots. Poise Counts.

Foul shots are often times referred to as freebees, and for the Miami Heat on Thursday night they were anything but that. As a team the Heat went 7-19 from the line, good enough for a 36% average. While most of this can be attributed to Shaq who went 1-9 from the line, the rest is Dwayne Wades fault who shot 6-10. If the Heat can get just a little help from the charity stripe, this is a different game. Once again poise counts.

Date

Fri 06/09/06, 5:37 am EST