For five years the Mavericks have waited for the chance to return to the NBA Finals. At times it looked like they might never get another chance. But he there are, back in the Finals and likely against the same opponent.
The Mavs clinched their Finals berth with a 100-96 victory over the Thunder Wednesday night, winning the series in five games. Once again the Mavs have found themselves trailing in the fourth quarter, albeit with a much smaller deficit. Once again they dominated during crunch time, showing that when it comes the playoffs experience matters.
Dirk Nowitzki gave Dallas the lead on his second try from 3 with 1:14 to go. Overall he cap another brilliant series with 26 points and 9 rebounds, going 8-15 from the field and making all 9 free throws as he made 59 of 61 free throw attempts for the series.
The other star of the game was Shawn Marion who had a playoff high 26 including 14 in the 4th quarter. His breakaway jam resulted in a 3 point play following Dirk's three, putting the Mavs up 4. The game would be iced on 2 Dirk three throws with 13 seconds to go and a celebration followed.
However the Mavericks did not celebrate too much, taking the lead of their superstar by leaving the court early, showing their goal has still not been completed.
Also making major contributions for Dallas were J.J. Barea with 14 off the bench, Jason Kidd who had 7 boards, 10 assists and only one turnover and Tyson Chandler who had 9 points and rebounds before fouling out. Even Brendan Haywood was able to make 5-6 from the line after struggling mightily there all season.
For the young Thunder they showed why they such a promising future, but they still have room the grow. Russell Westbrook led OKC with 31 while Kevin Durant and James Harden but chipped in with 23. The Mavs were once again able to keep Durant in check as he was only 8-20 from the field while Westbrook needed 28 shots to get his 31.
The Mavericks time is now with a chance to capture the franchise first championship and put what happened in the 2006 Finals to rest for good.
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