ponedjeljak, 30.04.2007.
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WARRIORSI OŠIŠALI I TREĆEG OVNA, BARON ZABIO 33: Baron Davis #5 of the Golden State Warriors blocks the shot of Jerry Stackhouse #42 of the Dallas Mavericks in Game Four of the Western Conference Quarterfinals during the 2007 NBA Playoffs at Oracle Arena on April 29, 2007 in Oakland, California. Copyright 2007 NBAE (Photo by Garrett W. Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
Baron giving his best shot
A friend of mine called me Sunday morning and said, "I think Baron Davis could be the best athlete in the world."
After watching Davis dominate the Dallas Mavericks again in the Golden State Warriors' 103-99 win on Sunday, I think I might agree.
The guy is so strong, fast and under control that it's tough to imagine a better athlete in any sport. Think about it: Can you see him playing free safety in football? How much ground would he cover? What if he had played soccer his whole life -- how good would he be? Tennis? The guy would run down every ball and pound overheads off the court.
Fortunately for basketball fans, Baron chose hoops. What a joy it is to watch this guy play. He has unbelievable control of the ball, and he builds a head of steam and still is able to change directions going full speed in the lane.
Davis was so good Sunday that the Warriors pulled out a game they shouldn't have won. In fact, for the first time in the series, Dallas looked like it had control of the action. Avery Johnson had his squad playing a 3-2 zone almost the entire game, and it accomplished several things.
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One, it allowed DeSagana Diop to stay on the floor because he didn't have to play anyone one-on-one. Diop was a major factor as a defensive presence at the rim, blocking four shots. Two, the zone kept the pace of the game to the Mavs' liking, for the most part. Unlike Game 3 on Friday, Sunday's Game 4 was not a free for all -- at least until the final minutes. And three, the zone took defensive pressure off Dirk Nowitzki, who had been picked on in the man-to-man throughout the series.
Unfortunately for Dallas, Dirk couldn't take advantage of his defensive freedom by knocking down shots at the other end. Golden State continued to harass Nowitzki with its many athletes and switching defenses. Dirk normally feasts on smaller guards who switch onto him in pick-and-rolls, but Davis and Jason Richardson are big and strong enough to force him away from the hoop just a little bit outside his comfort zone. Nowitzki again looked hurried and off balance on his many wayward jumpers, and after getting to the rim in the first half several times, he spent most of the second half launching perimeter shots.
So now it's a 3-1 series lead for the Warriors, and the Mavericks have to win three in a row to avoid maybe the biggest upset in NBA playoff history. Phoenix pulled off the feat last season against the Lakers, and there's no reason why Dallas can't do the same thing.
One big difference? After the Suns lost a heartbreaker to L.A. in Game 4 last year, Steve Nash calmly went to the podium and congratulated Kobe Bryant, talked about how winning Game 5 would change the momentum and how his team could still come back and win the series. Nowitzki, on the other hand, told the Dallas Morning News on Saturday that if his team lost Game 4 "the season will be pretty much over." Not exactly what Dirk's teammates needed to hear from their leader.
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I keep saying Dallas can come back and win the series, and after Sunday, I believe there's some basis for that prediction. The Mavs finally had the right plan to control the game, but the Warriors' athletes made enough big plays to win the game. In particular, Baron Davis -- the world's best athlete -- was ridiculously good. If he keeps playing like he has been, it may not matter what Dallas does. But if Davis cools off at all, the Mavs still can pull it off. The only question is whether or not Nowitzki believes it.
Steve Kerr
Yahoo/Sports
