December 12, 2007
Raptors give the Mavericks another go
Lang wrote this today:
The last time the Raptors faced off against the Mavericks in Dallas back on November 20th, Dirk Nowitzki went off. During one stretch during the third quarter, he reeled off four straight long balls to bring his team back from a 24 point deficit to win the game. Bosh and Bargnani both had big games that night, so they’re going to have to step it up again tonight in order to keep this game competitive.
Without TJ Ford in the line up tonight, it’ll be up to Jose Calderon to lead the charge, and you can bet Calderon fans are salivating at the thought of having him run the team for the next few games. Just keep in mind that no matter who you like more, this team will always be better with the both of them on the roster. The TJ/Jose debates really need to go away.
But whichever way you look at it, this can be one of those games where you decide you’re going to win it for your team mate. When TJ went down, there was a definite ominous feeling in the air, and players were genuinely frightened given TJ’s injury history. You can bet that in the huddle tonight, they’ll be playing this one for him. That being said, Dallas is coming into the game winning only 3 of their last 9 games. It would be a great time to jump on their current struggles, while using the recent loss in Dallas as experience on how to prevent the same embarrassment from happening again.
The problem is, Dirk has a history of enjoying great success against the Raptors, and knowing how to shut him down is a lot easier than actually doing it. Statistically, Dallas is better at scoring, preventing their opponents from scoring, and crashing the boards. Perimeter defense will once again be an issue with Nowitski, Howard, and Terry roaming the arc, all who have either been playing well lately or have the ability to throw daggers at the Raptors in crunch time. Bosh will once again have to establish a strong inside presence all game to establish a solid offensive rhythm. With Jose running the offense, it should be more controlled. The worst possible thing you could do is have the offense run through 2 or 3 different players with no sets against the Mavericks, because they will disassemble the offense quite easily with their playing style. Establishing a rhythm early and not allowing Dirk to get into his will be key tonight.
Enjoy the game.
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