3 takes from another Mavericks playoff loss

1.  Things changed when Josh went down.

When Josh Howard rolled his ankle by steping on Peja Stojakovic’s foot, the fortune of the Mavericks immediately changed.  I was surprised that the announcers on the national broadcast didn’t make a bigger deal out of it.

Not from an excuse standpoint, but more so on the defensive end Josh could hardly stick with anyone.  He kept throwing up bricks off that bad wheel and the Hornets slowly crept back in the game.

2.  Why did Avery take Dirk out?

I have to say I was frustrated with Coach Johnson when he took Nowitzki out  just under two minutes into the fourth.  The Hornets already had momentum on their side, and it would have been nice to see what Dirk might have done to try to curb the tide.

By the time Avery called a timeout to get Dirk back in the game, it was too late.  This is do or die time, I just felt like the Mavs should have pulled out all the stops to try to get this win on the road.

3.  This team won’t win with jump shots.

Yeah we’ve said it over and over, but the evidence was on display so clearly in the 2nd half.  The only player for the Mavericks who even attempted to play with his back to the basket on Saturday was Jason Kidd  -and not with very much success I might add.  When times get tough and jumpers stop falling, you need someone that can get you easy baskets.

David West gave New Orleans exactly that after a slow start.  It’s like Game 3 of the 2006 NBA Finals is playing on a continuous loop.  Get the lead, throw up jumpers, lose the lead, lose the game.  All while the other team drives to the hole and gets easy baskets from the blocks.

It’s a nightmare.