Full-Court Press

Haywood activated for tonight's game

MIAMI _ Brendan Haywood has been activated for Game 6 tonight.

The Dallas Mavericks’ backup center went out and practiced on the AmericanAirlines Arena court a few minutes ago and declared himself strong enough to give it a go tonight when the Mavs try to close out the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat.

Haywood strained his hip flexor in the fourth quarter of Game 2, and was sidelined for Games 3 and 5 while playing just three minutes in Game 4.

Haywood, who is not completely healthy, is the primary backup to Tyson Chandler.

The Mavs lead the Heat, 3-2, in this best-of-seven series, and can capture their first NBA title with a win tonight.

-- Dwain Price

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@DwainPrice

 

Mavs are sleepless in Miami, but ready to close out the Heat

MIAMI _ Several members of the Dallas Mavericks woke up this morning in their downtown Miami hotel confident that by the time they lay their heads on their pillows tonight, they’ll be crowned the new NBA champions.

Then again, some of the Mavs tossed and turned as they prepared for the biggest game of their lives – Game 6 at 7 tonight at AmericanAirlines Arena.

“I didn’t sleep at all,’’ forward Shawn Marion said before this morning’s shootaround. “I think I got about four hours, maybe.

“”Ya’ll ain’t sleeping, either, so what ya’ll talking about. Ya’ll are excited as we are – just anticipating these games. These games have been great and that’s what it’s about.’’

The Mavs lead the best-of-seven NBA Finals against the Miami Heat, 3-2, and can run their record in closeout games this season to a perfect 4-0 with a win tonight. However, if a seventh game is needed, it will be back here on Tuesday night.

Dallas, though, would rather close it out tonight and hop on a plane and get back home and celebrate with a few hundred thousand of their closest friends.

“This is Game 7,’’ guard Jason Terry said. “This is our approach tonight, and we’re trying to get this thing done tonight.

“I’m feeling very positive, I’m feeling aggressive. That’s got to be our mindset going in – I know it will be.’’

Putting all issues aside – professionally or personal – for the next 48 minutes is what’s solely on the Mavs; minds. Being deprived of any meaningful sleep won’t matter either.

“When you get in the playoffs things do change,’’ coach Rick Carlisle said. “Your nervous system functions a little differently, your sleep patterns are a little different.

“But it’s all part of being put in a position to do things at a real high level.’’

The Heat has challenged the Mavs’ mettle to the point where Dallas had to rally from 15 points down in the fourth quarter to win Game 2, and rally from nine points down in the fourth quarter to capture Game 4.

“This has been a very intense two-week period,’’ Carlisle said. “I embrace the intensity of it and I know our guys do.’’

Since they know the Heat crowd will be jacked up tonight, the Mavs know the importance of getting off to a fast start.

“We’ve got to come out aggressive,’’ center Tyson Chandler said. “We know they’ll be juiced up in front of their home crowd -- we’ve got to try to hit them with the first punch.

“I think it’s important that we come out and play well. We want to come out and get a good start. I think that’s every game, though, but we definitely want to get out to a good start and control the momentum.’’

A quiet crowd means things will be working in the Mavs’ favor. So the Mavs want to keep the crowd out of it.

“You’ve got the crowd against you, you’ve got the electricity that they build off of,’’ Chandler said. “You’ve got to stay away from that.’’

The Mavs have never won an NBA title, and they’re prepared to seize the moment.

“We know what we have to do to be successful, the mindset we have to have going into tonight, so we’re prepared,’’ Terry said. “Today you just relax, do your normal routine.’’

“I’m very superstitious, so all those superstitious will be intact and ready to roll.

Properly lacing up his sneakers in a neat fashion before tipoff is one of the most superstitious things Terry does before games.

“It’s got to be in sync,’’ Terry said. “All strings got to be even.’’

Illnesses and injuries that players can play with must be put on the backburner, Terry said. For the Mavs, Game 6 is an all hands on deck type of situation.

“You go out here with a stomach virus, the flu or whatever you’ve got,’’ Terry said. “It’s not going to matter tonight.’’

In other words, the Mavs are in a whatever-it-takes mode. At this point, they don’t want anyone stealing their glory.

“We’re focused,’’ guard DeShawn Stevenson said. “We understand that it’s not over.

“We’ve got to go out here and try to handle business on their court. But knowing that makes me even more ready and excited.’’

Carlisle thrives on his team living in the moment. And tonight, he hopes, is a moment that will live with them forever.

“I think you can draw on some of the good things we’ve done this season, and certainly on other seasons,’’ Carlisle said. “But none of that guarantees anything.

“In this situation you’ve got to play whistle to whistle, we’ve got to really concentrate on our game. We know that there’s going to be runs and a lot of things going on, and we’ve just got to stay steadfast to what’s helped us get to this point.’’

Chandler noted that the pressure isn’t getting the best of the Mavs, and that this drive to the NBA title has been extremely pleasurable.”

“It’s fun,’’ Chandler said. “This is what you dream of, playing at this time of the year. Two teams left, elimination game.’’

An elimination game the Mavs want to use to the fullest so they can take their first NBA title back to Dallas and celebrate with their fans.

-- Dwain Price

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@DwainPrice

Nowitzki can relate to the "hammering'' James has received

MIAMI _ Miami Heat superstar LeBron James has taken a lot of heat for not carrying his weight as his team has fallen behind, 3-2, in the best-of-seven NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks.

Mavs forward Dirk Nowitzki can relate.

Nowitzki has taken a lot of heat as the Mavs have been unable to win an NBA title during his 13 years with the franchise.

James was vilified for not bringing an NBA championship to Cleveland during his eight seasons with the Cavaliers. And he has been criticized for being less than productive against the Mavs.

“I just think sometimes when you don't win, criticism comes with it,’’ Nowitzki said before Saturday’s practice. “That's just a part of the game if you're the star or the face of the franchise.

“If you win it's great for you and everybody looks at you. And if you lose, you're going to get hammered.’’

James has constantly been getting hammered, even after he registered a triple-double in Game 5. He’s scored just two points in the fourth quarters of the past two games -- both Miami losses – and the “hammering’’ has been relentless.

Again, Nowitzki can relate.

“It's just the part of the business,’’ Nowitzki said. “I think we understand that.

“We've been around long enough. I got hammered the last 13 years, basically, so hopefully this year I can make the hammering go away for one year.’’

-- Dwain Price

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@DwainPrice

Nowitzki called the Wade/James video "childish''

MIAMI _ If Dwyane Wade and LeBron James thought it was funny to mock the sinus infection and cough Dirk Nowitzki had in Game 4, think again.

Nowitzki didn’t think it was funny at all.

“I just thought it was a little childish, a little ignorant,’’ Nowitzki said before Saturday’s practice. “I've been in this league for 13 years, I've never faked an injury or an illness before, but it happened.

“It's over to me. It's not going to add anything extra to me.’’

Before Game 5 this past Thursday in Dallas, a cell phone video captured Wade and James coughing and mocking Nowitzki’s illness. It was a cautionary tale of a pair of 20-something NBA superstars going out of their way to mock an opposing player’s – Nowitzki – illness.

Incredibly, Wade said the video didn’t paint the true picture of what actually was taking place.

“First of all, it wasn't fake coughing. I actually did cough,’’ Wade said.  “And with the cameras being right there we made a joke out of it because we knew you guys were going to blow it up.

“You did exactly what we knew. We never said Dirk's name.’’

Perhaps not, but the insinuation was certainly there for everyone to draw their own conclusions.

“I think he's not the only one in the world who can get sick or have a cough,’’ Wade said. “We just had fun with the cameras being right in our face about the blowup of the incident, and it held to be true.

“You blew it up.’’

Maybe, but James was in no mood to tell his said of the story, or to back Wade’s version.

“I'm not feeding into that,’’ James said. “If you guys want to feed into everything that not only myself or D‑Wade or the Miami Heat do, I think that's a non‑issue.

“There's bigger issues in this series than that.’’

Mavs guard Jason Terry said he hasn’t seen the video and could care less about its content.

“If you need anything other than that trophy to motivate you at this point,’’ Terry said, “you're probably setting yourself up for failure.’’

Nowitzki said he has more pertinent things to worry about any shenanigans from Wade and James.

“This is the NBA Finals,’’ Nowitzki said. “If you need an extra motivation, you have a problem.

“So we're one win away from my dream, what I've worked on for half of my life. This is really all I'm worried about. This is all I'm focusing on.  And not really off‑the‑court stuff that happened.’’

 -- Dwain Price

Follow me on Twitter

@DwainPrice

Dirk can understand what LeBron is going through

Dirk
Nowitzki said today that he can relate to LeBron James, who continues to get a
national bashing for not doing enough in the NBA Finals.

 

Much
of Nowitzki’s career has been spent getting criticism for being too soft
or not winning the big game or whatever. James, who is coming off a
triple-double in Game 5, has been getting heat for perhaps deferring too much
to teammates and coming up empty in crucial fourth-quarter situations.

 

“Sometimes,
when you don’t win, criticism comes with it,’’ Nowitzki said.
“That’s just a part of the game if you’re the star or the
face of the franchise. If you win, it’s great for you and everybody looks
at you. If you lose, you’re going to get hammered.’’

 

Nowitzki
has been mostly a stellar performer throughout his career in the playoffs. The
exception came in 2007 when he was stifled by the Golden State Warriors, who
upset the Mavericks in the first round.

 

But
even in the best Maverick seasons before this one, he wasn’t always
appreciated.

 

“It’s
part of the business,’’ he said. “We understand that.
We’ve been around long enough. I got hammered the last 13 years,
basically. So hopefully this year I can make the hammering go away for one
year.’’

 

Eddie
Sefko

 

Terry comes up big as Mavs are one win away from winning their first NBA title

DALLAS _ Jason Terry had been bottled up by LeBron James for most of these NBA Finals.

Not any more.

With Terry scoring eight points during a game-ending 17-4 rally, the Dallas Mavericks moved within one win of securing their first NBA title with Thursday’s 112-103 victory over the Miami Heat.

The Mavs lead the best-of-seven NBA Finals series 3-2. In the previous 26 times the NBA Finals have been deadlocked at 2-2, the Game 5 winner went on to win the championship 19 times.

Game 6 is Sunday at 7 p.m. in Miami, and a seventh game, if necessary, will be played in Miami on Tuesday.

Terry is one of the Mavs’ top scorers, but he had practically been silent in the fourth quarter by the long and athletic James. But as the Mavs became the first team in this series to win two consecutive games, it was Terry who gave them the biggest boost when they needed it the most.

“All season long, ever since I've been a Maverick, I've been the guy in the fourth quarter they depended on to either make plays or make shots,’’ said Terry, who scored 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting. “So I really relish in that role.

“Regardless of what's going on throughout three quarters of the game, in the fourth quarter I know I'm depended on to come through. Thank God I was able to do that again tonight.’’

Terry’s three-pointer tied the game at 100-all, and another three-pointer over the outstretched arms of James sealed the deal and pushed Dallas ahead 108-101 with 33.3 seconds left.

“The clock was winding down,’’ Terry said. “It's just like being out there on the playground back home in Seattle.

“Emulating your idols in The Finals situation, game on the line. Raise up, knock it down.’’

Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavs with a game-high 29 points. He also had four points down the wire, including a baseline-driving dunk with 2:43 left that gave Dallas the lead for good at 102-100.

When it was all said and done, Nowitzki knew how important it was for the Mavs to win Game 5.

“I mean that was a big win for us, obviously,’’ he said. “We didn't want to go to Miami and give them basically two shots to close us out, so we kept plugging there in the fourth.

“And now we have to go down there and basically approach Sunday's game as Game 7. You don't want to give this great team any hope or anything.’’

In the highest-scoring game of the series – it’s the first time either team has eclipsed the 100-point barrier – the Mavs won their final home game of the season. They also went 2-1 in this 2-3-2 format and put themselves in an excellent position to close this series by simply winning one of two games in Miami.

As far as Terry is concerned, he also chipped in with six assists and kept the Heat off-balanced throughout his 30 minutes on the court.

“He played great,’’ coach Rick Carlisle said. “During periods where Dirk was out of the game, we were going to him and he was delivering.

“Those are tough stretches of minutes for us because it's just tough when Dirk is out of the game. But it's the total game that we've all been preaching to Jet really since the playoffs began, and tonight he did a terrific job.’’

Also for the Mavs, JJ Barea bulldozed his way for 17 points and five assists in 25 minutes, Tyson Chandler had 13 points and seven boards, and Jason Kidd collected 13 points, six assists and a huge three-pointer that increased the Mavs’ cushion to 105-100 with 1:26 left.

The Mavs shot a sizzling 56.5 percent from the field and were an equally-hot 13-of-19 from three-point range.

“You get hot, you get on a roll and you can have a night like that,’’ Carlisle said. “They don't happen very often.

“The last time we had a shooting night like this was Game 4 against the Lakers.’’

Dwyane Wade, who fought off a left hip contusion, led Miami with 23 points and eight assists. Chris Bosh added 19 points and 10 rebounds, Marion Chalmers tallied 15, and Udonis Haslem added 10 points.

Meanwhile, James had one of the quietest triple-doubles ever as he finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. But he just only 8-of-19 from the field, committed four turnovers, and missed a late jumper with the score tied and a where did-that-come-from three-pointer with Miami down two points with under two minutes remaining.

“D-Wade gave it to me, I had enough room and I shot it,’’ James said of his failed three-pointer. “Shots I’ve made before.

“I just didn’t make it.’’

Dallas jumped to an early 13-6 lead only to see the Heat – on the strength of a buzzer-beating 40-footer by Chalmers – lead 31-30 after the opening period.

The offensive numbers kept registering for both teams as the Mavs assumed a 60-57 lead at the midway point.

A Chandler dunk off a feed from Kidd helped the Dallas lead balloon to 80-71 late in the third quarter. From there, Miami kept inching closer and closer until it used a 9-0 run to open up a 99-95 lead with 4:38 left following a three-pointer by Wade.

All that was left was for the Mavs to continue a trend that has become their calling card in these playoffs. That is, when all appears lost, the Mavs simply roll up their sleeves and go to work.

Now, that hard work has gotten them one win away form a goal that has eluded every team this franchise has put on the floor.

“Well, we've got to just continue to work the process,’’ Carlisle said. “And for us the process is being in a stance, being tied together, being really tight defensively, because they're great players and put unbelievable pressure on you.

“We understand where we're at, but we also understand what got us here. And that is making sure we stay in the moment.’’

As a while, the Mavs are not ordering any championship rings. And they’re certainly not making any plans for a parade.

  “I think we're happy with our performance, but there's always room to get better,’’ Kidd said. “So defensively, you know, in that fourth quarter we gave up too many lay‑ups to them, and they took the lead.

“But the big thing is we know it's hard to win on the road. And we have to find a way to win on the road come Sunday and see what happens.’’

For Terry and the Mavs, four wins would be the crown. Not three wins.

“It's the first one to win four,’’ Terry said. “We have our opportunity in Game 6.

“We must go out, play aggressively and take advantage of our opportunity.’’

-- Dwain Price

Follow me on Twitter

@DwainPrice

Dirk Nowitzki's post-game comments

On being one win away from a championship: Yeah, I mean that was a big win for us, obviously. We didn't want to go to Miami and give them basically two shots to close us out. So kept plugging there in the fourth. So definitely a big win for us. And now we have to go down there and basically approach Sunday's game as Game 7. You don't want to give this great team any hope or anything. So we got to play more of the same and keep attacking and we'll see what happens Sunday.

On Jason Terry's performance: Jet was phenomenal. He was aggressive again from the get-go, I felt. Even the first half when he came in, had a couple of pull-ups, got in the lane, got a floater, I remember. That's the Jet we need. We need him to attack and get in the lane. It opens up a lot of stuff for everybody else out there. It opens up Tyson [Chandler] on the rolls, that we actually hit him a bunch of times today. Our fives rolling, that was good. Also that opens up the corner threes and made a couple. We need Jet attacking. He was great. So did J.J. [Barea] in the starting lineup attacking, got to the lane a couple of times, made some layups. I thought that opened up his three ball.

On whether Terry fed off Nowitzki's threatened "talking ban": We all know Jet is a confident young man. He always has a lot to say to us in the locker room. He's always talking. He's just an energetic guy. He loves to talk and he loves to hear himself talk.

On whether the team can keep it together, being one win away from a title: Yes, I think like I said, it's not a best-of-five series; it's a best-of-seven. So the first team to four wins. So we couldn't celebrate tonight, even though it was a big win for us. The series is not over. If you look at it really now, all that's happened, you can look they won their two homes, we won all three home games. That's how you look at it. They got two more. So far it looks like everybody protected their home court and they still have two games at home.

So there's really nothing to celebrate. We're going in there Sunday swinging, like we did today, from the jump. And hopefully steal one Sunday.

On how much he has enjoyed the Mavs' ride through the playoffs: I really can't enjoy it much because in the playoffs for some reason, you're always on the edge. You don't sleep much. You think basketball 24/7. I can enjoy it hopefully next week when we're on vacation. As of right now, I'm always thinking ahead and thinking about the next game, what can I do better, what didn't I do and what I have to do to get other guys involved and more open.

Hopefully I can enjoy it next week.

On what he said when Miami took its fourth-quarter lead: Just stick with it. Just stick with it. First of all, this was the last home game in this building in front of our fans, who have been phenomenal all year and pushed us forward. We obviously didn't want to end this season here for them on a loss. I think we addressed that. We wanted to keep plugging, keep going. It was big, I think, when we were down four, the next offense I was able to get in the lane, get a pump fake, get to the free-throw line, kind of settle everybody down, make it a two-point game. And I thought that was big for us not to shoot a bad jumper and they go down in transition again. So it was good to kind of stop the clock, get two free throws and kind of set our defense. I thought that was a big momentum play.

Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle's postgame comments

On Jason Terry's 21 points and six assists: He played great. He played great. During periods where Dirk was out of the game, we were going to him, and he was delivering. Those are tough stretches of minutes for us because it's just tough when Dirk is out of the game. But it's the total game that we've all been preaching to Jet really since the playoffs began. And tonight he did a terrific job.

....It's that, and it's the defensive end. So, you know, look, he was sensational tonight. Especially in the fourth.

On being one win away from the championship: We understand where we're at, but we also understand what got us here, and that is making sure we stay in the moment.

On the hot three-point shooting for the Mavericks in the fourth quarter: Both teams are shooting the three well. They shot 40%. They made 8 out of 20, which is a big number for the playoffs. 13 is a big number. You get hot, you get on a roll, and you can have a night like that.

They don't happen very often. Last time we had a shooting night like that was Game 4 against the Lakers. That's why you just keep working your game. And that's why you stay persistent, you keep defending, you keep systematically stepping into shots that are there, and you're going to have some breakthrough games.

Persistence is our game. We're an old-school team. We're not high fliers. We have a couple of guys that can get up in the air a little bit. Our game is near the ground. We have to play with brains and guts.

About Brian Cardinal's performance: Yeah, terrific. Last two games, I mean, he's really a unique player. So resourceful defensively, always around the ball. He's always going to be there taking charges and he's always going to be there-- he's going to be making contact with people. I thought the block that was called on him may have been the wrong call. I thought he was in position. I thought Wade came right through his chest. He's going to be there, and when he's on the floor, you know, we become a more active defensive team for sure.

On effect of Dwyane Wade's injury and absence in the middle of the game: Not to me [appear to be slowed down in the stretch]. I mean, he was still driving it good and getting to the free-throw line. I'm not sure what happened to him. The guy that started for him hit two threes that started the half. Didn't look like they lost a whole lot.

On whether it is important for the Mavericks to close out the series in Game 6 and prevent a Game 7: Again, I just would say to you that we're going to stay in the moment, and we're going to just keep studying how we play our best. We're going to play whistle to whistle. I heard that term. Been watching the hockey series. A lot of the people in the hockey world use that term. And that's what we're going to do. We're going to try to win each possession and just take it one at a time.

An NBA Finals is a 16-day deal or whatever it is. And it's very long, but somehow or other it goes by fast. By staying in the moment and just really focusing on what's important for us, that helps us.

On whether he is relieved to have somebody other than Dirk Nowitzki close out games:

We've got a lot of guys that have been terrific finishers for us. A lot of times our game becomes very balanced. We had five guys in double figures tonight. We had a guy with eight and two guys with four and a guy with three. So that's pretty good for us. Some nights it's just we need seven guys with four points or more. You're never quite sure how the total is going to get to where it gets.

That's kind of defined us as a team. There's no set formula, other than we need each other. And we need to play a certain way, and we need to play with a certain collective intelligence and will. And the defense has got to be tight. So we were able to do a lot of those things tonight, and I think that's why we won.

Carlisle admits he has "some crazy guys'' -- and he loves them

DALLAS _ Rick Carlisle doesn’t mind if his players make comments that may turn up as bulletin board material for the Miami Heat.

“Listen, none of that stuff is meaningful,’’ Carlisle, the Dallas Mavericks’ coach, said after this morning’s shootaround. “Once the ball gets thrown up between the lines all the stuff is manufactured stuff form the media – a lot of it is.

“Look, I’ve got some crazy guys and I love them. You want to have that kind of crazy guys on your team this time of the year.’’

Earlier in the NBA Finals, guard Jason Terry questioned the conditioning of Heat forward LeBron James. And on Wednesday, guard DeShawn Stevenson said he thought James “checked out’’ of the fourth quarter of game 4.

The best-of-seven series is tied 2-2, and Game 5 is tonight at 8 at American Airlines Center.

Games 6 will be Sunday in Miami, and a decisive Game 7 – if necessary – will also be in Miami on Tuesday.

With that backdrop, from the Mavs’ perspective, Carlisle knows his team can ill-afford to head to South Beach a game down in this series.

“This is our last game this year in this building,’’ Carlisle said. “Our fans have been phenomenal all three years I’ve been here, especially this year.

“This is an opportunity for us to really put it all out there because we’re not going to be back in here.’’

No team has won back-to-back games yet in this series. And the pressure is mounting for both teams to lay it all out on the line tonight and play Game 5 as if this is Game 7.

“We love pressure,’’ Carlisle said. “The more the pressure is on, the better our team has functioned all year long.

“So, bring it on.’’

Throughout these playoffs, the Mavs have shown the ability to strike fast and hard even when it appeared as though they were out of games. Dallas has rallied from being down by double-digits in each of the four rounds of the playoffs.

The Mavs also rallied from nine points in Game 4 on Tuesday by using a 21-9 spurt to end the game and walk out with an 86-83 victory.

“I think we’ve been a good fourth quarter team all season long. We’ve had some comebacks where we won a lot of games where down the stretch we had to grind it out, so we feel like we have a bunch of veterans that know how to win and know how to get a crucial stop and know how to execute to get a good shot or get a basket.

“So this year we’re a good executing team.’’

That execution will be put to the test again tonight against a Heat team known for its aggressive and tough-minded defense.

“All games so far have been big and none of them are bigger than tonight,’’ forward Dirk Nowitzki said. “This is what the Finals are about – every game is big.

“We’d love to go (to Miami up) 3-2. You don’t want to give them two chances to close it out at home, so (tonight) is our Game 7 here and the last home game for this year in this building, so it should be a great atmosphere and hopefully we can pull it out.’’

Center Tyson Chandler acknowledged that tonight’s game will come down to which team simply wants it more.

“I think the pressure is on both teams because we know this is an important game,’’ Chandler said. “Whoever gets this game is going to be able to win one out of the next two for a ring, so this game is important for both teams.

“Every game is a must-win. If you asked me that yesterday I’d tell you yeah, the day before I’d tell you yeah. Game 1 I’d tell you must-win, and I’m going to say the same thing tonight – it’s a must-win.’’

So important is tonight’s game that pain has taken a backseat to the task at hand. Forward Shawn Marion injured his calf in Game 4, but declares himself physically fit for tonight’s game.

“What is pain? What is it?,’’ Marion asked. “Man, we're in the NBA Finals.

“There ain't no pain. I'm suiting up. That's all that matters.’’

Guard Jason Terry said the outcome of tonight’s game will hinge on which team comes out with sheer aggression, and which team can weather the overwhelming heat that will be applied at both ends of the court.

“Come out with aggression on both ends of the floor, attacking at every possible moment, and seizing the moment and taking control of the series,’’ Terry said. “It’s a big game for us.

“The last game here at home n front of our fans and we want to go out with a bang.’’

James scored a career playoff-low eight points in Game 4 and has been criticized nationally over the past 48 hours. Asked if the Mavs are in James’ head, Terry said: “I don’t really care. It doesn’t matter to us.

“Our job is to be up in his body, in his head, in his mind, everywhere. We’re supposed to be all over this court tonight and I know we will.’’

The Mavs feel if they’re able to successfully scramble on defense, plus attack the boards and get their transition game in gear, they will have the inside track on winning their final game of the season in the AAC.

“Right from the jump we’re going to be aggressive, we’re going to be assertive and really looking to attack this team. No doubt in my mind that every man that steps on this court tonight in a Maverick uniform will be aggressive.

“So however we’ve got to win it, we’re prepared to do so.’’

-- Dwain Price

Follow me on Twitter

@DwainPrice

LeBron amping up with help from Mavericks -- and the Mavs know it

LeBron James, coming off the lowest-scoring playoff game of his career, is gearing up for what he surely will be the biggest game of his career, until the next one, of course.

He has ample motivation after DeShawn Stevenson said James sort of “checked out’’ of Game 4 when he saw that Dwyane Wade was taking over the Heat’s offense. 

Wade said he believes the Mavericks’ commentary on James’ invisible Game 4 (in the scoring department, at least) will be plenty of motivation for James. 

“It fuels him,’’ Wade said. “It adds a little extra fuel to the gas tank. No question. So we appreciate Dallas. But even if he lost focus, to help get his focus back, we appreciate the words that are coming out of their mouths.’’ 

Coach Rick Carlisle said he’s not overly concerned about anything the Mavericks may have said in the last 48 hours. 

“None of that stuff is meaningful at all,’’ he said. “Once the ball gets thrown up between the
lines, all of that stuff is manufactured stuff from the media. 

“Look, I got some crazy guys. And I love them. You want to have that kind of crazy guys on your team this time of year.’’ 

Dirk Nowitzki said he expects vintage LeBron to be on display tonight at American Airlines Center. 

“I try to never really worry about what people say,’’ Nowitzki said. “You got to play your own game and
he’s been around long enough and he’s going to recover. Every time you come off a suspect game, I think what you try to do is attack, try to establish yourself early and get your confidence up. 

“That’s what we’re expecting, for him to really come out firing and set the tone. So we got to be ready defensively.

"I think that’s where we made a mistake in Game 3 after the win. We weren’t ready to play on the defensive end. And that’s what got us in trouble. So hopefully we’ll be ready for that.’’ 

What the Heat may have to guard against, of course, is James trying to do too much too quickly in tonight’s game to the detriment of the team concept. 

Eddie Sefko