I'll be honest, I thought Phoenix would lose this game. I figured Dallas would be pissed that they got beat in Dallas, and want to make a statement in Phoenix. I thought Dirk would be a beast, trying to keep his MVP hopes alive, and I also thought that having Josh Howard and Devin Harris back would be a big factor. I also didn't think Phoenix was playing all that well lately. Add all that up, and I really thought Dallas would win, and could possibly win big.
The game didn't exactly play out that way. Phoenix shot a league high in field goal %, Dirk did absolutely nothing and although Harris and Howard made a big difference, it wasn't enough. Phoenix just destroyed Dallas.
This turned out to be a statement game, or as the local media have been calling it a 'restatement game', ie they made the statement already in Dallas and are just reaffirming that statement. The statement made, was that Dallas couldn't come up with a big game when they needed one, Dirk is NO ONE'S MVP, and Phoenix can beat anyone when they want to.
Two possibilities:
- Dallas didn't show up for this game. If they couldn't get up for this one, they have no heart and have very little shot to beat this team in the playoffs
- Dallas played their asses off, and just got beat. Given that they were blown out, seems like they have very little shot to beat this team in the playoffs.
Either way, Dallas can't feel very good about themselves this morning.
Based on what I've seen the past 2 games, if these teams meet in the playoffs, it's Phoenix in 5.
Oh, and anyone see Stoudemires shooting % the past 2 games? He's 26 for 32 (a tidy 81%), 65 points, and throw in 19 rebounds just for fun. Dallas has NO answer for Stoudemire. Then again, who does?
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