Source: http://0rz.tw/Ijsxp
*********************************************************************
Dallas Mavericks need Josh Howard in lineup
01:39 PM CDT on Wednesday, May 6, 2009
*********************************************************************
DENVER – This is what the Mavericks feared all along.
This is what they couldn't afford to happen.
The Mavericks' success in these playoffs has always been tied to Josh
Howard's health. Now, it hangs by a thread with the latest injury to their
most important player.
There is no way the Mavericks can beat Denver without Howard. At the moment,
their odds don't look all that good even if he does return.
"Look, our margin for error is not great, especially without Josh," Mavericks
coach Rick Carlisle conceded after his team’s 12-point loss in Game 2. "But
there are things we can control and do better, and we'll have to do that
going home."
The Mavericks' fortunes are held hostage by Howard's problematic ankles. He
injured the right one, the good one, in Tuesday's loss and will be
re-evaluated today.
Howard's stellar performance in a first-round victory over San Antonio gave
the Mavericks hope. But deep down, they knew they were living on borrowed
time.
The Mavericks will play their eighth postseason game Saturday afternoon at
American Airlines Center.
Howard played in more than eight consecutive games only twice during the
regular season. The one game the Mavericks did lose to the Spurs came when he
aggravated his injured left ankle early in the contest.
The Mavericks can't outrun or outjump Denver. We know this because Carlisle
reminds us at every opportunity.
We know this because you need a calculator to keep up with all of the layups
and dunks the Nuggets have thrown down in the first two games of the series.
It's 40, by the way, on 25 layups and 15 dunks.
When you are short on athletes, you can't lose the best you have and expect
to stay close to a young, athletic team like Denver.
The scoreboard said the Mavericks had a chance to tie the series entering the
fourth quarter of Game 2. They were only down by three.
But the truth is the game was lost in the first quarter when Howard went to
the locker room. His absence forced the Mavericks to adjust their offensive
and defensive game plan on the fly.
It's already been established that the Nuggets fly much higher than the
Mavericks.
"Josh went out pretty early," Dirk Nowitzki said. "We definitely needed him
in the second half to slash and get some easy baskets for us.
"On defense in the second half we had to play a small lineup a lot with J.J.
Barea, Jet [Jason Terry] and [Jason] Kidd, so we had physical mismatches all
over the place."
Howard has played fewer minutes in this series than Barea. He's played
slightly more minutes than Ryan Hollins.
Hey, I like Hollins, too. But if these two are close in minutes, you're not
going to win the series.
A small lineup will get you past the LA Clippers and Sacramento Kings of the
NBA world. It won't get the job done against Denver.
"It's my right ankle," Howard said. "It's been sore. I tried to get through
it [Tuesday], but my ankle didn't respond the way I wanted it to.
"I'm going to continue icing and treatment, and the plan is that I will be
ready on Saturday."
That's been the plan all season. But say Howard does play in Game 3. How long
will he be able to perform and at what level?
"It's a problem that's been going on since the third week of the season,"
Carlisle said of managing the team with Howard's injuries. "It's impossible
for me to give an assessment. I'm obviously not a doctor.
"We obviously need him. But if he can't go, we're going to have to have
someone step in there and get the job done."
The Mavericks are once again forced to hold their breath over Howard's
health.
The problem this time is they're about to run out of air.
*********************************************************************
--
Only the strong survive- Iverson ⊕ ═█┘
⊕ ●╱ Ｗ
● ●︵ ● ●)) ３╯
<３\ /３⊕ ／３﹚ ３ \\
/>⊕ >/ ⊕ ╲> >>
========= http://www.wretch.cc/blog/AWEI3 =========
--
※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc)
◆ From: 58.114.81.191