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Gregg Popovich. Pop has taken heat for not being a strong game coach, but in Game 4 he was brilliant. He yanked three starters three minutes into the game and inserted Manu Ginobili (16 first-half points) to keep things close, and his switch to heavy use of the pick-and-roll in the third quarter helped Tony Parker blow it open. |
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Bruce Bowen. San Antonio won Game 4, but Bowen had little to do with it. He missed his first seven shots from the field before nailing a 3-pointer late in the game to finish with four points. The Spurs' defensive ace also was abused by Nick Van Exel in the first half, allowing the Mavs to race out to an early lead. |
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Jackson's jack. With the Mavs ahead 66-60 in the third quarter and Walt Williams cradling a defensive rebound, all looked well for Dallas. Then Stephen Jackson swooped in, took the ball, dribbled out to the arc and calmly drilled a 3-pointer. It ignited a game-turning, mojo-stealing 15-1 run from which the Mavs never recovered. |
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But the Mavs are smaller. With 7-foot Dirk Nowitzki and 7-foot-6 Shawn Bradley out of the lineup, and even 73 inches of dead weight in Evan Eschmeyer unavailable, the Mavs had just timid Raef LaFrentz to send against San Antonio's powerful front line. The brave Mavs were competent on the boards, but a 31-13 free-throw disparity told the real story in the paint. |
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Photo Credits: Popovich (AP), Bowen (AP), Jackson (Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images), Duncan (Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images) |
