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Stephen Jackson. Forgotten in all the hubbub over another guy named Steve was Jackson's huge effort, including consecutive bombs to ignite the Spurs' mammoth 23-0 run in the fourth. Jackson's game-high 24 points included 5-of-7 on 3-pointers, and he even threw in three steals at the defensive end. |
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Don Nelson. Nelson stood by helplessly in the fourth quarter as his team got so focused on attacking Steve Kerr that it completely stopped running its offense. Eleven minutes later the Mavs still had just five points in the quarter. He also stayed in a zone after Kerr entered, handing him hero status on a silver platter. |
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Kerr's first three. The Spurs were hoping they could stretch out Dallas' zone when Kerr entered the game, but they didn't know they'd struck gold until Kerr drilled one from the corner in Steve Nash's face. Then the Mavs had to react to him, opening the floor for triples by Jackson and Emanuel Ginobili, and the floodgates opened. |
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And so is that asterisk. The Spurs are still smarting that nobody thinks their 1999 title was "real" because it came in a lockout year. But having negotiated the Western Conference landmine, the Spurs need only push aside the Nets, winners of the bedraggled East, to remove that tiny star from their names once and for all. |
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Photo Credits: Jackson (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images), Nelson (Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images), Kerr (Glenn James/NBAE/Getty Images), Duncan(Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images) |
