The one that got away

Blazers have only themselves to blame for Game 2 slip

For Blazers fans, it might be the biggest heist since somebody stole Bill Walton’s bike during the 1977 championship parade.

Mavs guard Steve Nash’s controversial late 3-pointer in Game 2 Wednesday night, a shot that helped Dallas seal a 103-99 victory, is sure to have folks in Rip City ripping the zebras.

With the score tied 98-all and some 30 seconds left, Nash took a pass from Dirk Nowitzki and calmly drained an apparent 3-pointer to enable Dallas to take command. It turned out to be the decisive shot in a heartbreaking loss that left the Blazers facing a 2-0 hole in their best-of-seven series.

The only problem was that Nash’s right big toe was on the 3-point line. It was close, but replays showed the basket should have only counted for two. Somehow three refs missed it, but that’s another story.

Now, angry Portland fans want to call in Nash Bridges.

They want to review it frame by frame like the Zapruder film.

29 Points averaged by Detroit's Richard Hamilton in the first two playoff games of his career. "There's a lot of good defenders out there, but I still feel I should have won the award." -- Ron Artest of the Pacers, after he came in second to Detroit's Ben Wallace in balloting for the defensive player of the year. Will Allen Iverson's teammates continue to step up and help carry the scoring load?

They want owner Paul Allen to buy the NBA and declare a do-over.

For the Blazers, the missed call was indeed significant. Down three instead of two, Portland rushed a shot at the other end. Bonzi Wells (45 points) got fouled and wound up splitting the free throws to pull within 101-99.

But with the clock under 24 seconds, Portland now had to foul. They eventually hacked Nash (after wasting 10 precious seconds), and Nash cashiered both. Just like that, the Mavs’ lead was four and the game was effectively over.

Somehow we don’t think Mark Cuban will be complaining to David Stern about this one.

As bad a break as it was for the Blazers, however, they really shouldn’t complain either. The truth is they didn’t lose Game 2 because of the Nash Controversy. They lost because they failed to stop Dallas nearly every time it mattered down the stretch.

Portland’s defense, which played well most of the game, came unglued at the end.

Nash’s faux 3-pointer, in fact, came when he found himself matched up against Dale Davis on a switch. Uh-oh. With the 6-foot-11 Davis keeping his distance to avoid getting beat off the dribble, Nash had ample space to bury the shot.

Over the frantic final minutes, the Blazers looked confused on how to attack the Mavs mismatches, especially those created off the pick-and-roll. On another key play, Nowitzki posted up against Damon Stoudamire, forcing a hesitant Davis to run over. Nowitzki hit a cutting Eduardo Najera for an easy layup.

In fairness to Portland, it was playing without its starting backcourt of Scottie Pippen (knee) and Derek Anderson (who suffered an injury in the first quarter and didn’t return). It’s not easy to keep tight defensive rotations without your regulars on the floor. Also, the Blazers had to have been tired after playing with relatively high intensity all game.

But the bottom line is they didn’t make stops when it counted. Now they face a must-win situation in Game 3 back in Portland. The good news for Blazers fans is that the breaks have a way of evening out -- even Walton eventually got his bike back.

	Tom Pidgeon/Getty Images Stud: Tracy McGrady, G, Magic Orlando's All-Star did everything he could to give the Magic a 2-0 lead in the series heading home, but his 46 points exceeded his teammates' combined total by 15.		Gregory Shamuss/NBAE/Getty Images Dud: Gordon Giricek, F, Magic And speaking of McGrady's teammates ... Giricek was 1-of-11 from the field and posted more turnovers (three) than points (two).

Despite their blowout loss to the T’wolves, the Lakers are confident heading into Game 3. All seven times they have suffered double-digit playoff defeats under Phil Jackson, they have bounced back with a victory the next game. Nets center Dikembe Mutombo has been a non-factor so far against the Bucks. He doesn’t distribute the ball well enough in the offense to make his presence worthwhile, especially since Milwaukee lacks a scoring center. Keep an eye on the rising intensity in the Celtics-Pacers series, with Antoine Walker and Jermaine O’Neal starting to mouth off. What’s odd is that these teams have no recent playoff history. They haven’t met in the postseason since 1991-92.

 

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