Deja Vu All Over Again....

Haven't we seen this before? Don't I remember a 13 point lead in Game 3, an 11 point lead in Game 5, and now a 14 point lead in Game 6? I admit, this is really hard to take. My team has never been to the Finals. Oh sure, I can remember 7 of the 8 Super Bowls my Cowboys have been in, but they are nothing like the sustained intensity of the NBA Finals. I have lost sleep, been on an emotional roller coaster, and had near heart attacks. This has been a pressure cooker for the fans. But watching your team repeatedly depart from the style of play that got them here, and that got them wins in Games 1 and 2, and depart from what got them big leads in 3 of the losses, was even worse--a true heartbreaker. It seems a few other household items may have gotten broken too.

"Hey, we had a good run"...

You hear this a lot: "we had a good run." Certainly, getting to the Finals has never been done by this team, so that was an achievement. But somewhere along the way to the title the Mavs seem to have lost sight of what got them past San Antonio, the defending champion. That is always a danger: having an emotional peak before you need it. Admit it, we all thought beating San Antonio entitled us to the trophy. Problem is, it didn't. There were still 3 other teams at that time who felt they were just as entitled. We allowed an inferior Phoenix team to make us play 2 extra games that never should have been necessary. And think about the Spurs series: we were up 3-1 and couldn't finish the deal, EVEN on our home court. In walked Miami and we immediately spanked them for two games. Everyone felt it, everyone was talking about it: the REAL championship happened two series ago. Then it happened: Game 3.

Up reared the Mavericks team that couldn't close out San Antonio, that couldn't close out Phoenix. Mavs fans nervously reassured each other that we would get it back together and win. Heck, it was so obvious that Dallas was superior to Miami in talent and depth, and we played in the WEST for crying out loud. One problem. The Heat get THREE home games in a row in the Finals, not just two. They patiently waited for us to fall into the slide they had seen us fall into in the previous two series, and like clockwork, we did. Mavs lost. And lost again. For the first time we had really seen our players in a prolonged struggle to shake loose of the nerves and fear of the moment. They couldn't.

Dallas is still the 'better team'...

Yes, it's true. Don't agree? Then ask yourself this: If you could conduct a draft right now to start a team and you had to select from Miami and Dallas, which team's players would be gone first? Dallas is deeper and more talented by a long shot. Here's the rub: that's not enough. There is a reason that Pat Riley and Greg Popovich have filled their teams with old veterans who can't play like they used to: their heads. They know that if they can just make it to the Finals, what these guys have in their heads will make up for what they lack in their legs. And it worked.

Did you ever dream you would see a time when Dallas was so scared to attack the basket? Did you ever dream you would see a time when Dirk could not make space for himself to shoot? Did you ever dream you would see SO MANY POSSESSIONS where, because of sloppy play and turnovers, Dallas didn't even get a shot off? Was it even fathomable that Miami could win 4 straight games against Dallas? No. But all of it happened. Miami 4, Dallas 2.

AS for the NBA and the Media....

It seems they got what they wanted. Let's be honest, this was a Shaq/Wade lovefest from the start. There were times when it was less obvious, but last night's pregame was all but a crowning of Miami, as we were treated to Miami interest stories all through the discussion. Oh sure, they talked about Dallas--the Nowitzki fine, the Cuban fine. But the overwhelming pregame hype was all Miami. If you doubted it for a second, surely it was clear to you every time Miami made a tough shot or a drive to the basket and Mike Breen about came out of his seat on the call. If not, then Breen left no doubt at the half when, as the players left the court for the locker room, he gleefully announced "Miami Heat, one half away from their first championship." Hmmmm.....How did he know that? Had the officials made it THAT clear to him that Miami was destined to win?

Mavs were robbed...

Yes, let's also be honest about the officiating: The "star system" is alive and well in the NBA. It just doesn't include any Mavericks in that system, not even Dirk. It leads with Dwayne Wade, followed closely by Tim Duncan and apparently Shaq. Don't believe me? Then try this: http://www.ericfolkerth.com/ and go to his blog.

But, it shouldn't have mattered. We knew we wouldn't get a fair shake, and that David Stern did NOT want to give us the trophy, so we should have played through it. We didn't. We had every opportunity to win, particularly in Game 3 when we had a chance to put the series away. We will be talking about Game 3 for many years. Lost opportunities.

Let's just hope, pray, and support the Mavs with the hope that we can exorcise these demons soon.

Who Are You, and What Have You Done With Dirk?

You may have caught the interview with Shawn Marion of the Phoenix Suns after Game 4 between Dallas and Miami. Marion was utterly baffled at the big, white guy wearing number 41 for Dallas. It sure didn't look like Dirk. "This is just not the way he played against us," Marion offered. I would agree.

At this point, is there anyone (Heat fans excluded) who thinks Miami is better than Phoenix or San Antonio? How about this: is there anyone who thinks Miami is as good as either of those teams? Hardly. So, what's the deal?

Everything starts with Dirk....

You cannot overlook the struggles of Nowitzki when trying to figure out what has happened to Dallas. Dirk's points are dwindling, because yes, his shot is not falling. But it doesn't stop there. Dirk has quit crashing the boards and playing defense. He has done the unforgivable: he is letting his lack of offense affect his defense. What's worse, he is not moving without the ball on offense, which enables Miami to play better defense on other players, and clog up the middle with virtually no consequences. Dirk won't drive. Remember just a few weeks ago when San Antonio fans were complaining about Dirk getting calls, and making claims like "all Dirk can do is shoot free throws." Man, what I wouldn't give to see Dirk get 20 free throws against Miami. But, he is going to have to take it to the rim first in order to do that. Honestly, are you seeing the MVP Dirk of the last few series? Are you seeing the 50 point "Monster" that we saw just recently? Dirk, where are you?

Nice call, Crawford...

Okay, so fans love to complain about the officials. But honestly, did you see it called at both ends last night? Was any particular act a foul at each end of the court, and was it called consistently? Not a chance. Last night was the San Antonio series revisited: Spurs were allowed to push and belly up on Dallas shooters, but if anyone stood straight up, feet not moving, hands in the air and perfectly straight, it was a foul if Tim Duncan had the ball. It was pathetic. Last night was no different. Clearly there were a number of exchanges where Dallas would miss a shot with a lot of contact, then Miami would be at the other end shooting free throws after minimal contact. Avery's technical was completely understandable.

None of this should matter...

Chances to win a championship come along rarely--just ask Charles Barkley. You may only get one chance in your career, and you may get NO chances at all. That is precisely why it is so important to play every game with the urgency that it may be your last. Dallas has not done that consistently. When this series ends, and if Miami has won, we will all look at Game 3 as the turning point. At that point Dallas had Miami on the ropes. The Mavs started that game poorly, which was understandable for the first Finals road game, but finally got it together and got up by a bunch. Then it happened.

Dallas' style of play and aggressiveness changed, and it has not really returned in full since. Dallas began playing 'not to lose.' The Mavs went into a sort of "prevent defense" that allowed Miami to catch up with some urgent panic-play. I went back and watched that game again and noticed that Dallas switched to a sort of one-on-one game that continues until the present. Where was the ball movement? Where were the open shots? Where was the creation of opportunities? It was all gone. And it starts with Dirk.

That being said, Game 3 was still winnable. Game 4 was not--at least not the way Dallas played (or failed to play as the case may be). But this is where the rub of Game 5 comes in: the Stackhouse suspension. Our best bench player is better than ANY of Miami's bench players, and better than 3 of Miami's starters. Do you think Dallas wins that 5th game if Stack plays? Sure they do.

But that is what I am talking about: opportunities. When you have the opportunity, you have to take it. You don't know what is coming tomorrow. You can't count on everyone being healthy, or active and not on suspension. Yes, the suspension was a joke; any time the league has to review a play for 24 hours, and the officials didn't see it as a flagrant-2 foul at the time then it does not merit a suspension, PARTICULARLY in a game of this magnitude. In other words, where reasonable minds may differ, and there is any doubt that is created, and you are talking about the NBA Championship, then you cannot take the action. Remember, the league RAISED the severity of the foul almost 24 hours later. Not 10 minutes, not an hour, the next day. Enough said.

You add that to the kind of night that Bennett Salvatore, Joey Crawford and Joe DeRosa had last night, Dirk's disappearing act, and the Heat should have won by 20. Again. But it still shouldn't have mattered. You see, the Mavs should have taken care of business in Game 3. It all goes back to Game 3.

Media Report Card...NO, IT DOESN'T LOOK GOOD FOR THE MEDIA IDIOTS...

At this point, Hubie Brown and Mike Breen have succumbed. They now see the series only as it relates to Miami, much like the rest of the national media. When Dallas was up 2-0, ALL of the talk was about what Miami must do to get back into the series. We heard EVERY ANALYST in the national media and on the networks talk about how Shaq had to get more involved, that the role players had to step up, that Riley had to get creative, Miami this, Miami that, Miami even more. Every thing we heard was about how this series relates to Miami. You heard NOTHING about what Dallas is successfully doing, how well they are playing, etc.

Now tell me honestly: are you now hearing that with respect to Dallas being down? Are you hearing the analysts talk about what Avery needs to do, how the role players need to step up, etc.? Or are you hearing how great Dwayne Wade is, how he is setting records, how he is scoring at will, how Miami's role players are hitting big shots, how Riley has figured out how to defend, etc.?

Why is that? Why is it that when Miami is down the overwhelming volume of talk is about what they need to do, but when Dallas is down, the talk is about what Miami is doing? That, people, is bias. You know, Dallas fans can sit and scream about media bias forever, and most people will say it is just their own bias that makes them hear it. However, the analysts emphasis in this series has made it patently clear that they are pro-Miami, and anti-Dallas. Well, that may be a bit harsh. Truth is, they may not be "pro" anyone. But, they clearly are more interested in Miami, and their perspective is all about how this series relates to Miami, Wade, Shaq, and Riley. To ESPN and ABC, Dallas is merely the foil. Late in the game the free throw advantage was so lopsided in favor of Miami, it had clearly become the story of the game. However, Breen and Brown were so caught up in their love of Wade that they FAILED TO EVEN NOTICE IT!! In an effort to see if I was imagining things, I turned on the local radio broadcast. Surprise: the instant, I mean instant I turned it on, the local announcer immediately remarked on how there was already a huge disparity in the free throws and fouls called, and in favor of Miami. Since it was so ridiculously in favor of the Heat, the ABC analysts failed to even notice that it was worthy of mention until very late in the game. Do you think they would have failed to mention it if it were in favor of Dallas in such a lopsided way? That's a rhetorical question.

So Is This How It Ends?

Tonight is my 10th wedding anniversary. No, I didn't forget. We had hoped to spend it watching the Mavs close out a sweep of the Heat. Ain't happening.

I am writing this during the third quarter, primarily because I can't watch this garbage anymore. I would tell you that the two announcers are 100% in the process of promoting all things Miami, but based on the way this game is going, that would be fair for them to do so. Miami can do anything. Dallas can do nothing. Dirk is scared to death, and looks like a rookie in his first big playoff game. Wade is playing with such cool confidence, he doesn't think he can do wrong. Most everyone on Dallas' team is terrified, playing scared, and has their underwear so far up in their rears that they may not get it out until next season. Thus far, there really has been no reason to show a Dallas highlight, or to talk about anything Dallas has accomplished.

So I ask:

Is this how it ends? Is this how we are going to go down in our first finals, to a team that is not as talented, not as fast, not as young, not as good? Are we so scared that we are going to let a team of this caliber take us so far out of our game we can't come back? Yeah, I realize that it is still earlyin the series. But those of you who know me know that I assess a game very much by feel, and I think there is a point in a game where you can just tell when it's officially over, and that may be long before the fourth quarter. In game 3 I never felt comfortable because I knew Miami would make one more push, and I wanted to see how Dallas would respond. We didn't. We lost. we had 89 points with more than 6 minutes left. We scored 7 more. They scored 22. The collapse began.

Tonight we have had no runs, no spurts, no confidence, no contributions from any role players, and our starters are terrified. I hate to think this is how it ends. We have let an inferior team think that they have just as much control over the series, perhaps even moreso. Miami has all the swagger, all the confidence.

It will be interesting to see how/if Avery can change our mentality. Otherwise, the collapse rolls forward.

"Just Throwing it All Away..."

Genesis couldn't have described this game any better in that old Phil Collins lyric from 1986. 13 point lead at 6:06, and 5 points the rest of the game. We just, quite literally, reverted to our first half nerves and threw it all away.

Quick, can someone tell Jerry Stackhouse what to do with the ball at the end of a game? He doesn't quite seem to know whether to dribble, pass, shoot, drive or faint, despite the fact that he is being guarded by Gary Payton, who, incidentally, couldn't guard my mother (though she can be a bit saucy).

But I digress...

Hey, the Heat are in control of the series now....

Undoubtedly we will hear a spike in national media types that praise and praise Miami, and give them credit for "earning" this win. Right. I won't bore you with statistics tonight, but I think the difference in Mike Breen's voice inflection and choice of words told much of the story. After being relatively unbiased in Game 2, Breen showed some serious Miami-Love tonight. Did you note the way he screamed like a little girl when Dallas scored and took the lead in the third quarter? No? Oh, that may be because he DIDN'T. No, when Dallas finally came back to take the lead, he called it like just another basket. However, when Miami got the lead under 10 points, every Miami basket was like he was watching fireworks the way he was ooing and aahhing. Folks, that's bias.

Credit where credit is due: Hubie Brown called it both ways, and really favored no one. ABC heavily favored the Heat with the graphics, but what else is new.

As for the series, let's think about this: Dallas played miserably in the 4th quarter, and Miami was out of their minds; Dirk misses a free throw and Shaq hits two; Haslem is 0-4 on free throws and he hits two; Gary-freaking-Payton hits the game winner; We let Wade play the entire fourth quarter with 5 fouls and didn't attack him; Miami had 3 team fouls 1:04 into the 4th and we did not force another team foul until about three minutes were left in the game, so we failed to get to the bonus; and we still only lost by 2. Not time to panic.

Hey Scottie, Another Round?

If you got a chance to see the post game on ESPN, you were treated to a very obviously drunk Scottie Pippen. Poor Greg Anthony--he had to sit next to Pippen and twice tried very quickly to cut him off as he slurred through his inane and inarticulate comments. I say "poor" because undoubtedly he must have been nauseated by the stench of Malt Liquor raining down on his $1,000 suit, and wondering if Scottie was going to ask Greg to kiss him on camera. As for me, I was wondering when Pippen would belch and slur out a loud "DeeeWayne Wade, I luv you man!" Surely this drunken stupor will mark the end of Scottie Pippen's short and comical stint as an "analyst."

Well, I trust most of you are as depressed as I am. We let Gary Payton hit the game winner. Gary Payton, I said. Like I have also been saying, the only way Miami can beat Dallas is for Dallas to collapse.

Hello collapse.

Here We Go Again...

Now that you have had a chance for the game to sink in, is it just a bit more obvious that Dallas is the superior team in this series? And, does it seem like Miami is even close to Phoenix or San Antonio? How about this: how would Miami stack up to the Clippers, Nuggets, Lakers, or Grizzlies, all Western Conference playoff teams? I think it is apparent that the Heat would be right in the middle of that group. In other words, they are not in Dallas' class. It has become apparent that this series is for Dallas to lose, not Miami to win. For Miami to end up with the championship that Shaq promised them, Dallas will have to collapse and beat themselves, they are that much better than the Heat.

But you wouldn't know it...

Last night's analysis on ESPN came from John Saunders, Legler, Anthony and this time we were blessed with the geniusly articulate musings of Scottie Pippen. It was pretty much back to where it's been. All of the discussion is about Miami--what they are doing wrong, why they aren't getting the ball to Shaq, why was he out in the 4th quarter, etc. Very little discussion, attention or credit is directed to the game plan of Dallas, and how their players have simply befuddled, and at times dominated, the Heat, including Shaq. Despite two playoff blowouts (and a double digit win in the playoffs is a blowout, make no mistake), it is still so difficult for the major media to give a shred of credit to Dallas.

A Miami radio show yesterday offered the solution to the Heat's woes: get the ball to Shaq more. Wow. They must not have slept for days in coming up with that nugget.

Who's a Bigger Idiot--Pippen, or, nevermind...

Pippen, who didn't go far in the playoffs in the two seasons during which Jordan was not carrying him, seemed to learn little from Alonzo Mourning's failed prognostication and offered the certainty that Shaq is "going to hurt someone" as he is sure Shaq will score 35 points tonight. It is still unknown whether Pippen can name any players that play for Dallas, except that he used the opportunity to refer to Dampier as "Ericka, I mean Erick," which gave him a good chuckle. It gave ME a good chuckle when he intelligently offered that Shaq has been the most dominant player in the league for "a several of decades." Got to love that Central Arkansas education.

Media Effects of Tonight's Game...

Tonight will tell quite a story. I would say that you can look for two separate story lines which have the possibility of emerging from tonight's game:

First, Dallas wins, in which case the story will more than likely finally be that Dallas has arrived. The Heat lovers in the media will finally scratch their heads and begin to give Dallas some credit and focus at least some attention on Dallas and their achievements. I think you will still see a great deal of talk about Miami, but that talk will turn away from what they have to do to win, and will deal with next year and Shaq's future. But finally, Dallas will come to the front of the story since they will be one win away from their first title.

Second, Miami wins. If this happens, the MIAMI-LOVE-MACHINE that is the major media including all of ESPN will explode in a Coors Silver Bullet Train of Heat-Love, and every person in the media will do their best to encourage the Heat from the press box, they will talk about how the Heat have turned the corner, they have figured Dallas out, and that Dallas is in trouble, the Heat are asserting themselves, and the REAL Heat have finally showed up. It will be a hormone-raging, brown-nosing Heat pep rally.

You watch.

Gee, Maybe These Mavs Are For Real....

I Love the Smell of Mavs Win in the Morning...

It's funny how difficult it seems to be for these broadcasters to accept the simple truth that Dallas is just a better team than Miami. Could you believe how many picked Miami to win? I had a few folks look at me crossways when I said I couldn't see how Miami could win a game, much less four, unless Dallas collapses. But I digress...

Some have asked me how my formula played out in game one of the Finals. Well, I went to the game so I did not score it. But, I did score game two. Things started out looking one-sided during the pregame show. ABC did three stories on Miami, and one on Dallas. Thus, Miami had an early lead (big surprise). Who enjoyed watching Alonzo Mourning angrily predict that Shaq was going to go off on Dallas "unless dey do some adjustment we never seen." Or maybe Shaq would just stink. Who knew?

At any rate, I am pleased to say that Mike Breen and Hubie Brown were the most unbiased of any broadcasters that we have seen to date. The score:

Positives and comments about a team:
Miami 9
Dallas 10

Graphics dealing with only one team:
Miami 9
Dallas 5

Score references to only one team:
(this one was hard to score, since they referenced it regularly depending on situations; I only counted two references each on other occasions, so this was not a factor; comment if you want more details on how I score this).

What "this team has to do to win":
Miami 4
Dallas 0

Negative comments/criticisms:
Miami 1
Dallas 0

Stories about a team in Pregame:
Miami 3
Dallas 1

Total Score after subtracting negatives:
Miami 24
Dallas 16

So, you can see that it was not the 30+ point blowout that we saw in the Phoenix series.

Stephen A. Smith Goes to a Funeral

After the game we continued to see the winds of change that were noted in my previous post. Greg Anthony stuck with his prior praise of Dallas and grew more bold with the offering that "Dirk is just a monster," and added that Dirk is the best player in the series, and is "more athletic than anyone on Miami's front line." He has consistently praised Dallas, so no change there.

Tim Legler is beginning to come around. He predicted Miami would win the series, and has consistently tried to offer opinions and analysis that would make that make sense in his mind. Last night he offered that "I am convinced now that Miami can't win this series." That is a very telling comment. You see, he was never analyzing it from the perspective of whether Dallas would win or lose, he only looked at it from the perspective of whether Miami would. Now he "is convinced" that Miami cannot. It remains to be seen if he still remains to be convinced that Dallas can.

I must admit, watching Stephen A. Smith interview Avery after the game raised all kinds of questions, like "are those tear tracks on Smith's face?" and "who died?" and "why does Chris Arnold still have a job in Dallas?" among others. Smith was so incredibly subdued that it made me smile. He could not bring himself to praise Dallas, just to ask questions and then get out of the interview. I do note that his column in the Philly paper after game 1 showed that he was much more doubtful about Miami's chances, and now he must be crushed that Shaq just can't seem to get it done.

I should note that the halftime panel was Dan Patrick, Mike Wilbon and Mark Jackson, and for the most part, all were impartial (as opposed to what we saw on TNT's broadcasts).

In short, last night's post game seemed to demonstrate an awakening in the national media: "Hey, Dallas is pretty good." For the first time you heard such high praise and credit to Dallas for what it did. Instead of blaming Shaq's woes on Shaq and his Miami teammates, you began to hear credit for what Dallas was doing defensively. You began to hear the announcers repeatedly credit Dallas for quality play as opposed to fault Miami for their mistakes. They actually began to seem to recognize that DALLAS IS BEATING MIAMI, as opposed to Miami simply making mistakes. Clearly, however, the story is still MIAMI and where they stand in the series, though the winds of change continue.

A Funny Thing Happened....

Some other interesting and funny notes included the absolute genius of the group that went to the game dressed as Jason Terry "Jet" Airlines crew, including guys dressed as a pilot, steward, ground crew (complete with orange vest, flashlights, earphones) and a girl dressed as a stewardess (I don't see why that term is demeaning).

I also loved seeing Dirk goof on the reporter in the post-game press conference because he was from Waco. The guy introduced himself and asked his question, and while he asked Dirk laughed and said, "Waco?" Everyone had a laugh at that guy's expense.

It Ain't Over Yet...

All in all it was a great game to watch and to see Dallas begin to put together their usual game and style. However, I counted 14 blown possessions by Dallas in the first half (including 11 turnovers) and 12 blown possessions in the second have (with 7 turnovers). So, there is still much work to do to make sure we take care of the ball. If we do, we'll win by 30. That won't make the Miami fan that sat in front of me at game 1 happy. I asked the bleary-eyed gollum if he was going to drive the trash truck all the way back home, and if he could empty my trash can before he goes since they missed it this week. He didn't like that very much. But, no one liked him.

Go Mavs.

Slight Wind of Change

Well, it's gameday, and we are just three days past what the ESPN analysts thought was a "disgusting" disaster--a Dallas win over Miami. But what's that I am feeling? A breeze? This morning's ESPN broadcast included a segment on SportsCenter along with an NBA show (I am drawing a blank on the show's name) with John Saunders, Greg Anthony, and Tim Legler. The segment on SC had Stu Scott replacing Saunders, and added the darling Stephen A. Smith, lover of all things Shaq (was Kobe referring to Smith when he pondered a possible lack of affection as a child?).

Greg's Not Drinking the Kool-Aid...

This morning's assortment included a much more aggressive Greg Anthony trying to get his point across that Dallas is, quite simply, a much better team with more depth, speed, scoring, and defense. Legler continued to offer opinions that made it clear that he is trying to work out in his mind a rationale that would comfort him that Miami can win. Saunders was professional as usual. On SC, Anthony's work is much more cut out for him as he has to face a veritable Shaq fan club in Scott, Legler, and Smith. However, one has to wonder if some network execs mentioned to Smith and the others that they need to tone down the Miami love fest, as Dallas just happens to be, oh, a MAJOR tv market, and openly admitting your bias against their team doesn't make for a happy tv audience, little fella. Nonetheless, Smith was still visibly angry (yeah, I know, isn't he always--that's his gimmick) when he nearly vomited up the opinion that if Miami loses game 2, they probably can't win the series.

Is Miami The Only Team in the Finals?

Which is another interesting point. If you watch carefully, you will note that all of these analysts, with the exception of Anthony, consistently focus on whether "Miami can win" or "Miami will lose" the series, NEVER whether "Dallas will win," or "Dallas will lose." Has anyone read the book Bias, by Bernard Goldberg? He notes that constantly focusing on how an issue affects only one side is a clear, albeit subtle, media bias. In my previous post I noted that in both the Phoenix and San Antonio series, the announcers constantly referenced the score as it related to only Phoenix or San Antonio, almost never Dallas. That is bias. Now, when all we hear are stories about what Miami is doing, or what they will do, or need to do, that is also a very clear cut bias.

But honestly, you don't have to pick it apart like I do. Just watch and see Stephen A. Smith rage like a retarded rhino over how "Miami has no choice, but 'dey mus' git' da ball in to Shaq, peeriut...Das' what I'm tawkin' 'bout," and you will end up getting hit with bias shrapnel. In other words, you don't have to look as hard as I do.

Tonight will be interesting. Let's listen carefully to which team the announcers focus on at every stoppage of play, and listen to their energy when Miami makes a big play versus when Dallas does.

More later.

Want to know about the Mavericks? Don't watch ESPN...

Well, here goes. You ask Mark Cuban for help, and he tells you to start a blog. That's why I'm here. I sent him an email to lament the truly sorry and biased TV coverage of the Dallas Mavericks in the Playoffs this year, and he suggested that I start a blog and mention that he told me to do this...so what better name for a blog than "Mark Cuban Told Me To."

Here's the deal:

Most people think that TV coverage of their team is poor, or that the officials only gave their team a bad deal. I felt the same way (with respect to television coverage) while watching the Mavericks beat San Antonio in the playoffs this year. I got so tired of hearing "here's what the Spurs HAVE to do to beat Dallas." And I thought, "Okay, what does Dallas have to do to beat San Antonio, jerkweed?"

So what did I do? I have been keeping score on the media coverage of the Playoffs. Yes, I have always been a Mav fan, from the first game ever (a win over San Antonio), until now--a true MFFL, and 10 year season ticket holder. I remember nights spent listening to hear how many point Abdul Jeelani scored against the Kansas City Kings, and I was there when the Lakers were in town and Mark Landsberger (Lakers) broke his ankle. Despite this, I try to be as objective as I can about the Mavs and the league. But there comes a point when you have to call out these half-ass broadcasters.

SO I made a list...

Here is an example. I made a list of 4 categories to keep score on broadcasts of Mav playoff games. I started this after the San Antonio series, because my ticket partners and I got so sick of hearing Steve Kerr (former San Antonio player) talk up the Spurs. So, I wondered if I am just hearing it through Maverick "headphones," if you know what I mean.

As to my list: the categories were: 1)Positive comments/stats about a team and its players; 2) comments about "what this team has to do to win"; 3) giving the score referencing only one team's name (for example "Dallas leads by 3," or "Phoenix down by 2," etc.); and 4) Negative comments/criticisms of a team and its players. Each team got a point for a reference falling in any category. Some other rules: If the broadcast team commented on a player's stats immediately after he made a shot, grabbed a rebound, missed a free throw, etc., I did not give that team a point, because that would be considered standard play-by-play/color. However, if the network showed a graphic that only dealt with one team or its player(s), then that team got a point in category 1 (I later made a category solely for graphics). Also, if during a timeout there was discussion of a team/player that was positive, that team got a point, and the same if the comment was negative. I also gave each team a point for every comment, etc. during the halftime show.

TNT Sure Loves the Suns...

Now, for an example tally: in the Phoenix series, game 5, I only kept score up through the third quarter. I watched EVERY minute of coverage up until then. This score is only for ONE GAME.

Category 1 Postive references about team/player
Phoenix: 41
Dallas: 16
Category 2 What team has to do to win
Phoenix: 3
Dallas: 3 (that one surprised me, because it was so overwhelmingly against Dallas in the SA series)
Category 3 Score using only one team's name
Phoenix: 7
Dallas: 1
Category 4 Negative comments about a team/player
Phoenix: 1
Dallas: 6

Now, then I took the total of Categories 1, 2 and 3 and added them up, subtracting Category 4. The result: Phoenix 50, Dallas 14

Stephen A. Smith is a Joke

I know it's a crude formula, but the score has been pretty consistent/similar in every playoff game. Now, this morning, I saw Stephen A. Smith on ESPN openly state that "I am sorry, I admit it, I am emotional about this--Erick Dampier was a factor in this game." He was openly "disgusted" (his word) and angry that Miami lost game one. This is a NATIONAL BROADCASTER openly admitting during COVERAGE OF THE NBA FINALS that he is emotionally biased against a team. That is outrageous. It is fundamentally wrong that we have to pay to watch coverage of the playoffs and sports news on cable or satellite and are force fed Dallas-hate and disrespect. As far as ESPN is concerned, the WHOLE STORY OF THE FINALS IS MIAMI--what they are doing, what they are not doing, what they have to do, whether they can win. You watch it and try to disagree with me. You will lose the argument. The only person that is somewhat fair is Greg Anthony. I suspect he would be more fair than he is, but he constantly has to respond to all of the other panelists' comments about poor, sad Miami.

Listen, I am not just some jaded fan. I have a degree in broadcasting and have literally studied television, and I have worked in both television and radio, covering live sports and reporting on sports news (now I am an attorney...insert joke here). It is astounding that a national sports NEWS program would be stacked with analysts that OPENLY ADMIT a bias for/against any team. What kind of coverage is that?

Well, there it is. Now, you go watch ESPN (currently a.k.a. the Miami Heat Network) and see what I am talking about. You see what perspective the story of the Finals is told from. Post a comment and tell me what toothpaste Shaq is using.

This kind of shoddy "journalism" has got to change. What garbage. Mark, I hope you approve.