|
 The revamped Phoenix Suns, meanwhile, are definitely still a work in
progress.
Nowitzki was one of eight Mavericks in double figures with 11 points
and had nine of them in the first three minutes of the third quarter
when Dallas broke open the game and hammered the Suns 111-95 in the
season opener for both teams Wednesday.
The game was tied at 41 with four minutes left in the first half
before the Mavericks outscored the Suns 41-11 over the next 11
minutes to turn the game into a rout. Guard Raymond Felton led
Dallas with 18 points but he had plenty of help from Nowitzki and an
array of others.
"We expected them to come out in the third quarter and really pick
up the pressure and come after us, but we played it smart," Nowitzki
said. "We had two ball handlers out there (Felton and Deron
Williams) that could get to the rack, we had some shooting going and
that was fun. Our defense was rotating for each other and we got
some rebounds and it was fun out there."
Not much is expected of the 37-year-old Nowitzki and the Mavericks
in the rugged Western Conference. But playing without the injured
Chandler Parsons and JaVale McGee, they hit 10 of 21 3-pointers,
committed only eight turnovers and dished out 24 assists.
"It's early, but flying under the radar sometimes isn't bad,"
Nowitzki said. "One website picked us to finish last in the West, so
that should be motivation for us. ... We're getting healthier and
healthier. We are close to getting Parsons back and we'll see what
McGee can give us. I think we're a veteran team, a smart team. We
have some shot makers and we're a better shooting team than I can
remember in the past.
Guard Brandon Knight had 15 points and reserves Jon Leuer and Devin
Booker had 14 each for the Suns, who shot 39 percent from the field
and missed 18 of 24 3-pointers, including 13 of their first 16 in
the first half. Suns coach Jeff Hornacek said before the game he
expects his team, with seven new players, to shoot better and play
better defense. Neither happened Wednesday.
"We try to tell the guys 'Hey just keep hanging in there, the shots
will go down.' Well, they never did," Hornacek said. "Then the
Mavericks started making them and Dirk came out in the second half
and it looked easy.
"You've got to flush it down the toilet. We're chalking the early
part of the game up to nerves, being jacked up for the first game.
It seemed like everyone's shot was long. So you chalk it up as a bad
game and by everybody and you bounce back (Friday against the
Portland Trailblazers) and play again."
Center Tyson Chandler, who had three points and six rebounds in his
Phoenix debut against his former Dallas teammates, was disappointed
in several aspects of his team's game.
"Everyone top to bottom can take a piece of this loss," Chandler
said. "We can't allow our offense to dictate our defense. If we have
to win a game 89-80, some nights it will be like that. Some nights
you aren't going to make shots. When you are making shots you have
to make efforts in other areas."
[to top of second column] |
The Suns used its only rally of the second half, a 12-2 run, to pull
within 14 at 92-78 on a jumper by guard Eric Bledsoe with just over
eight minutes left. But the Mavericks answered with seven straight
points in less than a minute, with Felton's 3-pointer restoring the
Dallas lead to 21 at 99-78 with 6:54 left.
"We had eight guys in double figures, which I believe is going to be
one of our calling cards," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said. "We've
got to have great balance. The big key to the game was keeping
turnovers down. We were in attack mode all night and never let up
and that's how we're going to have to play."
Williams, who overcame a scare and returned after suffering a left
knee injury in the third quarter, had eight first-quarter points and
the Mavericks led by as many as five in the first quarter, despite
missing 17 of 26 shots from the field. Knight led the Suns with
eight points and set up Leuer for a 15-foot jumper at the buzzer to
pull the Suns within 24-22.
Phoenix missed 13 of 16 3-pointers in the first half and seven
straight during the middle of the second quarter, but still managed
to tie the game at 40 when guard Archie Goodwin followed two free
throws with a 3-pointer with 4:04 left. But the Mavericks ended the
half on a 14-4 run, including five of forward Charlie Villanueva's
10 points in the quarter. Two free throws by guard Devin Harris with
40 seconds left gave Dallas its biggest lead and a 54-45 advantage
at the half.
The Suns never got closer than that the rest of the way.
NOTES: Dirk Nowitzki and Dallas GM Donnie Nelson are both expected
to return to Phoenix on Friday when the Suns induct Steve Nash into
the team's Ring of Honor. Nash and Nowitzki are close friends and
Nelson was in Phoenix when the Suns brought Nash back from Dallas in
2004. ... Dallas G Wesley Matthews, coming back from a torn Achilles
tendon in March, started the season opener with his new team. "He's
a remarkable guy who is extremely strong willed and when he puts his
mind and focus on something he just fixates on it," Carlisle said.
"He wanted to prove to people he could get back and start the
season." ... The Suns were 33-14 in their first 47 home openers and
16-7 when opening the season at home. ... The Suns' Opening Night
roster featured seven new players acquired in the offseason -- G
Devin Booker, C Tyson Chandler, F Cory Jefferson, F Jon Leuer, G
Ronnie Price, F Mirza Teletovic and G Sonny Weems.
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
