Thunder at Mavericks
Dallas forward Dirk Nowitzki plans to play through a bruised right knee
and the Mavericks look to take a 2-1 series lead when they host the
Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday. Nowtizki injured the knee during
Monday's 85-84 victory, a stunning road win that kept sixth-seeded
Dallas alive in the series.
Nowitzki, who said he was injured on the first play of game, underwent an MRI exam that revealed the bone bruise and he was relieved that it wasn't anything more significant. "I had it worked on a little bit and after the game I was really stiff," Nowitzki told reporters on Wednesday. "Coming off the plane, I could barely walk anymore. There was some swelling (Tuesday), but it's feeling a lot better, moving around a little bit." The third-seeded Thunder are dealing with a bruised psyche after losing Game 2 following a 38-point beat down of the Mavericks in the series opener. All-Star forward Kevin Durant was a horrid 7-of-33 shooting in Monday's loss, prompting coach Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan to describe it this way: "For a guy that's been as great a scorer as he has his entire career, for him to shoot the ball the way he did was really uncharacteristic."
TV: 7 p.m. ET, TNT, FSN Oklahoma, KTXA (Dallas)
ABOUT THE THUNDER: Durant, who scored 21 points, had never previously missed 26 shots before in a game and he didn't have any answers for why he shot so poorly. "Bad shooting night for me," Durant said. "It's a part of it. I wish it didn't happen tonight, but it's a part of it. Got some great looks all night and just didn't knock them down. Just stick with my routine - don't do too much extra." Point guard Russell Westbrook also shot a poor percentage (8-of-22) while contributing 19 points and 14 rebounds but only six assists.
ABOUT THE MAVERICKS: Nowitzki's injury is just the latest in a long line of ailments for Dallas, which won't know until close to game time whether or not point guards J.J. Barea (groin) and Deron Williams (sports hernia) or forward David Lee (foot) will be available. Barea ran after Wednesday's practice - a good sign - while Williams is trying to fight through an injury that will require offseason surgery. "We know from a manpower standpoint we're at a pretty big disadvantage," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle told reporters. "And we know we're not going to outrun or outdunk or outskill these guys."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Mavericks SG Wesley Matthews is just 6-of-21 shooting in the series but forced Durant to miss 10 of 11 shots while he was guarding him during Game 2.
2. Oklahoma City PF Serge Ibaka is averaging 14.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in the series.
3. Dallas PG Raymond Felton was a huge contributor in Game 2 with 21 points and 11 rebounds.