Ummm, Coach Johnson I ummm, think I have...

I can't stop laughing about Dirk's "food poisoning" related no-show last night. Apparently I am not the only one as every time it's been mentioned on tv both last night during the game and this morning on the news, the delivery went something like this: "Dirk Nowitzki not playing due to (insert slight chuckle) food poisoning." Back when I worked at a soul-crushing job as a licensed private investigator, I had quite possibly the largest number of sucessive cases of food poisoning. My well-known love of sashimi lent an air of credibility to my stories but had I actually had that many cases of mysterious one day food poisoning, I doubt I'd have much of my small intestines left. So I totally get the "man, the seafood salad at the buffet was probably not a good idea" excuse. It's a good one.

I'm glad he was out since the slightest breeze causes his ankles to buckle or twist and it allowed the Mavs to prove that they are fully able to win without Dirk's help. And it proved that Josh Howard's spot in the All-Star lineup was deserved as he scored 29 last night. Seeing Devean George slowly return to the fine form he was in before the knee injury does my heart good.

I also find this piece of information in Mike Bibby's Wikipedia entry very amusing:

Nickname: Bibbinator/Bibbalicious

Apparently, Rob Schneider was kind enough to take time out of his busy schedule of filming 18 Deuce Bigalow sequels to go to Sacramento and bust out the old Copier Guy character to in order to bestow a few nicknames upon Mike Bibby. Strangely, Wikipedia's entry for Ron Artest says his nickname is Ron Ron which is much more pleasant than my nickname for him. Because who wants to be known as Ron "I beat my girlfriend and starve my dog and start fistfights with fans in the stands" Artest. Also that's a lot harder for any future girlfriends who may be stupid enough to ride the Ron Artest Abuse Train to get tattooed on their nether regions, I suppose.

Wow, I'm pretty speechless. What happened? The Mavs stuck around through the third then crumbled. Even trailing by 5 at halftime, the Mavs seemed to be prepared to match the Suns on the other end of the floor. The Mavs three point shooting was nearly flawless (again, I'm just talking about the game up to the third quarter here).

The Suns killed the Mavs in the paint and under the basket. Devean George choked. Dirk had choke-like moments too often. Dampier got to sit on the bench and watch the mass choke-a-thon which could not be the most pleasant way to spend a Sunday afternoon. And Dirk's Fabrege ankle came into play again. Deep down I know that Dallas is, in my opinion, a better team than the Suns but there's something psychologically about Phoenix that throws Dallas off their game. I'm not big on conspiracy theories but the past three defeats the Mavs have been dealt were either at the hands of Don Nelson or Steve Nash. Spooky and rather unsettling.

I'm pretty bummed about the Mavs performance and I'm pretty sure this will stoke the fires of the MVP debate. But just mostly, I'm disappointed that something happened and the Mavs never caught fire and just let Suns bury them in the fourth.

So the Knicks game was another close one. Same final score as the Bucks game. Another game decided in the final minute. If this were earlier in the season, I might be lamenting the fact that teams like the Bucks or Knicks are keeping these games so close down to the wire. But I want 70 victories and I want to get to the playoffs when true hysteria starts. I suppose the fact that these teams are still trying to secure themselves a playoff spot means they are going to have a little more fight in them.

But none of that matters today. During the Knicks game, I was discussing the possibility of Dirk and Steve Nash having an MVP trophy polishing party this summer. I have already discussed my apathy regarding the MVP race but if (as even Mike D'Antoni has said this week) Dirk is truly the most deserving player in the league he has to prove it today. I like the Suns, I think they're a great team and there's not a single player on that team that has done anything but earn my respect. That being said, the Mavs need to wipe the floor with them and then throw them aside in a crumpled ball of defeat today. If the Mavs can pull off a comfortable margin of victory against Phoenix today, I will have no doubts in my mind that they have the ability and drive to take the title this year.