Game 5 - A Team Effort

Dallas turned in a total team effort in Game 5. It was the first game in which their depth was truly on display. Sure, Dirk had 29, again displaying his fourth quarter magic, and this time he shot well. Jason Terry came alive with 21 points on 8-12 shooting, 6 assists and 4 rebounds. Let's not forget his key pass to Kidd for three to give the Mavs a 5 point lead late or his clutch three-point shooting.

Barea has his first good game of the series with 17 points. Chandler added 13. Jason Kidd came off of a scoreless showing with 13 points, 6 assists, and 3 steals- two of which came within the first two minutes of the game to set the tone. Hey, even Brian "Horseshoe" Cardinal, Ian Mahimi, and DeShawn Stevenson added to the cause.

But Miami wasn't blown out or anything. In fact, they had a shot to win with a couple of minutes left in the game. LeBron somewhat recovered from a poor Game 4, posted a triple double with 17 points and 10 boards and dishes. Bosh added 19 and 10 on 6-12 shooting (including a last second heave from beyond the arc that missed badly). But, for the Heat, Wade was the story.

Wade gained a bruised hip on a play in the second. It didn't look like much. But Wade collapsed to the ground upon leaving the game. He missed a good chunk of the quarter and didn't play much of the third. Though the injury appeared benign, Wade winced throughout much of the game. He scored 23 points and 8 assists, but only played 34 minutes, which hurt his team.

Haslem had 10 points and has played stellar defense on Dirk all series. Chalmers hit another prayer at the end of the first. He made 4-6 shots from threeland for 15 points and played solid defense. Miller had 9 on three threes while Wade was out in the third. Juwan Howard has 6 inconsequential points and the rest of the Heat, Eddie House, Bibby, and Anthony, were liabilities.

Dallas's intensity in the fourth has been the story of the series. This time, they didn't dig themselves a hole and won 112-103. They take a 3-2 lead with the series heading to Miami for Game 6 and, if necessary, Game 7.

While it's been a thrilling series, it has been somewhat marred by new Golden State Warriors' coach Mark Jackson's inane comments. He is in favor of not sitting a team's star player at all. He advised Terry to shoot even though LeBron was there to block the shot, but criticized Marion for shooting when LeBron blocked him. When asked why something happened, Jackson is often stumped (thankfully, Jeff Van Gundy is there to bail him out). He doesn't understand basketball strategy and merely calls for "accountability" whenever something goes wrong. He better hire some damn good assistant coaches when he gets out to Oakland.