Mavs-At-Boston: 5 Storylines (And Fish On ESPN)

By Mike Fisher -- DB.com

One man’s view of the top five storylines from today’s nooner at Boston – starting with the fact that you can listen live to my participation in the Mavs-at-Celtics pregame show on the Mavs’ flagship station, ESPN 103.3, starting at 10:25 a.m. ...

(Oh, and by the way: I don’t appreciate your snide remarks about me “having a face for radio.’’ Besides, anymore, that’s not even true. Nowadays, I’m so ugly, I have a face for the internet.

Now to those storylines:

Storyline 1: The Celtics aren’t just good, at 36-9; they’re also hot, with seven consecutive wins. I might toss in an obscure argument regarding the Celts’ relative struggles against teams from the West – a year ago they were 25-5 against the West, but this season they’ve lost five of 14 games against the West including a 1-3 roadie in December -- but no, on second thought, I was right the first time.

That’s obscure.

Storyline 2: This is a showcase of sorts, and you know ABC will play it up: DIRK VS. KG! Let the record show that for most of his career, teams led by league MVP Kevin Garnett (you know, the teams with pine trees on their uniforms) got their asses kicked by teams led by league MVP Dirk Nowitzki.

ESPN’s Marc Stein uses his Weekend Dime to make the case not only for Dirk as an All-Star (which is a lock) but for Dirk as an MVP candidate. As usual.

“He’s producing at a rate reminiscent of his MVP season in 2006-07 season,’’ writes Stein.

Of course, KG will end up in that conversation as well. But today, watch and see: KG The Intimidator will chose the Mavs Least Likely To Punch Him In The Face and will scream at him or bark at him or chase him around on all floors.

I would say Beantown boy-makes-good JJB might want to prepare himself.

Storyline 3: Previous to last season,the Mavs hadn’t been swept in the annual two-game series with Boston since 1993-94. Even last year, Dallas played the eventual champs tough, the Celtics earning wins by the scores of 96-90 and 94-90.

Now, all that was before Jason Kidd’s re-arrival in Dallas. J-Kidd is on a sweet-shooting streak, with 15.5 points (plus 8.8 assists and six boards) in his last four games.

Boston, of course, presents a different level of challenge for the Mavs – and for Kidd, who is traditionally among Celtics fans’ least-fave players.

Here’s hoping that if Bob Ryan is in the TD Whateveritscalled Garden today, that Kidd’s ex-wife Joumana is not.

Storyline 4: Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News ruins it all for me by insisting that this game … doesn’t matter?

“The Mavericks are playing with house money,’’ Eddie writes. “They can’t afford to think that way, of course, but then again, free-wheeling sometimes produces the best basketball. With a 2-1 record on this, the longest road trip of the season, they go to Boston knowing they will return home Sunday night no worse than 2-2. Not many teams go into the defending champion’s house and come away with a win. A loss would be nothing to be ashamed of. And a win would mean a 3-1 trip and would show a national audience the Mavericks are not to be overlooked in the NBA’s big picture.’’

Eddie’s point is well-taken. But I prefer to look at it another way: This game’s impact on the psyche of the “national audience’s’’ view of the Mavs is inconsequential to me. (Gone are the days when we marveled at Sports Illustrated’s coming to town to do a feature, right?) I’m more interested in this game’s impact on the psyche of the Mavs themselves.

There – and in the standings, where Dallas is 25-18 and in seventh place -- is where a good performance can matter most.

Storyline 5: Did I mention I’m the radio today? Oh, and regarding my “internet-face’’: I think I’m going to be on TV later this week. So there.

850am jan 25 2009