Baron Davis loses his cool, Warriors lose game 2

What Happened: Dallas’ cool temperament and hot-shooting were the keys to a 112-99 game two win over Golden State in the Western Conference quarterfinals. The series is now tied at 1-1.

The Mavericks’ star players produced. Dirk Nowtizki had 23 points to go with 7 rebounds and Josh Howard chipped in with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Jason Terry led Dallas with 28 points. He also was involved in the play that led to Golden State’s two main players, Baron Davis and Stephen Jackson, getting ejected.

In the third quarter, Terry dribbled into Davis and Jackson. The players started yelling at each other and then got into a shoving match. Terry, Davis, and Jackson were each assessed a technical foul.

The Warriors quickly unraveled. Davis received his second technical foul a few minutes later for mocking the officials, while Jackson was tossed in the fourth quarter with Dallas ahead.

Davis and Jackson’s frustration may have stemmed from their inconsistent play. Davis scored 13 points, but only had 2 assists to go with 6 turnovers. Jackson was the game’s high-scorer with 30 points, but turned the ball over 8 times.

Game 3 is Friday in Oakland.

Reaction of Dallas forward Dirk Nowitzki on getting the win:
"It was a physical game and emotional. I think they got us in the first game and took us out of our game. I said after Game 1 we need to execute a lot better. We made a couple of adjustments that worked. Now they’ll make adjustments going home and we’ll go from there." (ESPN)

Reaction of Golden State Coach Don Nelson on the ejections:
"We’re not good enough to lose a player to an ejection, much less two. It hurt us when we lost Baron. I thought we had a shot at the time. It wasn’t to be." (ESPN)

Reaction of Golden State guard Baron Davis on getting ejected:
"I felt bad. I apologized to the coaches and my teammates." (ESPN)

My Take: I don’t know what to make of Baron Davis. Just when I think he’s starting to accept the responsibility of being a star and a ‘max’ player, he reverts back to his old immature ways.

Patrick Ewing said it best: “Nothing anybody can do will get me thrown out. It’s the playoffs.” 

I’m paraphrasing and that’s not a direct quote. But it has an important meaning. All players have to keep their cool, especially stars.

On Sunday, I was thrilled with Davis’ performance. It reminded me of his old playoff runs with the Hornets, where he was the best player on the court. He showed those old flashes of brilliance, reminding everyone that B-diddy can still be a world-class player.

 On Wednesday, I was frustrated with Davis. His technical fouls reminded me that this guy can be incredibly immature and has never come close to reaching his full potential. His outburst cost his team.

Still, as frustrating as he can be, I love Davis’ game. He’s an unselfish player, who makes everyone around him better. That’s an extremely rare tool to have. And that’s why teams put up with his antics.

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