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Mavs coach, Malone fan flames in rivalry, or, "The Jazz suck, and everybody knows it"

Discussion in 'NBA Dish' started by fadeaway, Apr 23, 2001.

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  1. fadeaway

    fadeaway Member

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    http://espn.go.com/nba/playoffs2001/2001/0423/1184832.html

    SALT LAKE CITY – Dallas Mavericks coach Don Nelson is complaining the Utah Jazz "manipulate referees so well with their flops" and "abuse the rules."


    Karl Malone wouldn't be drawn into a verbal scrap Monday.


    "I hate soaps," Malone said. "I don't watch soaps, so I have no desire to talk about soap operas."


    Fine, but that won't stop the Mavericks from brashly challenging the Jazz leading up to Game 2 on Tuesday in the best-of-five series. Utah leads 1-0 after winning 88-86 on Saturday.


    The matchup has been, up to this point, portrayed as a contest between Utah's aging but savvy veterans and the talented but untested Mavericks, who made the playoffs for the first time in 11 years.


    After narrowly losing Game 1, the swaggering Mavericks are confident they can beat the Jazz on the road in the postseason, just as they did in winning twice at the Delta Center this season.


    "Watching the tape, everyone in the locker room felt we let one get away," center Shawn Bradley said. "There were a lot of if-factors. ... The bottom line is we didn't win and we feel we can."


    The Mavericks are walking tough, and now Nelson wants his team talking tough, too. Nellie even showed how it's done, firing the opening round in a verbal barrage by accusing Utah of dirty play.


    "The Jazz manipulate referees so well with their flops," Nelson said. "They abuse the rules. It's frustrating to play against that kind of a team and it's frustrating to coach against them.


    "But they sure do it well," he added. "I sure have to give them credit."


    The Mavs quickly stepped in line behind him. Asked the best way to match Utah's physical play, Bradley said: "You've got to be professional, keep your head and flop against a flopper, like coach said."


    It's more fuel for a rivalry that's had some acrimonious moments. Malone, in particular, has had run-ins with Dallas before.


    Malone has jawed with Mavericks owner Mark Cuban in the past and even bumped chests with Nelson during a game in Dallas in January 2000. That face-to-face showdown came after Malone put a knee into Bradley's belly.


    After the teams played in November, Malone was fined $7,500 and suspended one game by the league office for a backhanded slap to ex-Maverick Christian Laettner.


    But so far in the playoffs, Malone has avoided fanning the flames.


    "I respect their team and their owner and who they are, but I don't have any conversation with any of them," Malone said Monday. "I have a job to do and that's what I try to do."


    Yet when Malone was asked seconds later which Dallas player does the best job of guarding him, the 16-year veteran and two-time NBA most valuable player couldn't resist some sarcasm.


    "Who holds and grabs the best?" he asked. "All of them do a tremendous job of guarding me. Without a doubt, they're the toughest team for me to play against.


    "I'm surprised I'm scoring any points," said Malone, who had 26 in the series opener. "I don't know if I belong on the same floor."


    The Mavericks said after losing Saturday they planned to be more physical in Game 2, but point guard Steve Nash took it a step farther Monday.


    "I was taught to play hard, physical and take it on the chin, rather than flop," Nash said. "That's great for them. Hopefully, we can get better at it. We've got to join in, rather than be stubborn about it."


    =============================


    Right on! You tell 'em, Nash!


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    My dream job is to be a Houston Rockets towel boy.
     
    #1 fadeaway, Apr 23, 2001
  2. Steve_Francis_rules

    Steve_Francis_rules Member

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    This would mean more if it came from anyone not playing for the Jazz.

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    #2 Steve_Francis_rules, Apr 24, 2001
  3. ZRB

    ZRB Member

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    I'm really starting to like Don Nelson.


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    [This message has been edited by ZRB (edited April 23, 2001).]
     
    #3 ZRB, Apr 24, 2001
  4. Lynus302

    Lynus302 Member

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    What I can't believe is something from Dallas I actually like.

    I love this Mavs team. I hope they kill Utah, or at least beat the hell out of someone (Malone) in the process.

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    "I have no regrets except that I wasn't up to keep Randy from getting on that plane."
    --Ozzy Osbourne on guitarist Randy Rhodes
     
    #4 Lynus302, Apr 24, 2001
  5. RunninRaven

    RunninRaven Member
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    Yep, living in Dallas I get to hear a lot of these complaints from all the Maverick fans. I tried to explain to one of them that the playoffs are different for the Jazz. They step up their dirty play exponentially. Living in Houston and playing the Jazz all those playoff series, we have grown semi-accustomed to it, and we come to expect the flops and flailing that get all the calls.

    I guess the dude didn't believe me when I told him... now he knows...

    and knowing is half the battle!

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    #5 RunninRaven, Apr 24, 2001
  6. Hydra

    Hydra Member

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    Since the Jazz are going to flop and get calls anyway, their opponents should really just lay into them, maybe have one of the scrubs like Wang just pop Kung Fu Karl right between the eyes. Make the Jazzholes pay for every call that they get.

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    "Of course, thats just my opinion, I could be wrong" -- Dennis Miller
     
    #6 Hydra, Apr 24, 2001
  7. RunninRaven

    RunninRaven Member
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    Yeah, I worry that the Mavs are now going to try to beat the Jazz at their own game. They will go into game 2 flopping every chance they get and complaining on every call.

    The difference is, for the Mavs, it just won't work. The Jazz are too good at it, and the refs like them for some reason. The Mavs will just get more and more frustrated. They will be best served just playing their own game. If they play like they know how, then they can beat the freakin' Jazz.

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    Watch out for gay Limbo Dancers.
     
    #7 RunninRaven, Apr 24, 2001
  8. SamCassell

    SamCassell Member

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    The Jazz already have the series won. They've managed to make the Mavs think more about the officiating instead of concentrating on their own game. The Mavs are 3 and out if they don't get some contribution from their bench, and they also suffered on the boards in game 1. Nelson needs to figure out ways to fix those problems, and quit whining about flopping. What the **** did he expect in a series with the Jazz?

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    #8 SamCassell, Apr 24, 2001
  9. Rocket Freak

    Rocket Freak Member

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    Who cares if the Jazz beat the Mavs (besides Dallas fans). The key here is that the Jazz are eliminated from the playoffs as soon as possible. If they do beat the Mavs, they will be destroyed by the Spurs!
     
    #9 Rocket Freak, Apr 24, 2001
  10. DunkingDeutschman

    DunkingDeutschman Member

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    I doubt the Mavs will try to flop and beat the Jazz at their game. They are still going to play hard and do what they always do. All this is just talk. The Mavs aren't worrying about the officials. They are just talking to fill the void in between games. When the game starts, it's all behind them. And there is no way that the Mavs are out of the series. If we actually rebound the ball and shoot better from the field, we will win tonight and walk out of Utah with a two game split.

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    There are no stupid questions, only stupid people who ask questions.
     
    #10 DunkingDeutschman, Apr 24, 2001
  11. ZRB

    ZRB Member

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    I hope so. The Mavs are now my favorite team in the west for the playoffs. I would like to see them stun the world and go all the way to the finals, but most of all, I want the filthy Jazz to rot in hell! Go Dallas.

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    Well that's it, the season's over.

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    #11 ZRB, Apr 24, 2001
  12. Lil Pun

    Lil Pun Member

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    UTAH SUCKS PERIOD!!! Malone should retire because he's never getting a ring.

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    Arkansas' Biggest Rocket Fan!
     
    #12 Lil Pun, Apr 28, 2001
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