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NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: SUNS v MAVERICKS

May 26, 2006

Dirk Nowitzki

DALLAS, TEXAS: Game Two

Q. Dirk, how much more comfortable do you feel now with your inside game than say maybe even at the beginning of the year?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, I think I learned a lot over the years, you know, how to be efficient down there and, you know, you learn angles and you learn how to attack better.
When I first got into the league I was only a spot-up shooter and over the years guys have taken my shot away. You gotta find other ways to be productive and help the team win and post up is something that I had to learn. And I still think it can get better a lot, but I just try to attack the rim a little bit. And it was pretty decent and at least we won the game.
Q. Dirk, when did you all know Josh was going to play and did you feel like he might go off like he did tonight?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Actually, I had no idea even before the game that he was going to play. And when we had our meeting with 40 on the clock he still had some shorts on that weren't game shorts. So I really didn't know what was going on but he had did have a heat pack on, which was kind of odd. So I was hoping he was going to play. And, man, he came through. He was aggressive. You know early on and taking it to the basket. He was shooting it well. He shot the in-between shot well and we really needed him tonight and I thought we really missed him in the second half of Game 1. He's one of our best perimeter defenders. He's very long. He's active, and he was big tonight. So hopefully his ankle will feel great tomorrow.
Q. Do you think that this pace was more your guys' pace in this game, did it seem that way?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Obviously, they really did embarrass us in the fast break game in Game 1. You know, we had made a shot or made a lay-up and three seconds later they made a lay-up too. And we wanted to make sure to get back. We had a couple good drills yesterday where we just can't have in this area three or four guys go to the offensive glass, because their rebound and they run out and the next thing they have a lay-up.
So I think we figured that out a little better. We got back, took some fast break points away. But they still had 20 some fast break points there. They're just so good at it and so athletic in the open court, but we did a much better job as we did in Game 1. But still they were right there. They made some big shots to stay in the game and to beam 'em up in the game in the third quarter. And so they're a tough team and we have to have our hands full. And I think especially if we go in there now on the road, they're going to make a lot more shots than they did tonight. So we gotta come out a lot more aggressive than we did the last -- the first two.
Q. Dirk, the first game Steve kind of took over in the fourth quarter. Tonight you kind of follow suit and took over in the fourth. Can you talk about that?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, really I wanted to make some stuff happen, and going to the basket some, and not settling for test jumpers. I think Shawn Marion is a great defender on the perimeter. He's long. He's athletic and he's really contesting my shots. So I was just trying to attack the rim. They don't really have a lot of shot blockers out there maybe get to the line some and it was pretty decent. But saying all that, we played pretty good and it was sort of right there. It's going to be a long series.
Q. Dirk, what do you think you guys were doing that made Steve not want to take any shots in the second half until three seconds were left?
DIRK NOWITZKI: We tried to get the ball out of his hands a little more as we did in Game 1. But still he had some, he had some opportunities where we're still right there and made him pass the ball, and but his teammates kept making shots. And Boris has been unstoppable in this series. So we gotta find a way to slow him down a little bit. But it's going to be a long series, and so far it's been fun.

End of FastScripts...

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