The Dallas Mavericks got a gritty win and are looking for another on Wednesday as the news and rumors ramp up.
Check out the latest buzz below.
Ellis ‘Has Guts’
Monta Ellis led the Mavericks to a tough win over the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday night, displaying his potent capabilities.
“You may not always like the way Monta Ellis plays or some of the decisions he makes. But there is no denying he’s not afraid in any situation. He knew he was going to be questioned for shooting so much against the Bulls. And yet, he kept shooting,” noted the Dallas News.
“And he made a good enough number of those 35 shots (16) to make this an all-star caliber night. Kobe Bryant would be very proud. And Ellis’ 38 points were his most as a Maverick. He had 37 twice last season. And none of his buckets was as big as the 3-pointer with 39.9 seconds left in the second overtime, which put the Mavericks up by a point. Oh, unless it was the three free throws he made with 1.2 seconds left to get to the first overtime. So, you get the picture. He made a slew of big plays.”
“His shooting numbers were a little unusual, but every time we needed a big shot or a big play, he made it,” Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said about Ellis taking 35 shots to score 38 points.
Ellis shot those three free throws after Kirk Hinrich made a dumb move by fouling too late, enabling Ellis to get into shooting motion.
“I saw out of the corner of my eye that he was about to do it, so I went into shooting mode,” Ellis said. “He ended up grabbing me and they called a foul.”
Because the Mavericks had no timeouts at the end of regulation, the Bulls wanted to foul intentionally — just not in that spot.
“That was my fault,” Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. “I wasn’t real clear on where we wanted the foul. With them having no timeouts, we wanted to foul in the backcourt. It gets real tricky when he’s taking it to a scoring area and the guy’s facing you.”
Ellis, though, still had to make the free throws.
“One of the hardest things in basketball is to stand up there and make three consecutive free throws with basically the game on the line and little or no time left,” Carlisle said. “He stayed in his routine and just trusted it.”
Ellis was asked if it was fun to take so many shots. “If you come out with the win, yes,” he said.
Nowitzki Contributes Big Game
