DALLAS — Bringing it all back home ...
Of course, if the Dallas Mavericks knew what they know now, they never would have left. They flew east leading the NBA Finals, 2-0, and took a 13-point lead in the fourth quarter of Game 3, but that was the night the lights went out in Florida.
Sunday's Game 5 was the Finals' second shootout, but when the smoke cleared the Miami Heat had won it too, coming back in the closing seconds of regulation \o7and\f7 overtime to prevail, 101-100, and take 3-2 series lead while leaving the Mavericks to fume as only they can.
Returning to form, owner Mark Cuban went on the court, barked at referee Joe DeRosa and even exchanged glares with Commissioner David Stern. In light of their history -- Stern has fined Cuban more than $1 million, including $200,000 for similar behavior in the recent San Antonio series -- Cuban might as well have given Stern his credit card too.
Presumably to keep the focus on the Finals and off Cuban, Stern took no punitive action Monday.
In the Dallas dressing room, Cuban made himself available to the media for the first time since the series started. He didn't dispute the referees' decision to grant Josh Howard's request and burn the Mavericks' last timeout. However, Cuban insisted Dwyane Wade should have been called for going into the backcourt to catch the inbounds pass before drawing a foul and making the game-winning free throws.
"That's a backcourt violation, at least to most high school refs," Cuban said.
To NBA referees, it's not, said a league official, citing Rule 4, Section VI, paragraph g, which says the ball can be inbounded in the frontcourt or the backcourt in the last two minutes.
Cuban angrily shunted aside other questions, including one about whether this was his most bitter defeat. "No, when I was 3 years old and I was playing on the peewee team and we lost," he said sarcastically, cutting off the session. "Ask me a real ... question, will you?"
Actually, the Mavericks have sucked it up all season, at least below the ownership level. Fearing the players will use Cuban's obsession with the referees as a cop-out, Coach Avery Johnson has a strict rule against complaining to officials.
Now, however, with the stakes so high and emotions running hot, Johnson is being sucked in too.
"We've had more players suspended in the playoffs than any team, right?" Johnson mused before Game 5. "Anybody else had three guys suspended? Who else? Who else?
