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This time there were no bone-headed fouls on heaves before half time, no double-digit deficits, and no strings of silly turnovers and awful shots. No, this time the Dallas Mavericks came out of the gate ready to play, keeping the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers on their heels, and used wave upon wave of fresh legs to take a 93-81 win in LA to take a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven series.

The Lakers hung tough for most of three quarters, but the Mavericks made a strong fourth quarter run to ice the game. For Dallas it was all about energy, as JJ Barea sparked a late run that was more than the Lakers could match. The Lakers, for their part, just looked completely out of gas, and in particular All-Star power forward Pau Gasol. Gasol has had his issues throughout the playoffs, struggling to counter Carl Landry in the first round, and now struggling to play the physical game that would take Mavericks All-Star Dirk Nowitzki off of his.

Before we get too carried away talking about how brilliant Dallas was in Game 2, it’s important to point out just how many games the Lakers have played over the last four seasons. They’re the only team in the NBA to have been all the way to the Finals for three years running, and when you consider that guys like Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol have had plenty of extra-curricular basketball with their respective national teams, that duo may have played more games in a shorter span of time than any other duo in NBA history. With Gasol, in particular, it shows.

The Lakers’ advantage in winning three straight Western Conference crowns has been their size, and when Andrew Bynum and Gasol have both been healthy LA has been close to unbeatable. Going into this year’s playoffs it was Bynum who was supposed to be banged up, but it’s been Gasol who’s looked completely out of gas. He was the first Laker to draw boos from the home crowd on Wednesday night, starting early in the second quarter and gaining momentum until the fourth quarter, when the boos were replaced by bored indifference. Those poor Lakers fans just don’t know what to do when their team loses back-to-back games.

Meanwhile, the Lakers didn’t know what to do with JJ Barea, who launched the final barrage of attacks that put LA out of their misery. It was Ron Artest who came up with the only solution LA could find, simply taking down the pesky Mavs point guard in a classic clothesline maneuver. . .for which Mavs fans are awaiting a suspension announcement.

As the series turns to Dallas, the Lakers are hoping to do what they’ve traditionally done and use their desperation to turn the tide of the series. If they’re going to do that, it’s going to have to start with Gasol on both ends of the floor. He’s going to have to step up his defense of Nowitzki, who has had his way with the Lakers, and he’s going to have to step up his own offensive game. Gasol had 13 points, 10 rebounds and five fouls in Game 2, which was consistent with the way he’s played throughout the postseason. Despite being a consistent 20/10 guy throughout most of his career the Lakers’ big man is managing just 13.6 points and 7.8 rebounds per game through eight playoffs games, and his efficiency is down across the board. Some of this can be attributed to the opposing defenses, of course, but watching Gasol play he just looks tired, and that’s a big problem for the Lakers.

"I wish I could have been more productive," Gasol said after the game. "I wish I could have been more effective. Some plays I should have finished better, but I tried my best."

No one’s counting the Lakers out of this series, but there are some troubling signs for LA. They’re in an 0-2 hole after two home games, but they’re also playing like a team that’s had too many miles on their bodies for the last three seasons. One of the big reasons that teams don’t make it to four Finals in a row is that it’s a heck of a lot of games to play, and bodies can only take so much pounding. It may just be that the Lakers have given all they have to give, and that a long summer is what they need to regain their energy  . . .and their edge.

Curry Wins Dumars Trophy

Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors is the recipient of the Joe Dumars Trophy presented to the 2010-11 NBA Sportsmanship Award winner, the NBA announced today.

The annual award reflects the ideals of sportsmanship — ethical behavior, fair play and integrity — in amateur and professional basketball, a key focus of the league’s NBA Cares program efforts. The trophy is named for former Detroit Pistons guard and Hall of Famer Joe Dumars, the award’s first recipient.

Optimism For Oden

Before Portland Trail Blazers fans get too excited about the talk regarding Greg Oden being 100% again in time for next season, it’s important to consider the source.

"He’s focused on keeping his weight down, getting back to figuring out how to stay healthy. I give him a lot of credit for staying motivated to get through all this," his agent, Mike Conley, Sr. told The Oregonian. "I know that he’ll play next year, and as long as he keeps his weight down, he’ll get back to being the Greg we knew, being able to run and jump and everything. The thing is keeping him healthy and give him the confidence to play without being scared."

We all want to believe these words of optimism. All of us, as basketball enthusiasts want to see a player with the enormous potential of a Greg Oden to get a chance to show what he can do, injury-free and pain-free. We want the same thing for Yao Ming, who was a site to see when he was healthy, once upon a time. But keep in mind, this quote is from Oden’s agent, and his agent is largely concerned with getting one more payday out of his client. The best way to do that is to paint a rosy picture and stir up interest, which isn’t hard to do in a league desperate for talented big men. If the Blazers won’t offer up a contract, maybe someone else will take a chance that Oden might get healthy and be a factor for another team.

Of course, if there was much chance of that, there’s absolutely no way the Blazers would let him walk away. Yet the feeling from Blazers GM Rich Cho is tepid, at best.

"Greg is 23, 7-feet, 280 pounds. It’s something to consider," said Cho, who was a little more hopeful when he spoke with HOOPSWORLD a little over a week ago:

{AUTHOR_BOX}"We’re hoping that Greg can come back and be that for us. I think if you can have a dominant center like Dwight Howard or Yao Ming before he got hurt or maybe Bynum or Greg Oden when he was healthy, it gives you a lot more of an advantage up front. There’s not a lot of those guys around, so if you can find one it gives you more of an advantage."

While all of those statements are true, none of them is committal.

Here’s the bottom line. If the Blazers feel even a sliver of hope that Oden will be able to take the court and be a contributor there is absolutely no chance they let him walk away. If, on the other hand, the Blazers don’t even make him a qualifying offer, it’s a pretty good sign that Oden’s playing days are over, no matter what his agent says.

We all want to see Greg Oden back on the NBA hardwood. We never want to see a young man’s career derailed before it even gets started. But all of the wishing and wanting in the world won’t help Oden’s knees. It may just be that history has repeated itself in Portland, and that, like Sam Bowie before him, Greg Oden simply won’t be able to live up to the promise he showed while inspiring the Blazers to make him a top overall draft pick.

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