Jeff Caplan: ESPN Dallas/Forth Worth: “Dallas Mavericks defensive specialist DeShawn Stevenson believes LeBron James is spending a lot of time thinking about the Mavs’ trio of defenders that have limited him to less than 20 points in three consecutive games for the first time in his playoff career.”
Jaime Aron: Yahoo Sports: “Dirk Nowitzki said Saturday that Dwyane Wade and LeBron James were “a little childish, a little ignorant” in a video that appears to show them mocking the Mavericks star’s recent illness. Wade said he really did cough and turned it into a generic joke because cameras were rolling. He and James blamed others for trying to make a big deal out of it. The video taken by the CBS affiliate in Dallas-Fort Worth shows Wade walking alongside James following a shootaround the morning of Game 5 of the NBA finals. Wade coughs, then says, “Did you hear me cough? Think I’m sick.”
Tim MacMahon: ESPN Dallas/Fort Worth: “One more win over the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals would clinch the Mavericks’ first championship. A team that has won six of its previous seven road games, including a comeback from 15 points down in the fourth quarter of Game 2, believes it will finish the journey in Sunday night’s Game 6.”
Matt Moore: Pro Basketball Talk: “There’s a lot of scrutiny on LeBron James’ intangibles. How much effort he’s put in during these Finals. How much patience. How much intensity. How much focus. Is his head right? It goes on and on and on, ignoring the fact that the Mavericks have game-planned for James about as well as you can. They’ve been aggressive in their double once he puts the ball on the floor, challenged him with charge opportunities, attacked his dribble, and forced him away from his tendencies.”