The Mavericks’ quick dismissal of the Lakers in the Western Conference Semifinals booked Jason Kidd and his teammates a whole week off before the conference finals.
They took full advantage, getting the rest and building the game plan that would help them advance to the NBA Finals. As we continue Championship Week at JasonKidd.com, we break down the Mavericks’ victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2011 Western Conference Finals.
Western Conference Semifinals: Oklahoma City Thunder
Mavs win series 4-1
J-Kidd by the numbers: 9.6 ppg, 8.6 apg, 5.2 rpg, 3.4 spg.
The Conference Finals were billed as a classic battle of youth vs. experience and in this particular case, experience prevailed.
J-Kidd and the Mavs started the series strong with a 121-point performance in a Game 1 win (Getty Images).
In Game 1, the Mavs quickly put to bed any talk of rust from their week off, reeling off 121 points in the 121-112 win. J-Kidd played the part of assist man that he’s identified with throughout his career, dishing 11 dimes to give Dallas the edge. Dirk Nowitzki took full advantage of Jason’s assists, pouring in 48 points in the victory.
"The big thing is we’re playing as a team," Jason said after the opener. "Everybody is touching the ball. Defensively, everybody is helping out."
The Thunder came back to take Game 2 in Dallas, sending the series to Oklahoma City all even at one. But in Game 3 the Mavericks took the series lead right back, behind another starring performance from No. 2. Jason finished the pivotal victory with 13 points, eight assists, six rebounds and four steals.
"On our team he’s a superstar. That’s how important he is to us," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said of J-Kidd after Game 3. "He has the ability to process situations at a different and at a higher level than a lot of us.
"It’s part of his genius as a player and as a leader."
After a Game 2 setback, the Mavs finished the series with three straight wins, including two on the road in OKC (Getty Iamges).
The Mavericks drew on that genius again in Game 4 when they fell behind by 15 points late in the fourth quarter. Rather than give in, they listened to their leader and closed the game on a 17-2 run to get it overtime.
"In the playoffs, you can’t just throw in the towel," J-Kidd said, describing the mentality of his entire team. "We could have easily said, ‘Hey, we did our job, we won Game 3 and now we’re gonna go home with the split.’ But nobody ever hung their head. Nobody was complaining. We kept playing."
In that overtime period, No. 2 hit another clutch trey, a pump fake triple, which broke a 105-all tie. He added a pair of free throws down the stretch to secure the victory.
"I knew the ball was gonna end up to me," he said. "My job is to be able to knock down that shot…. People were talking about it reminded them of the Boston game in Boston, so I just got lucky that the ball went in."
The Mavs took the series back to Dallas and closed it out in five, with Jason making the little plays to come up big in the finale.
"We’ve got Jason Kidd, who has obviously seen it all in this league, who is one of the great leaders," Dirk Nowitzki said in explaining why the Mavs thrive in crunch time. "He always seems to make the right play down the stretch."
With their Western Conference title in hand, the Mavs headed off to the NBA Finals to take on the vaunted Miami Heat. It would be Jason’s first trip to the Finals in eight years and the third of his career. The third time would prove to be a charm.