NBA Update: Substitutes are stepping it up this post season
This year, the NBA playoffs are showcasing a new trend that is proving to be quite a hit - impact from the bench. The post season has seen some thrilling games from players coming off the bench and at the moment they are making
all the difference. The Conference Finals continue to witness inspirational plays from the reserves that have time and again tilted the balance in their team’s favour.
The importance of contribution from the bench cannot be overstated and most of the team’s that have made it to the conference finals wouldn’t have done so without game changing plays from the bench. Asked about the importance of
the bench, Dallas Mavericks super star Dirk Nowitzki simply said, "That's the X-factor,"
It certainly has been an X-Factor for the Mavs. Although their charge is led by the indomitable Dirk Nowitzki, he regularly receives invaluable assistance from the bench. Dallas have one of the deepest rosters in the league, even
with Caron Butler out injured. The Mavs have had sizeable contributions from Peja Stojakovic, Jose Barea, Brandon Haywood and Jason Terry, who all come off the bench. Terry has been extremely effective and has the highest point’s average of a bench player
left in the playoffs. The demolition of the two-time NBA champions, the Los Angeles Lakers, in game-4 of the sweep was a particular highlight of Terry’s prowess.
Dallas’ opponents in the Western Conference Finals, the Oklahoma City (OKC) Thunder are also laden with a fair amount of talent on the bench. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook lead the way for the Thunder, but they were put in
the shade by the reserves in their only win in the conference finals so far. Eric Maynor and James Harden were particularly decisive that night and dominated so much that 4 of the starters had to sit out almost the whole of the final period in game-2.
Kevin Durant recently admitted to the significance of the reserves in the series, "Well, we know if we want to go as far as we want to go, we're going to need our bench," the Thunder star said. "That's a big part of this league.
Dallas has a great bench, so we want to kind of offset theirs and kind of give them a battle."
In the Eastern Conference the benches are also playing their part in a gruelling contest. In contrast to the high scoring series in the West, the East is all about grinding and battling to get the win. As such, both benches have
provided the spark to their respective teams that have led to wins for each.
Game-1 saw a pumped up Taj Gibson destroy the Miami Heat’s spirit with some nasty dunks as he gave Chicago Bulls the edge that saw them march to victory in emphatic fashion. Then in game-2, Udonis Haslem made his comeback from
a long injury layoff to provide 13 points and several energy plays in the third quarter. His effort saw Miami stay in the contest just long enough for LeBron James to take over in the fourth and secure a road win for the Heat.
Chicago’s coach touched on the subject of bench strength as he praised Haslem’s performance against his team, "When you get to this point of the season, when there's four teams left, usually they're well-balanced teams and there's
quality depth on those teams," Tom Thibodeau said Sunday. "I think it's shown out.”
The high intensity being shown in the playoffs and with super star starters in all four teams, the NBA Champions might be decided by the battle of the benches.
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