Mavs 93, Clips 84: The Damp And Hump Show

Mike Fisher -- DB.com

   The best center on the floor on Saturday in LA wasn’t a Maverick; not even close, really, as Chris Kaveman looked mobile, athletic and gifted for the Clippers. He was marvelously creative on offense, he was a shot-challenger on defense and he asserted his leadership skills in trying to get LAC its first win.

    "People who have played basketball, people who know basketball, they know what I contribute here,'' Damp said to me the other day. ...

  And after three games, he's making his point.

  So is Humphries, who is working to back up his DB.com signature quote: “If you put me on the floor, I will be a plus on the floor.’’

   The Mavs moved to 2-1 overall with the back-to-back roadies at Staples Center. On Friday, they registered a rare 94-80 victory over the Lakers as they held the champs to 39.5-percent shooting. Here, the Clippers had their one weapon, Kaman, who had a career-best game with 27 whirling-dervish points, with 11 rebounds, three assists and two blocks. But overall, blue-clad Dallas limited LAC to 42-percent shooting, befuddled the chumps with BBIQ genius from Jason Kidd and others, forced 21 turnovers, held the Clippers to just 29 second-half points and held them scoreless in the final 4:42 of the game, and were in many ways powered by the unlikely duo of Damp and Hump.

   Oh, Dirk Nowitzki did his thing, with 24 points. Jason Terry was good for 16 (and to his credit, tried to take the ball to the hole, only to be whistled twice for dubious offensive-foul calls). Shawn Marion (16 points, 11 rebounds) is demonstrating a knack for showing up big late; in all three Mavs games, his best quarters have been his fourth quarters). And as I mentioned, the intellectual difference between the two teams was stunning. While Kidd captured a bushel of offensive rebounds in the final minutes to keep the Clippers from even getting any more possessions, coach Mike Dunleavy’s fellas played at a level of dunderheadedness rarely seen in the NBA …

    Except with the Clippers.

      Yes, the Clippers are missing No. 1 overall pick Blake Griffin with a knee injury. But consider the evidence of intellectual incompetence:

      *Craig Smith’s late-game attempt at fast-break alley-oop pass … which would’ve been an important conversion at the time … that landed in one of the many empty seats.

      *Kareem Rush's kick-out pass that landed so far out of bounds that it seemed he was simply engaging in a shotput contest with Craig Smith.

      *Sebastian Telfair’s four-foul-shot foul to end the half. He hammered Jason Terry on a desperation 3 and then got a T for bitching about it. Dirk hit the technical free throw and then Jet hit all three of his and the Mavs were suddenly tied 55-all at the half.

     *Baron Davis, one of this league’s most preeminent fraudulent “stars,’’ did two impactful things.One, he decided to elbow Humphries from behind after a Mavs basket … and then kept elbowing him right off the floor. That’s a T. Two, he disappeared from the floor in the second half … literally. He played just 19 seconds in the period before going off to film a movie or do whatever it is “BD’’ does in LA.

    “BD was getting some treatment on his leg, anyway,’’ said Dunleavy, unconvincingly.

     *Veteran Marcus Camby disappeared, too. Maybe that’s because he has a bum ankle. … or maybe it’s just because this is the Clippers and that -- disappearing oddly -- is what they do.

     The Clips are 0-4. They are the only team in the NBA with four losses. They are the Clippers and they will always be the Clippers.
     Meanwhile, the Mavs performed like a team that’s been here before … though in terms of going 2-0 on an LA road trip, the Mavs have never been there before.

    “We found out last night (Friday against the Lakers) that we can play defense,’’ Kidd said. “And that carried over to tonight.’’
    Props to Damp here. The first thing the Mavs did upon starting training camp was announce that he wouldn’t be a starter anymore. (Much to his surprise.) He is considered trade fodder, he is The DUST Chip, he is destined for places unknown, he is unloved.

    But he has also been pretty damn good in these first three games – all of which he’s started. In the loss to Washington, Damp was 2-of-2 with six rebounds and eight points. He was quite capable in the Lakers game, matching Andrew Bynum with his 3-of-5 shooting, 10 rebounds and eight points. And against the Clippers, while Kaman was going nuts, Damp was energetically challenging every shot (notice Rick Carlisle never pulled Damp off the assignment) and was still putting up numbers of his own: 12 points, 6-of-10 shooting, 10 rebounds, three blocks.

    Add it up: Three games, and Damp is a double-double kinda guy, has five blocks, is shooting 65 percent, and merits being on the floor even as his opposite number is having a career night.

    Drew Gooden – who was supposed to be the new-and-improved starter – has so far just been “new.’’ Gooden was ineffective in the Washington game, sustained a muscle strain near his rib cage in the Lakers game, and did not dress for the Clippers game.

   Enter Kris Humphries, the “thrown-in’’ in the Marion acquisition, who promised DB.com readers that if some coach in this league would actually play him, he would perform at a high level.

    “I will be a plus on the floor.’’

     Advantage, Mr. Humphries.

     He is not a center by trade, but he is getting by with a combination of impressive fundamentals and surprising athleticism. Oh, and some bad-assedness. On Friday he baited Kobe Bryant into a T. On Saturday, his backside somehow offended Baron Davis’ elbow.

   Humphries was 4-of-8 for nine points with six rebounds, all crowded into 19 minutes. He continues to be unafraid to shoot the jumper ... which I guess is good ... but it's even better when he uses the ball-fake to lead to a dunk and an assist ... which I guess is even better.

    Kaman put on quite a show for a Mavs community that has frequently flirted with the idea of trading for him. Damp and Hump put on a show for a Mavs community in which they are largely unloved and unknown. And the Mavs smartly found a way to be the 2009-10 season's winningest team at the Staples Center.