Dallas Basketball

On This Day: Nowitzki, Mavs Complete Epic Finals Comeback vs. Heat

No matter how many years go by, we never get tired of watching the highlights from this 2011 NBA classic.
Dalton Trigg|
On This Day: Nowitzki, Mavs Complete Epic Finals Comeback vs. Heat
On This Day: Nowitzki, Mavs Complete Epic Finals Comeback vs. Heat

As the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics prepare to begin the NBA Finals on Thursday night, the Dallas Mavericks are forced watch from home after coming up short in the Western Conference Finals. However, Mavs fans can look back fondly on a very special Finals memory that happened on this day 11 years ago.

On June 2, 2011, the Mavs were attempting to tie things up against the star-studded Miami Heat after falling down 1-0 in the finals. In Game 2, things looked grim for Dallas, as it trailed by 15 points with just seven minutes remaining. However, from that moment on, the Mavs went on a 22-5 run to defeat the Heat, 95-93, capped off by a last-second Dirk Nowitzki layup.

The Mavs lost a closely contested Game 3 at American Airlines Center following their dramatic Game 2 win, but they didn't lose another game after that. Dallas went on to beat LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh – all of whom were in the primes of their careers – in six games.

Nowitzki went on to win Finals MVP with averages of 26 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists. Aside from his game-winning layup in Game 2 and perhaps hoisting the Larry O'Brien trophy after Game 6, Nowitzki's most memorable moment from the finals likely came in Game 4, as he led the Mavs to a 86-83 win despite having a 102-degree fever and a torn ligament in one of his fingers.

The Mavs obviously wish they were making more finals memories this year, but for now, looking back on one of the greatest finals runs in NBA history will have to suffice. With how dominant Luka Doncic has been through just four seasons in the league — he recently joined Wilt Chamberlain on an exclusive playoffs list — the Mavs might get to throw another parade sooner than people think.

"It's a blessing," said Doncic after earning his third All-NBA First Team selection in four years. "It's unbelievable, thanks to my teammates and coaching staff. The teamwork. I hope some day it's going to bring us a championship."

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Dalton Trigg
DALTON TRIGG

Dalton Trigg is the Editor-In-Chief for Dallas Basketball, as well as the Executive Editor overseeing Inside The Rockets, Inside The Spurs, All Knicks, and The Magic Insider. He is the founder and host for the Mavs Step Back Podcast, which is a proud part of the Blue Wire podcast network. Trigg graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi’s College of Business and Economic Development with a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship in 2016. After spending a few years with multiple Dallas Mavericks-related blogs, including SB Nation’s Mavs Moneyball, Trigg joined DallasBasketball.com as a staff writer in 2018 and never looked back. At the start of 2022, he was promoted to the EIC title he holds now. Through the years, Trigg has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, Mavs GM Nico Harrison, now-retired legend Dirk Nowitzki and many other current/former players and team staffers. Many of those interviews and other articles by Trigg have been aggregated by other well-known sports media websites, such as Yahoo Sports, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report and others. You can find Trigg on all major social media channels, but his most prevalent platform is on Twitter. Whether it’s posting links to his DBcom work, live-tweeting Mavs games or merely giving his opinions on things going on with Dallas and the rest of the NBA, the daily content never stops rolling. For any inquiries, please email Dalton@MavsStepBack.com.

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