Times wires
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
DALLAS — On the eve of Game 5 in the NBA Finals, Mavericks guard DeShawn Stevenson directed sharp words toward LeBron James, saying Wednesday that the Heat star "checked out" in the final minutes of Game 4 the night before.
"That's good for us," Stevenson said after practice.
James had just eight points Tuesday — the first time in 90 career playoff games he was held to single digits in scoring — as Dallas won 86-83.
Stevenson isn't worried about the perception of his comments, either.
James was unbothered, at least outwardly, by his latest give-and-take with Stevenson with the series tied at 2.
"DeShawn, he's been talking for a long time, since our Washington-Cleveland days," James said. "I don't let that get to us. Those guys are playing well. We're playing well. It's a three-game series. Talk is cheap."
Stevenson said the Miami players are still getting to know each other, that James wasn't himself in Game 4 and that the two-time MVP is "talented enough that he can use anything in the paper to kind of boost his ego."
James teammate Dwyane Wade didn't sound worried. "Eventually," Wade said, "he's going to do something amazing, and it's going to put us over the top."
Tonight is James' next chance.
"I think it's that time," said James, who was more than 20 points below his career playoff average Tuesday. "I think it's that time that I try to get myself going individually."
In the Finals, James has nine points in the fourth quarter. To put that in perspective, Dallas star Dirk Nowitzki had 10 in the final quarter of Game 4 alone.
"I didn't play well, especially offensively. I know that," James said. "I've got to do a better job of helping this team win basketball games, especially late, no matter what it is."
BARKLEY BATTLE: TNT analyst Charles Barkley took more shots at the Heat and its fans on an ESPN radio show.
"Listen, if the Miami Heat were playing the Washington Generals, I would pick the Washington Generals," Barkley said with a chuckle. "It's something about that team that annoys me. They're just a whiny bunch, and I can't root for them."
The Hall of Famer, asked if Miami is the worst professional sports town, said: "Yeah, they have the worst fans. No question. It's not even loud in there."
Barkley again said he admired Heat stars Wade and James.
RATINGS GAME: The series is averaging 15,536,000 viewers through four games, the most-watched Finals in seven years, according to Nielsen. Game 4 drew a 9.6 overnight rating (percentage of all TVs) and 16,126,000 viewers.